Life Lessons from Music Practice: The Song Your Life Sings

These are my notes  and thoughts from my devotional talk at our Ladies Church Fellowship on Tuesday night.  Similar posts are on my FB music page as well.  

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Ladies Summer Fellowship                                             July 5, 2011

Intro—about me, my blog

Life Lessons from Music Practice:  The Song Your Life Sings 

Have you ever seen the movie Mr. Holland’s Opus?  It is one of my favorites.  It's the story of a man whose life turned out not as he had originally planned or expected.  He had wanted to be a professional musician, famous for writing an opus [an artistic work, usually on a large scale, written one note at a time], but instead, day by day, throughout the years had an incredible impact on his high school music students.  The final scene of the movie is a surprise for him where hundreds of his former students come together at his forced retirement to remind him just what his life has meant to them--they are his living opus.  Watch the scene at THIS LINK.   It's about 10 minutes but so worth seeing.  Get your tissues ready. It makes me cry every time I see it.   The impact of one ordinary life...  It's especially touching to me being a piano teacher, but also in the sense that each of us lives our lives the same way.  Day by day, year by year, wondering if we have made a difference.  

We are each like individual pieces of music with impact on others who become OUR opus. 

1.  Solo, duet or chorus?

1Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.

Have one person sing a single line from a song,  then all sing the same thing together.

How did you feel?  Solo was a little scary, wasn’t it? But the chorus together was fun.   [Kelly was our brave volunteer for the solo.  :)]

How do you do life?  How about your job? Or your ministry? Do you prefer to go it alone? Or with others?

In our little vocalization, you may have preferred the solo (especially if you are a really good singer).  Those who are not so gifted probably felt MORE comfortable with a good singer near them and singing as a group.  What you prefer is not so much the issue as stretching you a bit to being aware of others and including them  in your life (not all the time, of course).   Even if, probably ESPECIALLY if, they are not as gifted or polished or whatever adjective you are (or think you are).  The impact, influence, encouragement and strength we receive from one another go both ways—TO you and FROM you. Sometimes intentional, more often, unintentional, at least to the giver. We occasionally wonder does my life really make a difference to anyone?  Rest assured, it DOES.  Like George Bailey in  It’s  A Wonderful Life.

2.  Music skills

Psalm 33:3 Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy.

Even accomplished musicians have to practice to keep up their skills which can get rusty over time.  Practice does not make perfect, only God is perfect. But it can make an excellent, masterful or adequate performance of a piece. (Thank you, Kaye, for reminding me of this.)

We all need each other.  In life, we don’t need to “perform” for people although I’m sure some of us probably do on occasion (myself included) but  practice your manner with other people, check yourself or have another friend check you re: your tongue or your dress or  more importantly, your spiritual maturity.  Sometimes this can be  a bit awkward and usually permission is needed to address someone in these areas.  You can’t just go up to anyone and say you look like you could use some spiritual guidance or  that comment was not appropriate or your dress is too revealing (PC just wrote a blog post about that one).  

But you CAN if you have developed a relationship with that person which is what can begin at a place like this.  No one has this down pat.  We all need work on our people skills.  Let your life song flow but with the constant renewing of your mind in the Word [Romans 12:2] so that what flows is fresh living water that gives each other life, rather than stagnant or distasteful water which harms.  Have you even been in the Word today? Practice by spending time regularly with the Lord and His thoughts and ways will become yours.

3.  The Conductor / Coach

A good conductor is invaluable, particularly in a group of singers and/or instrumentalists.  He/she directs you as to when to play together, when to adjust the tempo and the volume, when to end simultaneously...musicians who have worked with the same conductor for awhile can read his eyes and face and recognize what he means even with the slightest movement of his hands/baton.  He can pick out a misplayed note from the hundreds that he hears at once.

Colossians 4:5-6 Conduct yourselves with wisdom...making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

Let the Lord and the time in His Word be your Conductor so that you will know how to most effectively respond to others.   The Holy Spirit will teach you what to say or do that will have the most impact on those we live with, those we work with, those we occasionally and regularly see in a given week.  He will also show us where we have offended another as well.  Our actions and words show the song that is in our hearts more  than we realize.  This includes the words we speak to ourselves.  Give yourself some grace, too.    Sometimes more salt, sometimes less... [Col. 4:6]  

4.  Going through the motions vs. Interpretation

What a difference between musicians that play notes and those that make you can feel the music.  It's like night and day.  Someone told me once that I make the piano sing.  Ever since then I try to play as though the piano is an extension of me and my heart and voice.   The same holds true for the song in your heart that is "played" for others.

Cynthia Clawson recorded a beautiful CD many years ago titled Hymnsinger.  She is singing about the Lord having shown the great hymnwriters of the faith the lyrics and music that has lasted hundreds of years.  I think these words also apply to the Ancient Words in Scripture as well.   The song Hymns has this as its refrain:

Composer of my soul

Show me all You show to them

The hymnwriter, hymnsinger

Let me know their eloquence

Let me share their offering

Put the notes in my heart,

The lyrics on my lips,

And let the essence of my life

Be a song that others will want to sing

What does your "song"  sound like to others? What are they hearing / seeing in you?

What will your completed opus look like?

If Mr. Holland had been a Christian, can you imagine the eternal  difference he would have made in all those students over his lifetime?

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Life Lessons from Music Practice:  The Song Your Life Sings

... And let the essence of my life

Be a song that others will want to sing

·      In any given week, list as many “others” as you can that you interact / spend time with (even a little time) either verbally, textually or in person.

·      What is the song [the essence of your life] that you want others  to sing and do you think your “tone” helps them to want to sing it?  Use your list and those you interact with for this.

·      Think of specific ideas for each other to encourage, build up, make a difference, model His song, in each of these solo, duet or chorus situations (#2 above.) Help each other to “sing beautifully”.

·      Pray for each other.