Scripture: Nehemiah 12:27-29
At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, thumb the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, unhealthy harps and lyres. The musicians also were brought together from the region around Jerusalem—from the villages of the Netophathites, clinic from Beth Gilgal, and from the area of Geba and Azmaveth, for the musicians had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem.

Thought for the Day: One of the jokes among musicians is that wherever we perform, we enter through the kitchen or the loading dock, never through the front door. As a professional musician most of my life, no matter where I played, from the Ritz Carlton in Naples to the Hong Kong Performing Arts Center, I loaded equipment around back, out of sight from the attendees.

It appears things weren’t much different in the ancient world, either. Most musicians of the 5^th Century BCE (when Nehemiah was likely written) lived outside and around major cities like Jerusalem. The villages spoken of in Nehemiah were also trade schools, where the people of Jerusalem would send their children to learn a musical skill (Cymbal Clanging 101, anyone?).

Music has always been an integral part of human worship, whether we simply use our voices, bang on hollow logs, or use more complicated instruments like lyres and harps (the guitars of their era). When we make music (even if we make it badly), we are connecting to God in a powerful and deep way, because creativity comes from God to us, and through us to the world. We are the music of the spheres, we are God’s universal instruments.

Prayer: Make me your instrument of beautiful melody and uniting harmony, Holy God who composes all reality. Amen.