As we wrap up this year we recognize that the air is still breathable and the water drinkable. For sure these are the two most important resources in the sustenance of life on earth. As we exited 2009 and entered 2010 we did it much like we did the year before and the year before that……with a desire to make a fresh start and put aside old habits and start new and better patterns in our life that would lead to a more productive end of 2009. How did that work out? I would like to ask a bigger question – is the music still playing?
We all have a song inside us and music is the expression of that song. Some have been blessed to write lyrics and others compose the melody. There are many others that can play the melody on a musical instrument and others sing the lyrics and melody at the same time. It seems to be a huge part of the expression of our life and symbolizes the spirit that lives within us. The truth is if you have no musical talent at all you have access to thousands if not millions of tunes through the internet.
In just a few clicks you can pull up an old tune you heard when you were a child or young adult that marked a significant event or time in your life. That song is embedded in your mind and spirit whether or not you are conscience of it at any given time. It only takes a few seconds once you hear the music for the flood of emotions and the memories of those cherished moments roll. Regardless of how tough life was there was a song that helped you get through it giving you strength and rebuilding your esteem and drive to carry on.
As we wrap up the year and begin a new one, it is obvious from reading and listening to many of my Facebook friends that there were some who lost loved ones, others separation and divorce, others found themselves in a fight for their lives and many who are struggling to make it financially in a troubled economy. One thing I am sure about is the music is still playing. Let me encourage you to play uplifting songs that builds you up and doesn’t extend your pain. Life is too short to dwell in the painful moments. After all, that breath you just took is living proof that you are supposed to be here and God has a plan for your life. He put the music inside you and although circumstances tried to rob you of your joy you can sing a new song. I will sing a new song to you, my God; on the ten-stringed lyre I will make music to you Psalm 144:9
Is the music still playing? I would say that it is but you have to select the tune and push play. Take the music off pause. If you’ve never sung a new song do it today. It’s cleansing and frees the soul. There is a merciful and loving God who longs to hear the song in your heart. May you have a blessed New Year and a song of encouragement sustain you in 2011.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Ice Cold Water
Ice Cold Water
It doesn’t take a lot to make us thirsty. On any given day we get thirsty because our body is telling us that we need to re-hydrate. Oddly enough we usually go for a beverage that does little or no good for hydration and we know that but the urge to drink that cold coca cola is bursting forth in our minds. Yes! So refreshing!
It wasn’t all that long ago when we loaded up our ice chest with everything but water. Why? Because it was packaged that way and it was so easy…..just buy your favorite drinks in a bottle or can and ice down. Water wasn’t so much available in these convenient forms, it was FREE right out of the tap right?
A classic image I have in my memory is those times when we would be at Mama and Papa’s sitting outside under the shade tree on a hot day. My grandmother would bring out these clear, glass canning jars with ice cold water. So cold there would be beads of water running down the sides. I can hear the ice cubes bouncing against the side of the jar as she brought them over to where we sat. Then I can remember my dad and Papa taking one of those quart jars and downing it in what seemed like a single gulp. Now that was thirst quenching!
Another image I have is my grandmother, Mama, asking just about anyone in the vicinity if they’d like a drink. That was just her way! She’d even ask a customer she didn’t know at their shop next door to their house if they wanted an ice cold “glass” of water. Common hospitality? Maybe but on a hot day you didn’t usually have someone hesitate. The answer was quick and to the point….SURE, if you don’t mind!
I miss those simpler days when we felt comfortable asking a stranger if they’d like a drink. Now, we may offer them a bottle of water but it’s not the same. It was more personal and intimate when we offered someone a drink in a glass fruit jar. The same can be true for the living water that abides in us. Have you received that living water today? Are you thirsty for more of what life has to offer than the impersonal idea that we are all just derivatives of a process of evolution? Do you seemingly drift thru this life without a purpose or someone or something to worship? Jesus said that if anyone “thirst” he would give them living water that truly satisfies. Not superficially but from the “inside out” in a way that hydrates the inner man and overflows onto others. That’s the kind of thirst quenching water I want in my life. How about you?
It doesn’t take a lot to make us thirsty. On any given day we get thirsty because our body is telling us that we need to re-hydrate. Oddly enough we usually go for a beverage that does little or no good for hydration and we know that but the urge to drink that cold coca cola is bursting forth in our minds. Yes! So refreshing!
It wasn’t all that long ago when we loaded up our ice chest with everything but water. Why? Because it was packaged that way and it was so easy…..just buy your favorite drinks in a bottle or can and ice down. Water wasn’t so much available in these convenient forms, it was FREE right out of the tap right?
A classic image I have in my memory is those times when we would be at Mama and Papa’s sitting outside under the shade tree on a hot day. My grandmother would bring out these clear, glass canning jars with ice cold water. So cold there would be beads of water running down the sides. I can hear the ice cubes bouncing against the side of the jar as she brought them over to where we sat. Then I can remember my dad and Papa taking one of those quart jars and downing it in what seemed like a single gulp. Now that was thirst quenching!
