Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Hope from a TV theme

Lately I feel I've been going through a meat grinder spiritually, with my lack of desire for such things. In need of a pick-me-up, I just listened to this week's sermon from church on-line -- and it proved to be timely. The message, titled "Looking for the Pony," focused upon looking to God when things were seemingly at their worst and developing confidence in Him.

I have a thing for major anniversaries, so I was brought back to where I was 25 years ago today -- when God was pulling me out of a pit.

About a year-and-a-half earlier the world that I knew was completely falling apart, a romantic failure, flunking out of school and my parents' breakup all weighing heavily on me. Now, I was a Christian at that time but didn't understand why all this was happening, especially at the same time, and didn't honestly know how to cope. However, He began to do some things and placed people in my life to get it not so much back on track but more in line with His purpose in my life.

At that time one of the radio stations was playing jazz-fusion from 10 p.m. every night to 2 a.m. the next morning, and as I worked from 2 to 6 I got a lot of good listening; one of the tunes that was played in regular rotation with the theme from the TV show "St. Elsewhere," composed and performed by keyboardist Dave Grusin, and I eventually bought "Night-Lines," the CD from which it comes. Anyway, back in 1999 I was on my way to pick up a girlfriend for a date and had the CD in my car stereo, and that tune came on.

I was immediately transported back to those tough days where I was emotionally spent -- and realized just what God had done in and for me then. Suffice it to say that He used that time for me to get to know Him in a way I never had before -- and I've attended church and/or Sunday School since the age of 7 and grew up learning good theology. At that I looked up (remember that I was driving, and on a major thoroughfare at that) and said, "Thank you."

That was the message -- recalling what He had done in the past. And if He could pull that off way back when, imagine what He will do today -- and beyond.

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