By Katy Mariotti

Lean In

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
His mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is thy faithfulness.
‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul,
‘therefore I will hope in Him.'”
Lamentations 3:22-24, English Standard Version

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but I am a huge choir nerd. I sang in a children’s choir when I was a kid and have basically been singing ever since. I love it more than I can say! I currently sing in two different choirs, I work as a music director for musicals, I take voice lessons, and I direct my church choir.

Though my love for choir and singing never seems to diminish, there is some business that goes into it that is just that: business. I had to put in the work to learn how to read music well, which I do now, but I still have to work through it when the music is hard. I have to make sure I can play the piano enough to get by (I am NOT a pianist, sadly). I have to create and manage rehearsal and performance schedules. I have to choose music for the choir to sing and plan rehearsals so they are productive.

Choosing music is a mixture of fun and business. It’s creative in that I get to pick music that is interesting, varied, and a mixture of new and old. This particular song that I have pictured was a “just business” piece for me this time around. I thought “it’s pretty, it sort of goes with the sermon series, and some of the choir members already know it so it will make it easier to learn.”

But then this song suddenly spoke to me. I was feeling bogged down. Bogged down by commitments, bogged down by emotions, and bogged down by the weight of my own sin. And there was this song, reminding me of the verses from Lamentations, that God’s mercies are new every morning! He is constant. So when I feel bogged down, I can lean in to His mercy, lean in to His peace, and wake up refreshed to do the business that needs to be done and rest in Him!

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado.