I remember going into a record shop in South Kensington, London, back in 1982 and hearing Frustration by Soft Cell. I didn’t know who sung it when I heard it. There wasn’t any web back then, but I eventually found out who sung it. Marc Almond wasn’t really ordinary. The “ordinary” guy in the video was played by keyboardist David Ball, who passed away recently after being ill for some years.
But when you’re young, you tend to hope that you’ll accomplish amazing things. Then, as life goes on, you get frustrated at being so ordinary- at least I do. Although maybe you just learn to accept your limitations. I don’t know if I’m particularly good at anything. But I’m somewhat skilled in the following:
- Engineering – My first career was being an apprentice maintenance fitter/turner.
- Engineering education – I trained as a teacher in metal and engineering technology.
- Evangelism/church work – I worked at this in a full-time and part-time capacity.
- Software development – I did a graduate diploma in this and trained others in it for a couple of years.
- Instructional design – I spent a good many years in eLearning at the latter part of my working life.
I play keyboards and guitar too. I can’t say that I’m particularly good, but I have many years of experience. I often compare my guitar skills with my life as a Christian. I don’t see myself as a particularly good Christian, but I trust in Jesus and aim to grow and learn. And I’m nowhere near being perfect as a Christian or as a guitar player. But I apply myself on a day-to-day basis, and I’m always eager to learn.
So, I’m not young, I’m not gifted, and I’m not black ☹️.
It’s a good thing that you don’t need to be skilled to get into heaven. You just need to repent and believe. And God can use you regardless of your skills. I’ve met some exceptionally gifted people in my life. And I’ve met plenty of very ordinary people. They’ve all brought joy into my life.
All God’s creatures have a place in the choir. That’s an old song that Makem and Clancy used to sing.
And I think of the Apostle Paul’s reference to different gifts in 1 Corinthians 13. He’s basically making the point that we’re all different, but we all have a role to play and something to contribute.
One of the first songs that I learned in school, when I was four, was Little Drummer Boy. I only learned later that the story isn’t in the Bible. It’s just a legend about a little boy who played the drums for Joseph and Mary when Jesus was born. It was a little lesson that whatever talents that we have, we can use them for Jesus.
In 1982, just around the time that I heard that Frustration song that I mentioned earlier, I heard Bing Crosby and David Bowie singing Little Drummer Boy. In fact, it might have even been on that same day. I was listening to a sort of “Walkman radio” that I had just bought on my way to the Science Museum in South Kensington.
I sometimes remember myself back in 1977 as a 15-year-old playing the organ, dreaming that I’d one day play in a punk group like the Stranglers. That never happened, but I did play in church for many years. I might never have bothered learning if I wasn’t into rock music.
Here are two songs that touch on using your talent for God. U2 are rarely explicit about their Christian faith in their music, but if you listen carefully, you can hear the Christian influence:
I was born
I was born to sing for you
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise
Hibernia Gospel 