If my life was a sheet of music

Tonight was a great night. I had a mix of emotions racing through my heart and so I did what I always do when that happens. I went straight to my piano; that faithful piano that is always there for me when I need to express wordless thoughts & feelings. The piano has become my personal "Translator" that takes my ideas and emotions and composes them into a song. Tonight I sat there and pressed my fingers into the ivory keys. The more I played, the more awkward it sounded & the more frustrated I became. I felt like a foreigner who couldn’t speak english. The thoughts I was thinking in one language was being spoken in another when I went to play the notes. It’s a frustrating feeling to know what you want but not be able to articulate it. In an attempt to unchain the bottled up emotions I had; I reverted to playing the melody that my fingers had already memorized. I played Fur Elise. I do love that song... but when it seems to be the only song I know how to play, it can become quite frustrating. My fingers want to venture to new keys and play new chords and new combinations of notes. My heart wants to sing a song that my fingers can’t seem to articulate; because it’s untrained. And so it is on nights like these... I sit at the same piano, my fingers dance on the same keys, and in repetitious fashion I play the same Fur Elise.

There’s an interesting parallel to this story and to our day to day lives. It dawned on me that just like my feeble attempts to play a song I’ve never learned; I do the same thing with my big lofty dreams. I get caught up in a dream for my future; my adrenaline kicks in - a flood of emotions takes me over - and I start awkwardly pouncing on the keys of my life to make it happen. Often times our dream requires an action in unchartered waters and so the attempts we make at reaching that dream, turn into a horrible awkward note. We get frustrated that our life isn’t playing out the way we envisioned it in our minds. And so we go back to the same familiar song we’ve played many times over, that has now become a repetitious robotic attempt at living.

As long as I keep reverting back to the familiar Fur Elise that is comfortable & memorized... I will never be able to play Rachmaninoff. My musical abilities will always be stunted if I never accept the fact that I must teach myself new skills. I must learn how to read the sheet of music that lays before me. I must play THOSE same notes over and over again until it becomes a new memory for my fingers. I must keep playing those same difficult chords over and over again until my song of awkward notes turns into a beautiful music. Before I can indulge in experiencing the single spotlight on me and my piano... before I can play my dream of a melody for the audience to applaude... I must become a student first. I must learn from the ones who have already mastered the skills. I must experience the journey before I can arrive at the destination.

Are you stuck playing the same old song because your afraid to venture to a new sheet of music? Are you frustrated with yourself because deep down inside you have a dream that you want to see played out - but your unwilling to learn the notes?

Your life can be a beautiful song with many triumphant crescendos... but you have got to be willing to take the time to sit & learn the notes. Your dreams are knocking loud on the doors of your heart; don’t allow your fears to keep them locked away. Don’t be unwilling to play the part of a student. To become a master at anything, you’ve got to become a student of everything. Today is the day to compose your music score. What will the orchestra of your life play? Mine will be the song of Triumph & Victory!

Ephesians 5:19 "Then you will sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, making music to the Lord in your hearts.