It's recital season. Many of you feel under pressure. The question is: how will you, as a Christian, deal with this pressure?
(See summary at end if TLDR)
Will you be just like all your peers around you - going into a self-imposed self-centred lockdown of practice, practice, practice, with little to no regard for others and your normal commitments towards them, feeling a constant sense of unease at the thought of how much more there is to do, and telling everyone who asks just how busy you are?
Or will you subject this season of pressure to the Lordship of Jesus - seeking counsel from His Word, remembering who(se) you are in Him, and living distinctively as a result?
A challenging question for us all is: which of these portraits more accurately describes your life in a recent season of pressure?
A letter to those under pressure
Peter's first epistle (1 Peter) was written 'to God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout' various provinces of Asia Minor (1:1), and its various passages concerning suffering indicate that many of the original recipients were believers undergoing a season of pressure, possibly even persecution - see 1:6, 2:19-24, 3:8-18, 4:12-19, 5:9. As such, this letter contains gold in terms of teaching that is useful to consider when entering the pressurised season of end-of-year recitals. For the sake of (relative) brevity, I'll share one nugget of gold from each chapter:
Nugget #1 - Identity: remember who(se) you are
As early as verse 2, Peter describes His readers (and us, if we're believers), as:
chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood
If you're a follower of Jesus, then this is who you are: You are chosen by God the Father, saved by God the Son, and are being sanctified by God the Holy Spirit. The Triune God has redeemed you to Himself, and now you are His. You weren't chosen by your lecturers; you don't belong to your teachers (however differently they may feel about that!); your future doesn't hang on the examiners. To God alone belongs all those privileges.
In a period of pressure, such as recital season, it is imperative to remember who(se) you are, to give you:
- a proper perspective regarding to whom you owe your time, and thus also:
- a sense of relief from feeling that this recital is the be-all-and-end-all, and
- a sense of gratitude for the myriad blessings you've been given as an elite musician
In summary, because of the gospel, you're Jesus's! And what a blessed relief and glorious blessing that is.
Nugget #2 - Conduct: live radically differently
Having spent much of the rest of chapter 1 and a good chunk of chapter 2 spelling out the glorious gospel of salvation and thus our new identity in Christ, Peter writes:
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us.
The call is that in our general day-to-day conduct, we are to live radically differently from the world around us. And really the nub of it is that we ought ever to be doing good. What a challenge! In recital season, it ought not to be too hard to live radically differently from everyone else:
- Could you show radical love and kindness by providing a meal (or even just a cup of tea!) for your stressed-out friends?
- Could you exhibit radical patience and gentleness by bearing with, and quickly forgiving, the insensitive words of envious peers and/or critical teachers?
- Could you demonstrate radical self-control and faithfulness by taking a full day off practice to rest and 'sabbath' properly with God's people?
Indeed, our identity as 'holy' like God (see 1:15-16, 2:9) ought to yield lives of such goodness that those around us simply can't find fault with us even when they try. In fact, these good lives ought to be that which convinces some of them to become Christians themselves such that they too end up joining in with praising God! Which leads nicely to:
Nugget #3 - Witness: be prepared to give answers
Famously, in 1 Peter 3, Peter writes:
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect
A musician actively conscious of their incredible and completely secure identity in Christ living that out in a life of radically good deeds will inevitably yield questions from onlookers who notice that you have a hope that they cannot explain. The opportunity to live radically differently during a period of pressure means that recital season presents a potentially unparalleled opportunity to witness to the gospel of Jesus. And that being the case, Peter enjoins us to 'be prepared' to give answers. So in advance of recital season (i.e. when you've got more time!), make sure you do what you need to be able to share the fundamentals of the gospel message of salvation through Christ alone:
- Read a relevant Christian book on evangelism
- Seek some training in evangelism from your church and/or CU, e.g. using Uncover gospels
- Practise sharing the gospel with CU friends, or with a spiritual mentor, who can help you with your presentation
And we do all this because 'Christ is Lord' - that's where the verse began. And He deserves the glory of as many people praising Him as possible.
Nugget #4 - Perspective: remember the future
In chapter 4, Peter shares these life-altering words:
The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray.
In the midst of recital season, will you remember that the future is in the hands of God Almighty? And He tells us in His Word that 'the end of all things is near.' There's a perspective-changer if ever there was one! And will you also remember that your future is in His hands? It doesn't depend on the examiners and/or upon your skill/performance. Even if you give the very best possible account of yourself and receive the highest marks, in the grand scheme of things, it really, ultimately, doesn't matter. That's not to say you shouldn't do your best or try your hardest - you should! It is simply to keep your perspective realistic, which is that this life is ultimately short, and that your destiny is contingent only upon your relationship with Christ, not this year's recital performance.
But here's the thing: this is glorious and hugely liberating! It frees you up not to worry, and to work hard not because your life depends on it, but because it is all a gift from God, and this is the work He has given you to do at this time. Indeed, this verse and the following four verses all spell out some implications of this perspective-changer:
- Clarity of thought ('be alert and of sober mind' v.7)
- Attitude of prayer ('so that you may pray' v.7)
- Ethic of love and service (see all of v.8-11, which mention practical outworkings such as hospitality (v.9) and edifying speech (v.11))
In short, if you maintain an eternal perspective during recital season, you will keep your mind from becoming fuddled through stress and anxiety (what a blessing!) and thus be able to serve and love others as a result (what a challenge!)
Nugget #5 - Mindset: submit everything to God
Towards the end of the letter, Peter begins summarising some of his key messages, in the midst of which come these wonderful exhortations:
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.
If the previous nuggets have dealt generally with recital season, then let these be your motto verses for the recital (or final exam/submission) itself. When stood in the wings waiting to go on, or when on stage itself, what ought to be your mindset? The choice is either security or insecurity. The insecure will feel that their whole existence depends on that one moment, which will either crush them if they fall short or make them arrogant if they think they pull it off. But despair and arrogance are just both forms of pride - they assume that you yourself are in control. But one of the glorious messages of the gospel is precisely the opposite, that you are not in control, but that 'the only wise God' (Romans 16:27), 'God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords' (1 Timothy 6:15) is the one in control. And therefore, says Peter, we should submit everything to Him. Because He is mighty, you should 'humble yourselves' before Him; because He is good and 'cares for you', you should 'cast all your anxiety on Him'; and if you do, 'He may lift you up in due time.'
So just before you go on stage, why not say a little prayer:
- Lord, you are mighty. You are the One in control, not me.
- Please help me neither fear my examiners nor trust in my own abilities.
- Lord, you care for me. I cast all my anxiety on you.
- Please help me to feel calm, and to play to the best of my abilities.
- Lord, you will lift me up in due time.
- Please help me trust your timing, and know that it might not be till the New Creation, but that that is all that ultimately matters.
Amen.
TLDR: a summary of the above
From 1 Peter, we learn these five points which can help us when feeling under pressure, e.g. in recital season:
- Identity: we should remember who(se) we are // The gospel means we are in Christ and belong to Him.
- Conduct: we should live radically different lives // We should live out our identity as those in Christ, the Holy One, in lives of radical goodness.
- Witness: we should be prepared to give answers // We should be actively prepared in how to share the gospel with those who ask questions about the hope we evidently have.
- Perspective: we should remember the future // We should ever bear in mind that eternity is real and not get overly caught up in the stresses of the present
- Mindset: submit everything to God // We should remember that God is in control and cares for us, and so humbly cast everything, including our cares, on Him.
