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Everyone should ask themselves why they do what they do and whether there is value in what they do.
I have been asking myself that question lately about concerts.
After all, there are a lot of pianists better than me that either do concerts or are trying to do concerts. And it is not like there are numerous churches wanting pianists to do concerts in the first place.
And you have to wonder what the value is from doing concerts. What tangible benefits are provided? Sure, the overall purpose is to glorify God, and secondly, to edify the saints. But how do you know if that is really happening?
Here is a picture that helps answer that question for me.
This is a picture I took last night of my daughter Kelsey with Annie Wolaver, lead singer/violinist for the Annie Moses Band.
I have tons of respect for the Annie Moses Band. Church music is struggling. While there are a few bright spots, you can pretty much summarize church music in one word: mediocrity.
But the Annie Moses Band is entirely in a different league. Their arrangements are brilliant and so are their performances. They are such good musicians that the secular world is noticing; you may have seen them in their PBS specials over the past few months.
I admire the seriousness they bring to their music, and I admire the parents for their sacrifice and investments in their children. They believe strongly that music should be done well or not at all. It is a common theme through everything they write, say, and perform. In fact, the Wolavers were the authors of a famous song twenty years ago entitled "Make His Praise Glorious." It is clear that they believe the message of that song.
My daughter looks up to Annie. Sure, she could look up to Joshua Bell or Sarah Chang, but Annie is her hero. I am perfectly happy with that.
And though the Annie Moses Band performs brilliant music, their greatest value to me is letting them influence my children.
When you play music in a concert, you can help people feel closer to God at least for a while. You can lift their spirits for a while too.
But there is a very important impact you can have that is sometimes overlooked. You can inspire people to make His praise glorious. Concerts help the young and old catch a vision of doing just that. It is no coincidence that Kelsey played better in her lesson today.
I am thankful for musicians that helped me see that vision and I am thankful that Annie is doing that for my daughter.
