Sore Fingers or Sore Heart

“What?! I have to practice every single day?”
“Emily, if you don’t practice the piano every day you won’t improve your skills.” My mom explained patiently. And although I believed that my mom was a very smart person, I reasoned that she must be mistaken about this issue. Playing the piano every day would only give me sore fingers and a headache. So being the knowledgeable person I was at age eight, I concluded that practicing a few times a week was far more than enough time. After all, how hard could it be? After I learned the various notes, all I would need to do is play the right key with the correct timing. At the time I believed that my reasoning sounded perfectly reasonable, but I soon realized that to play anything consequential, I would need to work far more than I had previously planned.


In like manner, a unified relationship with God does not occur immediately but requires constant effort. However, many Christians fail to realize that continual time in the presence of God is vital for a meaningful relationship with Him. Just as I didn’t believe that practicing the piano every day was absolutely necessary to master the appropriate skills, so, in the same manner, many Christians believe spending time with God once or twice a week is sufficient enough for their spiritual needs. But as the months and years pass by, many believers begin to notice that their walk with the Lord is not maturing and also find that their joy and satisfaction in God are slowly diminishing. For when believers do not commune with the Lord, they deny themselves the nourishment of God’s word and in consequence, their relationship with God slowly becomes estranged and non-personal.

Christ has offered hope, however, when He stated,” … I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger…” Christ has provided all believers with the promise to satisfy their needs if they would come and trust in Him. However, God not only calls believers to trust in Him, but also calls them to draw near to Him, and in so doing He will also draw near to them, as is stated in James 4:8.

Therefore, a meaningful relationship with God does require effort, but if one truly desires a joyful and satisfying relationship with Him, he must grasp the opportunity to pursue personal time with God in order to draw closer to Him and also to nourish his spirit in His presence. God shall surely bless the time one spends with Him and will guide him on his life’s journey by bringing him closer to Himself and spiritual maturity.