It’s funny how themes recur in our lines and how we find God saying the same thing to us more than once (largely because we are dull of hearing and even duller of heart, I expect.)
Over two years ago, I wrote a post called ‘Bass lines. I’d just attended a marvellous concert by ‘The King’s Singers’ and had been pondering how all those beautiful harmonies blend together to form a piece of music that is sublime to listen to. I’d also realised that life inevitably involves what to us seems like dull repetition (aka the bass line of most pieces of music) which actually is just as important to life as those soaring melodies.
The daughter of a friend of mine has just written an article for Open Doors Youth (you can read it here.) Nell plays the trumpet and she has a friend who is a cellist. Their opinions on a certain piece of music (Pachelbel’s Canon, one of my favourites too!) differed, largely because the cellist plays eight repeating notes throughout the entire piece and was therefore bored by it!
She talks about contentment being the ‘bass line’ of the Christian life, saying ‘And so, stop, think for a minute, and listen to the bass line of your life. Strain your ears past the melody of your day to day emotions, and listen to what underpins all that you do. If the melody were to change, or to stop completely, would the bass line still be music to your ears? Would you still want to listen to the song of your life, even if the embellishments quieted and the excitement stopped? If your bass line springs from the One who brings peace and fulfilment to all who know Him, then it will continue even when any other music fades. And that is true contentment.’
Many of us prefer melodies, with their beautiful variations, interesting intervals and singable tunes. We prefer life to be exciting, interesting, entertaining and diverse. We think of the bass line as boring, repetitive, mundane and humdrum and we hate it when our lives are like this. But God weaves both bass lines and melodies together to make a richer whole and in the same way He works every aspect of our lives into a whole which can glorify Him. Whether we’re on the mountain top or in the valley, experiencing dazzling visions of God or feeling bereft of His presence, He is there, underpinning our lives, working faithfulness, patience, endurance and contentment into us.