Tuesday, March 10, 2009

My Best Friend

I think my guitar is my best friend (next to Jesus).

I find so much joy just in spending time with it. There's always more to get to know, more to try, more room to grow as a player, and more fun to be had.
The more time I spend hanging out with my guitar, just jamming and writing songs, the better friends we become. The more I get to know it, the better it seems to respond to me.
It's interesting to feel emotionally and spiritually connected to an instrument. You may not think you can be spiritually connected to an instrument, or to any object, but I disagree.
I've been reading the Psalms lately, and in Psalm 33:1-3 it says, "Joyfully sing to the Lord, you righteous people. Praising is proper for decent people. Give thanks with a lyre to the Lord. Make music for him o a ten-stringed harp; Sing a new song to him. Play beautifully and joyfully on stringed instruments." Now, stay with me here. If God is spirit and not flesh, not material, how is it that material things could ever mean anything to him? In who he is (which is, again, spiritual and not material) he is complete and content and perfect. Nothing material could add to who he is or give him anything he doesn't already have. Now, something spiritual on the other hand is something he can directly link himself to. This is why we are not just flesh but (soul and) spirit, because without spirit, we would not have anything to connect to him with right?
Now, this Psalm makes it clear that it is good to praise God with instruments, and since it's in his word, we'll count it as being accurate and true to who he is. Here's where it comes together.
If we connect with our spirit through our instruments, we are able to offer him something more than just our voices, which is probably why David tells us to play as well as sing to the Lord. The instrument just adds to the singing and suddenly, there is an additional praise there. Not that those who sing and don't play have less to offer or anything, that would be a lie from the devil. FROM THE DEVIL YOU HEAR ME! There is something special about a voice standing alone to praise God boldly without an instrument, and there's also something special about someone who pursues to develop their voice as their instrument, almost making it doubly special. I'm getting off on a tangent here.
Here's what I want to say. I love playing guitar, and I think God loves it when I play too because I have established my guitar as a conduit of praise for him and allow my guitar playing to be part of the spiritual offering I bring to God in my worship. I love just noodling and jamming out, I think that God likes that too, because I am growing with this instrument to become a better player, and offer him even more in my praise.

Keep on playin'!

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