Friday Devotional...What do you observe?

PERCEPTION...

God gives us so much of beauty to see and to hear. How much do you take the time to see and hear?

The Scenario

At a Metro Station in Washington, DC, on a cold January morning in 2007, the  man pictured above played six Bach pieces on his violin for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After about 3 minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, but then he hurried on to meet his schedule. 

About 4 minutes later: 

The violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk. 

At 6 minutes: 

A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again. 

At 10 minutes:

A 3-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The child stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head back the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent - without exception - forced their children to move on quickly.

At 45 minutes:

The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

After 1 hour: 

He finished playing and silence, once again, took over. No one had noticed and no one had applauded. There was no recognition whatever. 

No one knew, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell's appearance had sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste, and people's priorities. 

This experiment raised several questions: 

• *In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?

• If so, do we stop to appreciate it? 

• *Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this: 

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the most renowned musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made...  

God gives us so much of beauty to see and to hear. How much do you take the time to see and hear? 

Enjoy life NOW.. There is an expiration date.

Philippians 4:6 

Don’t worry about anything, instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 

 Written by Louise McKinney, M.S
 
 Shared by 
 Corinne Mustafa