"Sticking with it"
(2 Timothy 4:2b)

         I know that some of you have just started playing your own special musical instrument in school. How do I know that? Well, believe me, I have heard the sound of a certain french horn coming from Mitchell’s room a lot lately. Boy, have I heard it a lot! Have any others of you begun playing a musical instrument?
         I brought along my very first instrument, which I began to learn how to play when I was in fifth grade. It’s called a cornet. That’s right, it’s like a trumpet. When I started out, I wasn’t very good. It took me a long time to learn how to play it. Along the way, my music teacher encouraged me to change to a larger instrument with a bigger mouthpiece. I guess she figured I had a big mouth. It is called a baritone.
         It was fun at first, learning how to play the cornet and then the baritone. But, you know what? I got tired of it very quickly. After a while I didn’t want to do something that my teacher told me I needed to do. What was that? Correct! I didn’t want to practice. I’d rather go out and play, or watch TV, or anything else. Unfortunately, if you want to learn how to play an instrument you have to practice it. That’s how you become a good musician.
         Practice, practice, practice. If I had a dime for every time my parents told me I needed to "stick with it," I would have become rich. That’s true of everything. If we want to become good at something, we have to stick with it. It’s called "persistence." That’s true for learning how to do something well. It’s true also for continuing to do something well. I became a very good baritone player. But I haven’t played much since I was in college. I can still play, but not like I used to - because I didn’t stick with it.
         By the way, when I was a boy scout I was the bugler for my troop. Every morning at scout camp I’d wake everybody up with "Reveille." I won’t hurt your ears by trying to play it right now, because I don’t think I’d do very well. After all, I haven’t stuck with it since then. However, why don’t you pray with me a "wake up" prayer, before you head off to choir practice.

         Good morning God. Thank you for waking us up today. Wake up our voices so that we can learn how to sing, using the "musical instrument" you made in our vocal chords. Help us to stick with it. Thank you for Miss Marian and her helpers, who are very persistent in teaching us every week. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Prayer (over the offering)

         Lord, these offerings reflect our faith in you. We confess, though, how "dim our faith may be" at times. We all struggle to stick with it, to be persistent, to keep on keeping on. Help us. May your promised Holy Spirit keep working on us, especially when it comes to the living out of the faith that you have planted in us. This we pray in the name of the One who stuck with us all the way to the cross, and who will keep on keeping on to the very end, and beyond. Amen.