Another image I have is my grandmother, Mama, asking just about anyone in the vicinity if they’d like a drink. That was just her way! She’d even ask a customer she didn’t know at their shop next door to their house if they wanted an ice cold “glass” of water. Common hospitality? Maybe but on a hot day you didn’t usually have someone hesitate. The answer was quick and to the point….SURE, if you don’t mind!
I miss those simpler days when we felt comfortable asking a stranger if they’d like a drink. Now, we may offer them a bottle of water but it’s not the same. It was more personal and intimate when we offered someone a drink in a glass fruit jar. The same can be true for the living water that abides in us. Have you received that living water today? Are you thirsty for more of what life has to offer than the impersonal idea that we are all just derivatives of a process of evolution? Do you seemingly drift thru this life without a purpose or someone or something to worship? Jesus said that if anyone “thirst” he would give them living water that truly satisfies. Not superficially but from the “inside out” in a way that hydrates the inner man and overflows onto others. That’s the kind of thirst quenching water I want in my life. How about you?
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Resonation of the Heart
Over the years I’ve had many people come up to me and say things like, “there’s something about your tone” or “you have a unique sound”. In fact, I was only a couple of weeks into learning to play the clarinet when my instructor, Mr. Tommy Williamson, told my parents that I had one of the best tones he had heard in a beginner clarinetist. Some of you may realize this but a reed wind instrument is quite unique in that you have to blow air thru a reed to create the sound. What you hear in a beginner is usually very difficult to listen to and sometimes it’s like listening to someone scratching a chalkboard. Now that makes me cringe even as I write. It takes time to develop the natural, mellow tones a clarinet can produce. Oh, I know, you see when someone wants to poke fun the beginner clarinetist is the butt of the joke with squeaks and off pitch notes. Practicing the correct embouchure, air support and pitch is critical to finding a balance to achieve the pure, pleasant sounds a clarinet can produce. For some reason good tone has stuck with me all these years.
When I was taking private lessons in high school I was privileged to study with the principle clarinetist of the Houston Symphony. One day he demonstrated something to me that may be nothing more than a myth to the average person. He explained that his dog would tell him if he hit the note dead center. See, most people think that a bad note will make a dog howl but in fact, he proved to me it was the “resonant” note that actually did that. He played a middle C on his clarinet and when he centered the tone and it resonated perfectly his dog would howl like no other. The dog would not howl on just any note. He challenged me to play and find that perfect resonate tone. It wasn’t easy but I worked on it for weeks. No, making the dog howl is not the goal. That truth is I already had a good tone, better than average but he challenged me to reach deeper and find another level in my music. What really brings me joy is to hear someone say, I really enjoyed hearing you play today……it encouraged me….it lifted my spirit….brought me joy….helped me find peace. Those are the real rewards.
That being said, let’s talk about how to apply this to the resonation of the heart. We can go along thru life and feel like we have done all we can to affect our world of influence in a positive way. Many of us give to ministries and charities, feel compassion on those less fortunate and may even work in a homeless shelter or outreach from time to time. But do we reach for the power of a resonate heart that is beyond the ordinary. Like in music, we can work on the tone of our heart and may indeed find resonation in our heart that will move us to do more than we ever thought possible. And it could be just a simple act of kindness or putting an arm around an elderly relative or even a friend and telling them how special they are and that you love them. The more we practice the better we’ll get and result will likely be a warm smile and kind thank you from someone you may have missed an opportunity to touch otherwise.
When I was taking private lessons in high school I was privileged to study with the principle clarinetist of the Houston Symphony. One day he demonstrated something to me that may be nothing more than a myth to the average person. He explained that his dog would tell him if he hit the note dead center. See, most people think that a bad note will make a dog howl but in fact, he proved to me it was the “resonant” note that actually did that. He played a middle C on his clarinet and when he centered the tone and it resonated perfectly his dog would howl like no other. The dog would not howl on just any note. He challenged me to play and find that perfect resonate tone. It wasn’t easy but I worked on it for weeks. No, making the dog howl is not the goal. That truth is I already had a good tone, better than average but he challenged me to reach deeper and find another level in my music. What really brings me joy is to hear someone say, I really enjoyed hearing you play today……it encouraged me….it lifted my spirit….brought me joy….helped me find peace. Those are the real rewards.
That being said, let’s talk about how to apply this to the resonation of the heart. We can go along thru life and feel like we have done all we can to affect our world of influence in a positive way. Many of us give to ministries and charities, feel compassion on those less fortunate and may even work in a homeless shelter or outreach from time to time. But do we reach for the power of a resonate heart that is beyond the ordinary. Like in music, we can work on the tone of our heart and may indeed find resonation in our heart that will move us to do more than we ever thought possible. And it could be just a simple act of kindness or putting an arm around an elderly relative or even a friend and telling them how special they are and that you love them. The more we practice the better we’ll get and result will likely be a warm smile and kind thank you from someone you may have missed an opportunity to touch otherwise.
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