Back to the Basics

Ephesians 6:10

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."

 Yesterday, during my piano lesson, I played the Prokofiev Sonata No. 1 in F Minor for my piano teacher for the first time. I had worked hard during the past few weeks. He stopped me after the second page and told me that I was trying to do everything at once. With a kind rebuke, he said that it sounded like my playing was all over the place. That comment hit me because he was right. It was a new piece, but I was too focused on everything— playing the right notes, getting the right balance, phrasing, and correct rhythm. He encouraged me to go back to the basics. He shared with me the story of an opera singer who had performed "Parsifal" about a thousand times, but when she rehearsed with him, she had a pencil in her hand as if she were learning it for the very first time.

 Today, in my devotional, as I was reading Ephesians 6:8-10, I thought: this is pretty basic. Pretty much God was essentially saying to just read His Word and pray. We tell that to each other in church, and if you're like me, you grew up hearing it. But have we really thought about what it means to pray and read the word of God? It’s like putting on the armor of God, it’s going back to our “music sheet” and spending time reflecting on it as if it were the first time we had seen it.

 “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers.” (Ephesians 6:12, NKJV)

 I sat down to practice today and went back to the basics— removed the pedal, practiced every little detail of two to four measures painstakingly, and imagined that I was seeing the piece for the first time. Even after just 25 mins of practice, I had the feeling that there was more to uncover. Today, even with a few minutes of devotional and prayer (20 mins), I came out with a fresh perspective: that I am wearing the armor of God.