Sidewalk Love Notes

There, plain as day on my front walkway was a love note - left for me by one of my precious little piano students. In bright blue chalk, she had etched “I love Mrs. Melodie!” for all to see. Scurrying out the door to rush to the post office before it closed, I almost missed it. I almost missed the handwritten message that sent me into a full body smile! Me! She loves me! She took the time to let me know…and I almost missed it in my hurry.

Surely this happens in my other relationships as well. My children hand me their papers from school, waiting for me to notice the blood, sweat and tears they spent over each answer and I barely glance at the grades scribbled in red across the top of the page, then toss them. My husband fills my van with gas (mortgaging our house to do so, these days) and do I even notice?

Even more so, the Creator of the Universe scribbles His love for me time and time again, but I’m rushing from one gig to the next, twirling plates as I go, without so much as even a glance. Romans 1:21 tells us that we can see Him in creation. “For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature.” I marvel each day at God’s fancy handiwork as I watch the woodpeckers, hummingbirds, and cardinals gather on my back deck for the all-you-can-eat buffet. The kids and I are constantly oohing and aahing at the various formations of clouds. Just yesterday, when I was taking my youngest to school, she and I thought the clouds looked like the ocean as it creeps up to the shore. Love notes.

Yes, God is constantly passing notes over to me, complete with the proverbial, “Do you love Me? Check yes or no.” Many times, His love is handed to me through people. I just got off the phone with my dear earthly Daddy and when I hung up, I was certain I had heard the voice of God – not because He has a booming, rich voice, but more because he speaks to me of my heavenly Daddy’s love for me. My friends hand me God’s love notes, too – like the other day when my buddy said, “You’re not doing so well today, are you? Sit down. I want to pray over you.” Wow. She did, and my burdens were lightened significantly. Love notes.

Who is writing love notes on your walkway? Can you see them? Are you looking? My guess is that love notes are all around you, awaiting your gaze. Take time to stop and see them. The post office will be open again tomorrow.

Putting a Smile on God’s Face

“When you do the most what you do the best, you put a smile on God's face.” Author, Max Lucado put words to my thoughts precisely. The idea of putting a smile on God’s face is a precious one to me. The idea of putting a smile on God’s face by doing something that I enjoy and do with proficiency only sweetens the deal! I mean, seriously, when I try to conjure up ideas about what kind of offering brings God pleasure, I guess that I have been guilty of “over-thinking” this whole thing at times. Surely God wants me to travel to some remote region of the world, eat bugs, and go the rest of my life without deodorant to bring Him glory, right? It needs to be a task so difficult and repulsing – surely that will do the most good! But wait, if I go and do that, who is going to touch these people right here in my current realm of influence?

Some people would hate my day job. On any given weekday afternoon, you are likely to find me perched patiently to the right-hand side of the piano bench. I’m smiling. Sometimes forcedly, but not usually. Even the wrong notes are music to my ears. These music learners are walking a treacherous path of notes and pitches that can be overwhelming at the very least. I am proud of their efforts and so very honored to help them reach their potential in learning to play the piano or sing with their voices. The students and I rejoice over the victories – that long, intricate piano passage that has plagued them for weeks, finally conquered with expertise! Or there’s that Italian aria whose pronunciations are quite a feat for a seventh grade girl with braces. The milestone accomplishments along the way are like oxygen masks falling from the overhead bin just in the nick of time. Plodding through music lessons can be turbulent.

But am I bringing God glory? Am I making Him smile with my day job? I choose to think so! There was a time when I did this particular job with less than stellar enthusiasm. It seemed like a chore to sit through all of the wrong notes – to yet again, be faced with a pupil who hadn’t cracked open their book since last lesson…ugh. Work. Laborious, tedious, monotonous work. But somewhere along the way, my thinking shifted. (side note to private music instructors: check out the book, Note by Note, by Tricia Tunstall) Instead of looking at this music teaching gig as a burden, I truly began asking God to help me love each student individually and to help them find their own God-song. Talk about a difference! Talk about a revolutionary change…in me! Gradually, I was smiling more – and I know that God was smiling!

These days, I still have to allow God to remind me of this truth from time to time. This is especially true when I am weary. T-a-r-d, tired. But ultimately, as I listen to yet another labored version of “Ode to Joy”, “Caro Mio Ben”, or even “The Entertainer” (okay, especially that last one!), I see beyond the surface duty and smile as I thank God for allowing me to be a small part of each student’s journey with Him…or toward Him!

How about your day job? Love it or hate it, I am guessing that God would love to help you find a unique perspective on what it is you do that makes Him smile. He will show you. Maybe He smiles when you assist patients with their annual, dreaded mammogram, or when you keep the restrooms tidy at your place of business because no one else wants to do it. Maybe you put your hands in other people’s mouths for a living or keep their locks of hair from being so unruly. Perhaps you live in a remote region of the world, eat bugs and don’t wear deodorant. Whatever God has gifted each of us to do, let’s live out I Corinthians 10:31 together! “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” That, my friends, puts a smile on God’s face.

(as published in SHE! October 2010)