Fingerprint Friday

Steven Curtis Chapman sings:

I can see the fingerprints of God
When I look at you
I can see the fingerprints of God
And I know its true
You're a masterpiece
That all creation quietly applauds
And you're covered with
The fingerprints of God

PamperingBeki challenges bloggers each Friday to discover, recognize, see and share God's fingerprints with the rest of the world. See instructions to join in here. Also check the other blogs linked there to see more great Fingerprints!

* * *I’ve been wanting to do a Fingerprint about music, and I’ve been composing words in my head for three days now. I’d heard a song in the grocery store last week that got stuck in my head, even though I hate the song. I used a song I’ve loved for years to try to keep the ugly song from taking hold of my senses.

I thought that would be a particularly moving Fingerprint. Now I believe it has grown just a little more powerful.

I just got off the phone with the auto mechanic. The news wasn’t good. He’d delivered similar news back in July. When I dropped off the car again this morning - same song, second verse - I specifically told him he could call with only good news. He wasn’t allowed to call with bad news!

Now I’m on the verge of tears because this is the second big repair in less than 90 days and the third big repair this year. I’m discouraged, and I’m concerned. This is not the economy to keep experiencing such heavy expenses. This is not the economy, for me, anyway, to consider buying a new car. This is not the season, unfortunately, for me to ride my bike to work and back every day for couple of months until I can save up the money. My entire commute both ways would be in near total darkness. I have lights for my bike, but that doesn’t mean every motorist will see me. And I don’t even want to think about riding home late on Friday nights...

I have to do the repairs; I don’t have a choice. I worry about what will happen next if I keep racking up the miles on this 11-year-old, paid-off-in-full seemingly money trap. No monthly payments, but boy are these repairs making up for that in a big way!

So now I’m trying to use that same song, the one I used last week to chase ugly thoughts and words from my head, to scatter feelings that prevent me from doing my best and mess up my concentration if I let them run rampant. And it's working. So many warm feelings are seeping into my soul.

My high school choir director is such a Fingerprint in my life. Still, after all these years! Every year, he incorporated a gospel song into our annual competitions. I don’t know if public schools can do that anymore, and if they can’t, boy are they missing out! We rehearsed our competition songs every school day, and we rehearsed them in parts, with and without accompaniment, during lunch hours, and in mandatory after-school rehearsals as performances drew near. Because we sang one particular [beautiful] song over and over and over again, it is imprinted in my core. I frequently draw upon it to do exactly what I need it to do right now. Many a long-distance bike ride has been pedaled while I sing old high school gospel and current church choir songs… mainly because I don’t have to worry about anyone nearby being offended by my voice OR the music! The music helps the miles roll by. It replaces ugly thoughts with cheerful ones. It helps me put things back in perspective.

In today’s overwhelming environment of attempted thought and expression control, I am particularly thankful for a high school teacher who made sure all his students had at least one faith-promoting song they could use as a rock throughout their lives, regardless of religious preferences.

I'm thankful for music that helps put joy back into my life when I'm down.

I'm even thankful, now that I've settled down, that my car needed service here, in town, where it can be easily fixed, as opposed to breaking down in the wilderness while I'm shooting autumn pictures.

The music helped me remember Who is at the helm.

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