Let My Heart Not Be Silent…: The Stories Behind the Songs

By Janet Souleyrette

So trust in Him, just hang on, and don’t let go.
He has a plan; He has a plan for you.

When we let go of how we perceive everything should be and just go in trust to wherever God leads, we become free to be who He created us to be.

In an inspiring devotional she was called by God to write, Janet Souleyrette shares twelve original praise songs and the stories behind them to illustrate an amazing journey of God’s unchanging faithfulness. Through her songs, testimonies, and applicable scripture, Janet reminds believers to trust and obey in His unfailing love and immeasurable grace, and to wholeheartedly follow the still small voice that speaks in gentle whispers to remind us of His plan for us and our divine purpose. Included are several additional short stories and lessons learned.

Let My Heart Not Be Silent is a collection of original praise songs and the stories behind them that lead believers on an introspective journey within to renew their trust in God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 5, 2022
• ISBN: 9781664267893

Janet Souleyrette

Janet Souleyrette grew up with music playing in her home all the time. On February 20, 2009, she gave her life to Jesus. Today, she continues to write and enjoy praise music, and considers it an integral part of her spiritual journey. Let My Heart Not Be Silent is her first book.

Book preview

CONTENTS

Author’s Note: The Call

Foreword

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1:     I’m Laying It Down

Chapter 2:     A Song For Alex

Chapter 3:     A Blessing In Disguise: A Song Is Born

Chapter 4:     A Season Of Sorrow

Chapter 5:     So Amazing The Mountains He Moves

Chapter 6:     An Open Door

Chapter 7:     Just Wanna See Hagen Today

Chapter 8:     The Biopsy

Chapter 9:     Give Yourself Permission To Rest So You Can Give God Your Best

Chapter 10:   An All-In Surrender

Chapter 11:   A Season Of Separation

Chapter 12:   The Promise Of Deliverance

Part Two: A Collection Of Short Stories

The Yoga Story

Every Step, Every Breath

The Story Of Surrounded By Your Lovin’ Arms Of Grace

More Than Anything I Could Have Ever Planned Or Dreamed!

Inexpressible Joy: The Charles Novell School Of Music 2015

Willie Makes Another Appearance

Lessons Learned On This Amazing Journey!

Acknowledgments

That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

—Psalm 30:12 (New American

Standard Bible 1995)

AUTHOR’S NOTE: THE CALL

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.

—John 16:13

On February 7, 2017, at 11:04 in the morning, my sweet friend Barb called to give me a message: Hi, Janet. I love you and miss you and … I have a message for you. From Jeremiah 30:2 in the New International Version of the Bible, it says, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you.’ … Love you! Bye!

Okay, wow. That call was, without a doubt, a clear message from God. It was the third time in the past twenty-four hours that Jeremiah 30:2 (NIV) had not only been shown to me and given as a command, it was now literally being spoken aloud to me.

The first time was when I was so persistently and relentlessly determined that one way or another, I was going to finish the lyrics to this one particular song—a song I’d been trying to finish for so long for a CD project I had planned.

Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, For I know the plans I have for you, and that’s when God stepped in with the command to stop. In other words, God’s message was a clear expression of Psalm 46:10 (NASB1995) and Matthew 11:28 to "Cease striving, and just Come to me, and I will give you rest." Both are soul-essential scripture verses that my heart and soul were obviously in need of and that my dear sweet friend Barb quite often has to remind me of.

I knew exactly from Whom and where that Jeremiah 30:2 (NIV) message was coming because the rest of the command was to, Put all of the songs and the stories behind them in a book along with my other short stories, and then take them specifically to the Charles Novell School of Music in Murray, Kentucky, and to whomever else I was led to. Wow, this passage from Jeremiah, has impacted my life in ways that I still can’t comprehend. As for the music school in Murray, all I can say is, If you love Jesus, and you love music, you will love it! It will impact your life in ways you could have never dreamed or imagined.

The second time Jeremiah 30:2 (NIV) was given to me in that twenty-four-hour period was when I was down on my knees putting in a load of laundry, still thinking about that command. I was gently nudged to turn around and check on my stovetop’s digital clock. Sure, enough, it was 3:02. Now, this may not make much sense to you, but I knew what it meant. Jeremiah 30:2 (NIV) once again. I knew God had once again sent me this message, just as Psalm 23:6 taught me: Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life. God, in all His love and goodness, was persistently guiding me.

That’s just how the Holy Spirit guides me into all truth, by relating scripture to time. It still blows my mind every time how God will lead me to the truth through the very thing with which I struggle most. I don’t know what it takes some days for God to get my attention or why I can be so slow in doing what I know He is asking me to do, because, truthfully, it is not in my best interest, nor does it benefit me in the least to keep struggling with obedience or keep saying, Okay, God, give me a minute. All that does is spiritually empty me, flat-out wear me out physically, emotionally drain me dry, and rob me of all the joy that awaits. I am learning to drop everything distracting me so that I don’t miss out on what all God has for me.

Because around 1:57 p.m., as I stood facing the bathroom mirror, I was still in a state of awe, repeating, Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you. I heard, and this time it was so very clear and from deep within, as if the Holy Spirit was speaking directly to my soul.

So you can show others the goodness of God. Wow, it was like literally living out the promise in John 16:13 and experiencing the words that I am now so faithfully reminded of. Words that Sean Ryan, one of my pastors, always prayed in his beautiful prayers each week. If the Holy Spirit speaks, then nothing else matters, and if the Holy Spirit doesn’t speak, then, LORD, nothing else matters. These words ring so very true because the Holy Spirit guides us into all truth, and I already knew that passage of scripture: 1 Peter 2:9: But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

I had been shown that scripture over and over so many times in the past few days in so many different ways. Just as above, by being nudged to check the time, whether at home or in my car while driving down the road. Without fail. It could even be on a sign somewhere or the numbers of a license plate right in front of me because God is without a doubt always with me and faithfully reminds me of His promises wherever I go. His goodness and unfailing love most certainly pursue me all the days of my life. I believe that’s how the Holy Spirit guides and speaks in such uniquely and different ways to each of us. The scripture tells us this over and over, as in 1 Corinthians 12:4: There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all.

The Word repeats this sentiment in 1 Corinthians 12:6–7, saying, God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

I absolutely love how God always gives us just what we need so faithfully, when we need, calling back the words of 1 Thessalonians 5:24: God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful.

FOREWORD

When I sit down at our meal table each day, I look out over my wife’s garden, the forested area behind it, and listen to the stream that flows below within its banks. I see the break of day as well as the close of day.

That is what it is like reading Janet’s book, Let My Heart Not Be Silent. I have known Janet for more than fourteen years, and I have watched her blossom and grow in her faith. She expresses her thoughts as she has navigated through life with God. She does not hesitate to share the storms of her life but also the mountaintop experiences. But through it all, her love and devotion to God is so very evident. She is for real.

You are not reading a treatise of theology, nor an academic approach to faith, but you are reading her heart as it has been touched by God’s Spirit. When you sit and read this, picture yourself walking with Janet in her conversations with God and with those she loves. You will become part of her journey and will love every minute of it.

Grace and peace,

Rev. Dr. Quentin Scholtz

Servants’ Servant Ministry

1 John 4:19

PREFACE

I have often been asked my purpose in writing this book and what I am hoping to accomplish with its publication. Honestly, there are layers of laboring that go into fully answering that question. My number-one purpose would simply be because God called me to write, and I don’t want to miss a single thing on this amazing journey that He planned for [me] long ago (Ephesians 2:10). Even though I must confess there are still so many days when I just wrestle with it all—encompassed in doubt, I spend so much of my