Making Music Together
John 8:27-30
One Sunday morning the adult choir gathered together in the choir room behind the sanctuary to rehearse their main number before church began. We put on our robes, took our places and had our music sheets in hand. The music minister called us to attention and switched on the accompaniment music CD to begin. All of a sudden about 10 measures into the piece, he switched the music off.
All eyes were now on him and he shouted respectfully, “People, where are the directions for this piece of music?” Silence fell on the group and then one person meekly replied, “You have them.” With that correct response, he gave us our instructions, “Get your nose out of the paper and keep your eyes on me!”
We all knew that was the number one rule of choir participation. If we wanted the music to be sung correctly and the performance to go well, we had to keep our eyes on the director for his experienced and professional leadership. There has to be that form of discipline and cooperation for a choral group to perform successfully.
The music director provides instructions in two ways. First, we have to keep our eyes on his face and listen to his instructions. We can even watch his mouth to know what the words are we are supposed to be singing at that moment. His eyes tell us the emotional content of a piece of music: excited, joyful, or mournful.
Secondly, the choir members have to watch his hands. This is how he communicates what we are supposed to do: get ready, begin, go fast, go slow, get loud, get soft, draw out the note, breathe and when to end the music all together. The director provides his expertise and knowledge of how it is all suppose to happen. His hands provide silent, but very important directions. With Him in charge, there is unity and harmony. Without him, the performance could be a disaster.
Wow! What an incredible thing our music minister said that day. So simple, yet so profound. “Keep your eyes on me!” During my devotional time the next morning, the Lord brought that event back to my mind and began to show me a remarkable truth about life in the Spirit. For a group activity of any kind, be it a church, an organization, a business, a family, or a ministry, all the members of that group need to keep their eyes on the Holy Spirit to direct or lead their efforts. Each person brings to the work our individual gifts, talents, experience, knowledge, understanding and wisdom, but each one has to submit to the leading of the Holy Spirit to accomplish His purpose and plans for that group.
The Holy Spirit is our Divine Director! He has the master score or plan for each person and for the group as a whole. He has His agenda for who, what, where, when and how the goals are to be accomplished. Each one of us has our part to perform, but we can get lost in the music if we take our eyes off The Director. I don’t need to worry about what the altos or tenors are doing. That is His job to lead them and provide them instructions. If each one of us is doing our part to the best of our ability, and keeping our eyes on Him, the Divine Director will enable us to complete the task successfully and to the glory of God.
Keeping our eyes on the Holy Spirit can be hard to do, especially when there are so many distractions all around us. We can start looking at what others around us are doing or listening to what others are saying. People can be saying even good things, not necessarily bad things. But are they the right thing we need to be listening to? All of a sudden we are not in tune with the Spirit of God. If I take my eyes off the Spirit, I can become confused, disoriented, even misguided. I can really mess up and cause others to do so as well.
Jesus is our example and told us about this principle in John 8: 27-30. “I do nothing on my own, but speak just what the Father has taught me. The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him. Even as he spoke many put their faith in him.” This was the secret of his successful three-year ministry on earth. Because of this self-discipline, he was able to perform miracles, heal the sick, cast out demons, feed 5,000 and raise the dead. So the secret of our success as a Christian, is learning to stay in tune with and walk with the Holy Spirit. This is a tremendous truth we need to apply to our daily lives. We live life in the natural realm, but we have to get our directions from the realm of the Spirit.
As we obediently and faithfully follow the leading of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, the Presence of God and therefore, the Kingdom of God will be manifest to others around us. In turn they will see the Light coming through us, experience Christ first hand and follow after God as well. So remember, what the music minister told us that Sunday morning, “Keep your eyes on Me!” Keep your eyes on the face and hands of the Holy Spirit to know what He is saying and doing in your life and for others around you.