Hello Thomas,
Thank you for your post. There is much truth in this. Being a musician myself and having a degree in music education, I have learned that one does not become proficient in anything (weather musical instrument or anything else for that matter) without practice. God has given us all talents, but if we do not use them we become ineffective. Just as the muscles in our bodies begin to atrophy without use, so our talents will atrophy if not used.
Furthermore, to make our muscles stronger we must push them gently out of their comfort zone. So it is with our God given talents. We must gently push ourselves out of our comfort zone in order to grow and be of service to Christ (See Philippians 3:12-16).
A performance weather solo or with a group can be a learning experience. But we cannot learn those lessons if we do not go through with the performance. Private practice and showing up for all the rehearsals are beneficial and required. However, practicing all the time and not performing will eventually lead to disinterest and lack of motivation. There must be a performance to inspire the group to press forward to achieve new levels of proficiency.
So it is with our spiritual lives. Going to church every week, daily prayer, and Bible study are good and necessary. However, if we do not put into practice (or perform) what we learn in church and through prayer and Bible study, all these will become meaningless rituals. We must do as Jesus did and allow Him to lead us out of our comfort zones to cause our spiritual lives to grow to new levels of maturity inHim.
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