Today’s Bible reading from the Five Day Bible Reading Plan: Exodus 19-21, Psalm 33, Ephesians 5

We must beware of taking God’s grace and using this as an excuse for mediocrity. If we are preachers, are we afflicted by the malady of being, well, good enough? If we are a small group leader, office manager, or involved in any other area of service for King Jesus, are we satisfied with where we are while giving no thought to improving the giftings, skill sets, and talents God provides?

In Psalm 33:3, we read, “Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.” It’s this word “skillfully” that captures our attention. In a Psalm committed to the theme of God’s steadfast love and how this generates praise and thanksgiving, why would this not make us use, in this case, music for His glory.

I’m a pianist. Now that I’m a pastor, I don’t play in services as much for various reasons. And given that, I recognize that my skills are diminishing. Oh, sure, I can go to the familiar pieces and patterns and still play. Yet, when I was a church music/piano major in college and seminary 25-30 years ago, I would need to practice two hours per day in order to keep up with the curriculum and not embarrass myself when I played 2-3 times in front of the music student body.

Now I’m a pastor. There must be no sense of arrival, regardless of what has happened in the past. We continue to develop our skills, giftings, and talents to the glory of God (see 1 Corinthians 10:31). We are called to be the best version of God’s glory in our lives–not to be the best whatever in the room.