Learning The Guitar

Learning the guitar has not been easy. There are times that I play that I enjoy it, other times it is frustrating as I think I am not doing it right, or a mess up a note. Overall it has been a rewarding experience.

Playing guitar in Malaysia.

When I did my last mission trip, many people had a guitar with them. They used them during debriefs, church services, and team worship sessions. It was nice and I started to want to learn how to play. I have never played a musical instrument before and it seemed easy enough. One of the girls on my team had a travel guitar and she allowed us to use it with two rules. One, we never try to tune it, two, always put it back when we were done. She provided some chords for us to use. When I had time I would pick up the guitar and just try to play chords and such.

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I currently have Baby Taylor. It is a nice guitar and has treated me well. I know a few songs and have struggled learning more. Now, I help out at  couple youth groups each week. The kids are amazing. There is one youth in general that has brought their guitar in on occasion and has even done some of the worship at the group. Lately I have been asking a lot of questions of them about how they learned and how do you get a strumming pattern. Strumming has been a downfall for me. They have very patiently spoken with me and even have demonstrated things for me. I was able to video record their hands as they strum a song that I have wanted to learn. 

Playing my guitar in the backyard.

The last couple of days I have been practicing, not the song I recorded from the youth but a different song, it is “Happy Day” you know the song, it goes. Oh happy day, happy day, you washed my sin away, oh, happy day, happy day, I’ll never be the same, forever I am changed. It is really upbeat. I struggled at first and even when I didn't have my guitar in hand I would find myself at times strumming along. This morning it hit me like a rock. I was just sitting in the family room just going at it. However, when I caught myself thinking about what I am doing I would mess up and it would sound bad. Yet when I just let the rhythm move through me it was wonderful.

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Being a logical person, I was over thinking everything. When I stopped thinking so much about the strumming and just let it flow things went well. I am sure more songs will be coming soon. But, how many times do we over think things? When God tells us something, how often do we over think the process and make it more complicated than it has to be? It happens, even to me. However, when we step out of the way and allow God to work through us things just turn out to be oh so wonderful. 

It is funny how something I learned while playing guitar can apply to our lives each and everyday. If you are like me learning guitar, keep at it, it will come to you, just keep practicing.