I love God's Word.
I look forward to meditating on it.
One of my favorite things about the Word is to be led by the Spirit to dwell in a particular passage for a while and digest small nuggets of wisdom. Thus, I can barely contain my excitement over this opportunity to dig into Psalm 51 throughout this season leading to Pentecost Sunday -- seven (7) Sundays or 50 days after Easter Sunday. It is with great joy and anticipation that I am parking myself in this passage until June 8, God willing, to receive the Lord's wisdom.
As the Lord instructs me, I hope to follow in the footsteps of Isaiah in living and declaring,
"The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue,
to know the word that sustains the weary.
He wakens me morning by morning,
wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.
The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears,
and I have not been rebellious;
I have not drawn back."
Isaiah 50:4-5, NIV
In the course of meditating upon Psalm 51 for the past four days, the Father has already brought several thoughts for my mind to consider. However, I have been most of all blown away by how much was revealed to me simply from the heading of the Psalm.
It reads, "For the director of music. A Psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba."
Today, I would like to consider the first fragment of the heading of Psalm 51 -- "For the director of music."
Lord, please give me an instructed tongue concerning this first fragment of the psalm heading. Deposit in my mind a word that will sustain weary souls in need of Your rest. Waken my ear to listen to Your teaching. And as You open my ear, help me to neither rebel nor draw back; instead, draw me close to You as You direct my paths in Your Word. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
"For the director of music."
How might the Lord lead us to unpack the above phrase?
The word "for" is suggestive of function, purpose, or intended goal. It brings to mind the notion that everything that follows in the psalm can be used as the intended recipient sees fit.
"The" is a determiner -- a word that denotes a specific entity or one that dismisses any opportunity to misidentify said entity.
"Director of music" stands for the conductor, maestro, or minister of music in charge of leading the people of God in singing the Lord's praises.
So, am I to understand that David's prayer of confession was not a hidden or private matter? Does it mean that this penitential psalm was intended to be used by the specific conductor or maestro or minister of music of David's time to lead the Israelites in the worship of God? Does it further imply that I, a Christ-follower, do not get to conceal my sins and my prayers of confession, but that I am invited to offer them to the Lord for His glory and for the benefit of the saints in Christ Jesus?
Indeed, the Spirit of God is leading me to see that "For the director of music" is consistent with the lenten thought of my having zero ownership of who I am, where I am, what I am, what I have, what I hope to be, what I produce and/or create.
"We lift our voices, we lift our hands,
We lift our lives up to You;
We are an offering.
Lord, use our voices; Lord, use our hands;
Lord, use our lives, they are Yours;
We are an offering.
All that we have, all that we are, all that we hope to be,
We give to You."
Dwight Liles (1984)
"For the director of music" sketches a portrait of the Cross for me, in terms of relationships. The vertical beam represents my relationship with the God-head and the horizontal beam depicts my relationships with other individuals.
Firstly, it implies that everything deriving from me belongs to God who is the ultimate director of music/life. The good and the bad that come from me are but pitches, rhythm, chords, and lyrics in the hands of the Master Artist who orchestrates it all for His glory. Therefore, I cannot presume to hide anything from Him (He knows all of it anyway). God is my vertical support, the pillar of my foundation.
Secondly, the thoughts and words and deeds that come out of me are also available to other "directors of music" in my life -- individuals placed in authority over me or in intimate relationships with me. God provides such people in my life as a reminder of the horizontal support I receive when the rusty nails of my life -- the ugly sores of my scores of sins -- pierce my hands through and through.
First and foremost, in my living -- fruitfulness or productivity -- I am graciously invited to be mindful of my position vis-à-vis my ultimate director of music/life:
I am God's blessed servant.
I am a privileged vessel at God's disposal.
Next, God is revealing to me that I am providing fodder for the mind, heart, and spirit of my neighbor. In my conduct, I am merely preparing a musical score for the throng of "musicians" in God's orchestra of life. In word and deed, I am simply sketching life applications to be used by the Holy Spirit, my spouse, my family, my covenant friends, my pastor, my boss, my co-workers, my students, etc. It is God's prerogative to use any one of my deeds -- whether good or bad -- for His ultimate glory, for the edification of other believers, and for witnessing to non-believers in Christ.
If you, my friend, are heavy-laden by a burdensome or shady past, there is rest at the foot of the Cross. If you feel weary, O traveler, by sin and shame, do not keep it to yourself. There is joy to be had at Calvary. Come and dare to write your own prayer of confession to the Director, the Maestro, the Conductor of your life. The Holy Spirit is poised to receive your penitential psalm and is ready to use your prayerful confession as He directs the saints in the worship of our Lord Jesus.
May you and I live "for the director of music"!
Grant, O precious Father, that we will be utterly open, broken, and spilled out. Guide us to rely on the grace and finished work of Christ on the Cross as we live lives that are unquestionably "for the director of music" in every way. Use us completely in Your service, O Lord! In Christ's glorious name, we pray. Amen!
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