Last night was Morgan’s first official band concert! She was so excited – and looked so beautiful!
The 6th graders did an awesome job – especially since many, Morgan included, had never played an instrument before two months ago. It was amazing how far they have come since the beginning of the year. The expectation of the 7th graders was higher than that of the beginning band – and they held nothing back! They did an excellent job – even performing an 8th grade level song wonderfully. The 8th graders had a very tough act to follow, and unfortunately, they had a very rough night. They just didn’t seem to have it together, and they were devastated. Now this group can play brilliantly! I’ve heard them play flawlessly in the past, but on this particular night, they had a hard time getting in sync – but they finally did and had an awesome ending to a wonderful evening!
Why am I telling you this? Our walk with God is very similar to the path of the concert. The expectation of the beginning band wasn’t very high – and when they performed well, we were impressed. The higher the level, the greater the expectation. When a person decides to turn their heart over to Jesus – whether a child or an adult – it’s not an automatic transformation where everything lines up with God’s plan. It’s a journey. The ‘new Christian’ is expected to stumble and struggle as they grow in their faith. As that person grows in faith, the expectations are higher. We expect the leaders in the church to perform flawlessly – and not falter like someone who is new in their faith.
But is that really the case?? No! We all have bad days. We all have days where we are out of sync with God – no matter how strong in our faith, no matter how many years we’ve studied the Bible – we still have days where we just can’t pull it together.
I did say that the 8th graders pulled it together – but how??
The Band Director said “STOP”. There was about a 3 second pause, and he said “Begin”. When the band began, they were right on time, right in sync, and it sounded beautiful. Ok, Michele – how does that help me?!?!?! Well, here’s how!
Just as the band could only pull it together when they stopped and started over, sometimes that is the only way we can get back on track with God. Sometimes, we lose focus, we lose patience, and before we know it we are so far off the path of God, we don’t know how to get back. If we just keep walking, we stay on the same path – our path. If we STOP – take a deep breath – and let God take control, it is much easier to get in sync with God.
And everyone must STOP! Sometimes we get to the point where we make ourselves stop – ‘Ok, I’ve had enough – God – help me!” Other times something forces us to stop – a sudden death, a tragedy – or maybe a birth or a miraculous recovery. Those are the times we feel like God has hit us over the head with a 2x4 – and say ‘oooohhhhh, ok God, I get it!’ Regardless of how we stop – we all do! God has lots of stop signs along his path – and if we run too many of them, he’ll slow us down!
Do you think the Deacons go on retreats just to eat good food and listen to Jan play the harp? Well, yes … but there’s more than that! The retreat is an opportunity for this group to say STOP – regroup, refocus, and renew – come home and begin again, confident that the path we are on is one that God has laid before us.
Through this Christmas season, there is a great amount of love and joy – but there is also a great amount of stress and anxiety. This is the perfect time to stop, take a deep breath, and say “Ok, God, You are in control!”
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