More from Kumalawaty Sundari

Looking back at what I have done for the Lord, doing what I can to please God’s heart from the time I was a teenager until now, I know for certain that as Christians we must be fruitful for God and not only go to church regularly. Indeed, for some time I felt that I couldn’t do anything to serve God at church. As a quiet person, I could only admire those who looked more sociable and took part in organizing church events. Some people actually invited me to be a religious education teacher, but I always rejected the suggestion because I thought I wasn’t an easy-going person, and I didn’t like dealing with children too much.

However, when I saw how the religious education classes ran, it seemed to me that the children were not sensing God’s presence when they praised him. I was moved to help by being a guitarist in one class. Music isn’t my talent, and at first it wasn’t easy to master; many times I wanted to give up. I just kept practicing as much as I could till I was sure that my skill was enough to play the hymns that the children usually sang. Everybody said that nothing was special with my guitar playing, but as I was burning in God’s Spirit, I always gave my best. My heart was so glad each time I saw how since my presence there, the class became so lively. Praising the Lord wasn’t just part of church liturgy, but the children’s act to invite God’s presence with hearts filled with worship and thanksgiving.

That experience reminds me how important is to be useful for God. Surely God’s Spirit will inspire us in which field we can serve so that the result can be satisfying and what we do for God will make us closer to the One who has chosen us. I realized that I had many reasons to say “no” to being a guitarist, especially because I knew that I wouldn’t be able to play perfectly. By obeying the Spirit’s call, however, I could see how God worked amazingly through me—my simple guitar playing could move the children to sing for God gladly and make them automatically more enthusiastically to listen to his word.

My joy to serve God was much greater than the voices telling me than as a quiet person I could only pray rather than be involved at church, like many people told me. Even if now God directs me more toward being useful for him through my writings, I often remind who play piano or guitar in church service to do it wholeheartedly, ignoring what people say about their technique, as music really has power to rise up our spirits.

Even if God only gives you a simple ability that perhaps many people underestimate, when you faithfully use it to please God’s heart, surely it can bless many people and satisfy you fully as a sign that God accepts what you give with a sincere heart.