Do you hear the Music?

 

There is a legend that tells of a German baron who, at his castle on the Rhine, stretched wires from tower to tower, that the winds might convert them into an Aeolian harp. And the soft breezes played about the castle, but no music was born.

But one night there arose a great tempest, and hill and castle were smitten by the fury of the mighty winds. The baron went to the threshold to look out upon the terror of the storm, and the Aeolian harp was filling the air with strains that rang out even above the clamour of the tempest. It needed the tempest to bring out the music!

I’ve often read of Aeolian harps, and they have always fascinated me.

An Aeolian harp is in simple terms, a musical instrument that is played by the wind. It was named after Aeolus, an ancient Greek god and the traditional Aeolian harp is basically a wooden box including a sounding board, with strings stretched lengthwise across two bridges. As the wind blows across it the strings vibrate causing an eerie and ethereal sound.

As the years have gone by, many people have replicated this idea in various forms, from small ornate instruments to massive sculptures located on the roofs of buildings or on a windy hilltop.

The key factor in the ability of the instrument to create its eerie sounds is the wind. The strength and force of the wind determines whether you hear a soft murmur or a haunting wail.

Did you know that back in the 90’s, in an Arizona desert, a huge structure was built as an experiment to research and learn about the Earth’s living systems. Scientists locked themselves in this structure for 2 years, creating mini environments including a desert, a rain forest and even an ocean!

Their findings were interesting. The trees that grew inside this man-made structure, sheltered from the outside weather, grew very rapidly, but they also fell over before reaching full height. When the scientists looked at the root systems and the bark and leaves, they found the missing link. The one crucial missing element – WIND!

Because the trees experienced no wind, they had no resistance and because they had no resistance, they gained no strength. Without the stress of the wind, the trees grew weak and couldn’t hold up their own weight.  

Do you see where I’m going with this?

Think back to the Aeolian harp. What is it that gives it its song? It’s the wind. And the stronger the wind, the louder it sings.

I think that if we’re honest, we all want to live a life protected and sheltered from hardship, struggle or pain. We don’t want the storms of life to crash upon our shores.

But something happens to us when all we have is ease and comfort. We cease to grow. We lack strength.

Resistance doesn’t just challenge us, it changes us!

We see mention of trees over and over in the Word of God and often the imagery is tied to spiritual growth and endurance and strength.

One of the most well-known passages is found in Psalm chapter 1.

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

And then we come to verse 3.

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

We see this reference again in Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

Here we are reminded of the importance of having delight in and meditating on the Word of God as our source of nourishment. This ensures that we will grow and mature and bear fruit. These trees are planted by the river. They are not growing in a controlled environment under a concrete roof with artificial lighting. No. They are outside, facing the storms, the sunshine and the rain.

Trees don’t grow strong by avoiding the storm, they grow strong by weathering them.

What if the thing you’re trying to escape is the very thing God wants to use to shape you?

That unexplained illness. That job loss. That relationship breakdown. The grief of losing a family member. The financial difficulty. The list could go on and on.

Ease may be nice, but the things that make life easier rarely make us stronger.

In my experience, the storms God brings into my life are the times when he does his best work. It is at these times when the winds blow strongest that my roots grow deepest.

When I look back over my life and all the things I’ve been through, the ups and the downs, it has been the hardest seasons in my life that have produced the most fruit. The winds that blew caused me to bend but not break. My ‘roots’ reached down for a taste of that living water, drinking it in, through study, much prayer and meditation on his Word, bringing nourishment and sustaining me, causing my leaf to stay green and my branches to bear fruit.

And as the wind whistled and howled, a sweet music began to sing all about me. And lest you think I have it all together, sad to say, there have been many times that I resisted the wind, trying instead to shelter from it and fight against it. This didn’t help my spiritual growth at all and needless to say, God had to bring the hard lesson into my life once again to teach me to trust him and bend with his guiding hand in the direction he would have me go.

Yes, God protects us and watches over us, but I think he is less interested in protecting us from the struggles of life and more interested in shaping us through them.  

What if instead of asking God to remove the struggle, to still the storm, to silence the wind, we asked him to use it?

What if we asked him to use it to make us stronger? To mold us and shape us more into his image. To help sink our roots down deeper into his living water. To enable us to help others through what he has taught us.

The storm you’re facing right now is not there to break you. It is there to make you stronger. It is there to help you grow.

Although the storm is not sent to wipe us out, it can make or break us. We can become better or bitter. It’s our choice.

God doesn’t bring the storms into our lives only to abandon us. He is with us in the storm. It’s not about the strength and power of the storm, it’s about who we have in the boat with us. He wants to make something beautiful of our lives. He wants to hear us sing.

What if we could learn to sing through the storm?

What if the wind rushing over us brought out a melody so unique, that caused those around us to hear its song and marvel at so great a God. A God that brings beauty from ashes. A God that creates a song from a broken instrument. One that is yielded unto him, allowing him to strum the strings and bring forth a song of worship.

Listen.

Do you hear the music?

 

They are HIS billows, whether we are toiling 
Through tempest-driven waves that never cease, 
While deep to deep with clamour loud is calling; 
Or at His word they hush themselves in peace. 

They are HIS billows, and He brings us through them; 
So He has promised, so His love will do. 
Keeping and leading, guiding and upholding, 
To His sure harbor, He will bring us through. 

—Excerpt of poem by Annie Johnson Flint