Thursday, January 1, 2009

New Year's Day Tuning

The years go by and the piano sits there, unplayed. Then one day you realize that the note you knew was C is now sharp. As you play that recital piece you still remember from the sixth grade, you realize that every note is sharp and dissonant, and playing it is no longer pleasurable.

As I'm writing this entry, my piano is being tuned. Yes, on New Year's Day. Do I have a great piano technician, or what?

Tuning a piano is a long, complicated affair. Lots of terrible, discordant pitches come out before the right note is isolated and locked into place. Then the tech moves on to the next key, and you hear the same cacophonous sounds, until that key's true note is found. Two hours this man has been tuning my piano, making up for my failure to keep its tune maintained over the last few years. Had it been regularly tuned, this would be over in an hour. But as things are, the technician has gone over each key, not once but thrice, in his attempts to get my poor pianoforte back to where it should have been, and he will have to return in a few months for another tuning to achieve concert pitch.

Neglect will do that to a piano.

The same thing happens to our souls. When we fail to stay in tune with our Creator, we eventually become unpleasant to hear. But when we are in harmony with Him, in His Word, walking in His Spirit, the words we speak are like spiritual music, bringing glory to Him.

It's so much better to stay in tune than to neglect our souls and then require a major tuning. And I can think of no better way to start the New Year than getting in tune with God...and then letting Him use us every day so He can keep us that way.

used by permission
Christian Devotions Press
Copyright 2009

3 comments:

  1. That is such a great way to put it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Renee, this message is beautiful! With all that is going on in your life right now I know I truly must be reading God inspired words. Thank you for writing them down so my life could be blessed - and just maybe my piano might get tuned now that I have had a reminder. Elizabeth Marley

    ReplyDelete
  3. I had just found out that my grandmother had passed away a few hours before I penned this one. I guess He can use us in many different ways when we're broken.

    Elizabeth, thanks for the encouragement.

    ReplyDelete