Beauty In Imperfection
Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins. (Ecclesiastes 7:20)
In 2013, Keith Jarrett of the jazz band “The Standards” released an album called Somewhere. Keith Jarret had come to be recognized as one of the most creative musicians of our time – universally acclaimed as an improviser of unsurpassed genius, known not just for his amazing piano skill, but also for bring his voice into his pieces in a unique way.
Back in 2009, the group recorded their album Somewhere in Lucerne, Switzerland. But that particular night, something wasn’t right. The bassist couldn’t get the sound levels to his liking, and they struggled through the entire evening with elements that just seemed off. The live recording caught every flaw, and because of those flaws, the group decided not to release the record.
For years it sat on the shelf, but Jarrett felt there was something special about it. He couldn’t let it go. He knew about the recording and acoustical flaws. He knew the setup had not been ideal, and the product was far from perfect. And yet, even though it was imperfect, he felt the recording was still worth putting out to the public.
Once the song was released, audiences and critics raved. The album rose to the top of Billboard’s Jazz albums in 2013 and 2014, and it all happened because someone discovered the beauty that could be found in imperfections.
In thinking about that story, I’ve concluded that life is a lot like that recording. Life doesn’t always present us with favorable circumstances, and yet somehow and some way, God can turn what seems to be a loss into a success.
If that’s been the case for your life, let me encourage you. Even if your circumstances haven’t been ideal, even if you’ve hit one bump in the road after another, God can still bring something beautiful from the imperfections. He can still make a success out of what seems like a mess. You, nor your circumstances, are never too far gone or too far out of reach. There is always beauty to be found in your imperfection.
In 2013, Keith Jarrett of the jazz band “The Standards” released an album called Somewhere. Keith Jarret had come to be recognized as one of the most creative musicians of our time – universally acclaimed as an improviser of unsurpassed genius, known not just for his amazing piano skill, but also for bring his voice into his pieces in a unique way.
Back in 2009, the group recorded their album Somewhere in Lucerne, Switzerland. But that particular night, something wasn’t right. The bassist couldn’t get the sound levels to his liking, and they struggled through the entire evening with elements that just seemed off. The live recording caught every flaw, and because of those flaws, the group decided not to release the record.
For years it sat on the shelf, but Jarrett felt there was something special about it. He couldn’t let it go. He knew about the recording and acoustical flaws. He knew the setup had not been ideal, and the product was far from perfect. And yet, even though it was imperfect, he felt the recording was still worth putting out to the public.
Once the song was released, audiences and critics raved. The album rose to the top of Billboard’s Jazz albums in 2013 and 2014, and it all happened because someone discovered the beauty that could be found in imperfections.
In thinking about that story, I’ve concluded that life is a lot like that recording. Life doesn’t always present us with favorable circumstances, and yet somehow and some way, God can turn what seems to be a loss into a success.
If that’s been the case for your life, let me encourage you. Even if your circumstances haven’t been ideal, even if you’ve hit one bump in the road after another, God can still bring something beautiful from the imperfections. He can still make a success out of what seems like a mess. You, nor your circumstances, are never too far gone or too far out of reach. There is always beauty to be found in your imperfection.
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