Psalm 80:7

Restore us, God Almighty

When my dad brought us his mom's piano, which was her two-year anniversary gift in 1916, I almost cried.

Memories are stored in furniture much like they are stored in our hearts.  Just seeing the piano reminded me of the many times we were at her house for holidays. 

Suddenly, I was seeing images of her collections of everything from glass elephants to pencils to buttons from Presidential elections that use to intrigue me for hours when I was a little girl.

I remember going fishing with her and using a cane pole.  Grandma Julia loved to fish! 

I remember going on a summer vacation with her when I was about 13 where we travelled to all of the state parks in Kentucky.  We borrowed a motor home,and mom and dad drove us all over the state as we played checkers with Grandma to pass the time.  I remember being moody at the time in my life, and I'm pretty sure I ruined many days of that trip for my mom.

I remember mowing my grandma's yard with one of those old mowers that was made of just a long handle hooked to a blade that turned on a wheel....no engine....just a metal blade that rolled along as you pushed it.

Most of all, I remember that when we visited my grandma, we went to church.  My first church experiences involved her.  She had gone for all her life, I think.  We moved away from Oklahoma, and for several years we didn't go where we lived.  But I always knew we would go to church when we visited my grandma.  It was part of her everyday life.  The story of our family becoming active in church I'll save for another time, but for today, I'm thankful for a piano that speaks to my heart every time I look at it. 

Tim and I both play the piano, as well as two of our boys, so I thought it would be fun to get it tuned so we could enjoy more than just looking at it.  But when a piano is 95 years old and hasn't been played in over 30 years, more than a simple tuning is needed in order to get it back in good condition again.

We called a music professor from the college where my husband teaches who is one of the most talented people I've ever met in my life, and he came to the house to do what only a master can do to an old piano........

Transform and restore.      

As I watched him in fascination and ask questions and listened to him explain how a piano works, I was amazed!

Wes knows pianos.

He knows them inside out.

He understands exactly what each tiny piece does and he can adjust the tiniest imperfection so that the sound coming from the piano is perfectly pitched and in tune.

Isn't God just like this with us?

He knows us.

He knows us inside out.

He understands exactly what each tiny part of us does and He can work with each imperfection in order to transform us into His image.

Today, if you feel slightly imperfect, remember that you have a Master who is at work within you in order to create something beautiful.

Be patient.

Allow Him to do what He needs to do.

Trust Him today with your life.

He longs to be Your Master......not to rule over you but to restore you,