I had been asked to play a musical number for the Saturday evening session of our stake conference.⁣

And I was SO NERVOUS.⁣

I knew this hymn arrangement super well and it was completely memorized. ⁣

But I kept messing up!⁣

Each time I played a wrong note, I would pull the music out and practice that part over and over. ⁣

And then I would completely butcher another part that I had always played perfectly. ⁣

I focused on each individual note so hard. ⁣

Day after day. ⁣

The stake conference was approaching and I was honestly embarrassed. I thought I had this piece memorized flawlessly, and yet here I was thinking about every single note and messing up in random spots. ⁣

As I sat down discouraged to practice one last time, a thought came to my mind: ⁣

“Invite the Spirit and play your testimony.”⁣

I put the music away, closed my eyes, and started playing. ⁣

But this time, I tried not to think about any notes. ⁣

I just thought about the message and the Spirit that I hoped to share as I played. ⁣

And I played it perfectly. ⁣

I realized later that I played it perfectly BECAUSE I had stopped worrying about all the details.

I had stopped harping on every single mistake that I made and making it a super big deal. ⁣

I just got to the core of why I love to play the piano— because it helps me bear my testimony of God and light and hope. ⁣

Isn’t this true in regular life, too?⁣

When I try to follow all the rules perfectly and feel overwhelmed with guilt every time that I mess up, then I notice mistakes even more.

Things get even worse. Even messier. I can’t fix it all. ⁣

I need a good dose of that simple but powerful lesson Moses tried to teach the Israelites with a brass serpent: ⁣

“Every one that… looketh upon it, shall live.” (Numbers 21:8)⁣

It’s too simple. ⁣

We just have to love Jesus and God and invite the Spirit to be with us. ⁣

That’s all. ⁣

And when we do those things with our whole souls, all the rest of the little details fall into place.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Piano stress  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.