Is it ever enough?

I was looking for some guitar tabs online for the Canon in D Major. I printed them and started practicing. Running through the notes, I began to get frustrated that there were so many notes, such a fast tempo, and the fact that it printed on multiple pages so I couldn't just look from one page to the next, that I had to flip them over.

Thinking to save myself some time, and make things simpler, I started to change the notes. Writing down places I could shave off a few, and slowing things down a bit. I tried my best to make it all fit onto one page. After an hours work, I was done. Ink dripping off my pen, shining on my music notebook. I had condensed four pages into one, and constructed just a simple line. But something wasn't right. The song sounded off, lacking that something it originally had. It wasn't satisfying to play. It wasn't what the composer had in mind.

Do you ever feel like I did? Not liking how things have been laid out, and rushing to grab your pen and notebook in order to "make it better"? What we end up with is always a mere shadow of what the original was. A cheap imitation. You see, Johann Pachelbell had a specific idea for his Canon in D. He wanted those "extra" notes, and when all is said and done, it is a beautiful, intricate song.

Did it ever occur to you that God is our "composer"? As it says in Romans 8:28,

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

God weaves occurences in our lives for his benefit, to the greater glory of his name. He predestines our lives just as a composer plans for certain notes to be played. He knows everything, is everywhere, and always has been, is, and will be. Yet, for some reason, we sometimes feel like I did while playing through music, and jump to say "God, this is too hard" or "God, you did this part wrong, it should really be like this". We doubt the perfect plan of God, and scorn his hand moving to make his intricate song in our lives. I want to challenge us all, myself included, to allow God full control of our lives, and allow him to write his song. We have no right to second guess God, and yet we still do. I hope we all resist the temptation to grab our pens and "fix" his work.

So now, I ask you, will God's work ever be enough? Or will you always try to change the notes he's written for you?

δούλος of Christ, welcome

Hello all! Welcome to the first post in what I hope becomes a long and healthy series of posts that provide some more reflection upon the thoughts listed on storiesfromtheloft.blogspot.com and, occasionally, some more in-depth analysis. They'll probably have my little twist on them, but maybe that's beneficial to you. However, in an aside from what this blog will most commonly be about, I thought I should write about a concept that I find to be of great importance in the Christian walk. In a book given to me by pastor Jason called Worship Matters: Leading Others To Encounter The Greatness Of God, there is a concept brought up that is of great importance. This first bit of wisdom is that the "mind and heart belong together." That is, what the mind dwells upon and pours over, what one enjoys the most, what one is passionate about and what one feels depressed without, what one fears losing the most reveals the hearts intent. I want to ask, are your mind and heart in conflict? Saying you search for one thing and your actions reveal otherwise? I know I struggle with this, and others do as well. Using one of Chris' great examples, do you try to fit God into a box and not allow him to encompass your whole life, heart mind an soul? I ask this because if you truly are a δούλος of Christ, then it is really his life, not yours. In keeping with this idea that you are a slave to Christ and your life is his, your speech, conduct, and love should be used by you to change the world around you, and express your relationship with Christ in everyday life. No one will know you are a δούλος of Christ unless your words and actions demonstrate this. For junior highers, I am making a specific reference to the parable brought to us this night by Ted about building the house on rock or on sand. I hope you keep these things in mind, and I hope that we all truly act like the δούλος of Christ that we are.