Familiarity breeds contempt. This old adage apparently
springs from St Augustine, 5th century. I’d just like to dispute its
assertion.
At least in relation to music. Playing cello in yesterday’s
music group at church, I was delighted that two of the three worship songs were
very familiar to me. Modern music comes without a written bass line, leaving
the lower register instruments to ad lib. Having grown up playing in orchestras
and quartets, where one was always playing harmonies and counterpoints written
by talented composers, I find it extremely challenging to ‘go off-piste’ and
make anything up.
Yesterday, though, with two of those songs, I felt free
enough to ‘hear’ my inner harmonies a few times and do something slightly
different from playing the written melody. Familiarity set me free.
The preacher encouraged us to really open our inner
spiritual ears to hear the voice of Jesus. I suppose it is straightforward
enough to know the ten commandments and endeavour to live by them, but in the
vagaries and nuances of life, the whispers of Jesus guiding us in all we say
and do can so enrich our lives and the lives of others. We are loved by the God
of creation, who delights in diversity which is always harmonious in its beauty
and richness.
May my spiritual ears be attentive today, and my will be
willing to obey whatever I hear the Master whisper. It’s as we live the
harmonies God gives us that we make the most beautiful music to bring joy to
the throne of heaven and the ear of our Lord.
No comments:
Post a Comment