Let Them See Your Progress

This post is written to link with Five Minute Friday: write for five minutes on a one-word prompt.  The prompt today is “progress.”

I almost gave up the piano after three lessons.

I didn’t like that I wasn’t good at it, that there was too much to learn, that it was hard!

Fortunately, I was persuaded to keep going.  Gradually I realised that I did have a gift for music, but that it was something that had to be developed gradually.  It would take work and practice.  It was about progress, not perfection.

(Side note: I recently saw a Facebook ad that made me laugh.  It was advertising a course to learn the clarinet, claiming that you could go from “Beginner to Pro in under 5 hours!” Since I’ve played the clarinet for over 25 years, I can assure you that is an impossible claim.)

There are many situations where we’d love a quick fix, but actually most things that matter are only developed through time and effort.  We can’t wait until we’re good at it to give it a shot.

It’s similar with the Christian life.  Paul writes to Timothy, encouraging him to cultivate the gifts he’s been given:

“Give your complete attention to these matters.  Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress.”  (1 Timothy 4:15 NLT)

There’s something scary about living in a way that lets others see your progress.  It means letting them see that at first you’re not so great – you may have the seed of a gift but you’re still learning to develop it and use it well.

But I think it’s also the only way to make progress – by doing it, by letting others see, by learning from their advice and being nurtured by their encouragement.

I’m glad I persevered with the piano.  It was worth the effort to look back years later and appreciate the progress I’d made, and I’m even more glad I persevered with the Christian life though I’m definitely still a work in progress.

(And thank you to for all your wise comments on my post on Tuesday.  I’m pleased to report that this post came out easily, and that in itself is a sign of progress but also an example of why we need one another’s encouragement!)