August 19: Everybody Counts

Preacher and writer William L. Stidger once told a story about the conductor Walter Damrosch who stopped his orchestra when everything was apparently going along smoothly.  He asked, “Where is the seventh flute?”

As Stidger points out, the conductor didn’t ask for the first flute, or the second—but the seventh.  Even the seventh flute had an important role in creating the harmony the leader desired.

The lesson, Stidger explained: “We may feel inferior, untalented, not beautiful, and some of us uneducated.  But each of us has a part to play and should play it well.”

He tells how he used to watch the man who plays the triangle in a large orchestra.  Often the player would sit through the entire number, eagerly waiting.  Then, toward the close, he would, with perfect timing, deftly touch the instrument and produce just the right note.

In other words, there is no unimportant job.  Whatever your part is in this world, do it well.

We, through many, are one body in Christ, and, as individuals, are mutually dependent.  (Romans 12:5)

Make me aware of my purpose, Messiah.