"Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips." Proverbs 27:1-2
I sing and play guitar. That is something I do. I do my best not to boast as to whether or not I am skilled in that area. I have been told by others that I am talented. I acknowledge their praises of my skill and move on.
I find it difficult to speak to a talent without unintentionally being boastful. I went through college and later just telling people that I am a musician and I have been told by others that I am quite good. I never really said that I was myself. Rather, I went off of others' opinions, which for the most part were always quite favorable.
In effect, I was "letting another praise me" rather than praising myself. I wonder though, if my music is my God-given talent, and I am supposed to use it for God's glory, is it possible to speak of it as a God-given talent and not come off boastful. Seriously, you guys can chime in if I am being boastful. Again, I find it hard to speak to this without acknowledging level of skill. I have been blessed with this gift.
It is likely the same with everyone else. Juliet is a great translator--she knows it, but doesn't run around speaking to it. I tell people she is. Others tell her she is. That is how she knows.
There are of course those who become ego maniacal about the slightest praise. I do my best not to fall into this.
In my old band, The Huntsman, our drummer Brad was always telling me how great my voice was. I always thanked him, but found it odd that after playing together so long he still felt the need to acknowledge it. I admit the confidence boost was much appreciated. Oddly though, I found it harder to return compliments to others around me.
The natural instinct I would think would be to respond in turn, "man you are awesome at drumming too." In fact he was quite good when fully focused shall we say. I don't recall going out of my way to tell him though.
I have told my other bandmates in the past how much I think they are talented. I still brag about how great Don was at lead guitar and Andy on bass when referencing the band for informational purposes--i.e. someone asked if I was ever in a band.
God bestows upon us all of our talents. He created us after all. It is our responsibility to humbly use them for His greater glory. Does that mean you cannot play secular music? I'm not sure. I have struggled with this before. I think it really comes down to the meaning behind your words and actions. Honestly I used to slip a Christian song in here and there during my street corner musician days.
In one particular instance that stands out, I was playing random cover songs as I tended to do. When it seemed the crowd thinned I remember playing "I Can Only Imagine." As I played a girl, Angela I believe, sat down and began to sing along. By the end of the song she was in tears. My playing that song at that exact moment coincided with something she was going through and spoke to her. We sang a few more worship songs and then parted ways. She ended up being partially in charge of the open mic nights so she was a contact for me throughout college in that regard. The open mic nights were another venue I used to slide in one of my Christian originals here and there.
I'm not sure if it touched anybody other than her that one time, but I like to think that if I am using my passion for music in a way that is not offensive, maybe God will use that connection of music to move someone's heart.
I tell the story not to boast...in fact pride in myself is the furthest thought when I tell that story. Rather, I tell it to remind myself of Who gave me this talent, and what is expected of me.
I am to give God a return on His investment. HE invested music in me, I need to render it back unto Him.
Playing in the worship band at Jubilee is a great place to be to begin that journey. Maybe that is the journey and there is nothing after, in which case I will continue doing it with a grateful heart. Or maybe, I will finally get to record the Christian album at a real recording studio that has been in my head for awhile. Who knows?
Remember who created you and learn your purpose. Each of us has a talent or ability that we can use to further God's kingdom. Maybe it's a smile, maybe it's heart for missions, or maybe any number of other things. Figure out what your passion in life is, and that is usually what your God-given ability is. Turn it around and glorify Him with it. It's what we're meant to do.
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