The Subway Stradivarius

Growing Daily

About twenty years ago, an unusual social experiment took place in a subway station. World-class violinist Joshua Bell pretended to be a busker, wearing ordinary clothes and a baseball cap. Amid the rush of commuters, he began playing an exquisite Bach composition on a Stradivarius violin worth millions of dollars.

Over the next 45 minutes, he played the same music that had filled concert halls at premium ticket prices. More than a thousand people passed by. Only seven paused to listen. Just one recognized who he was and thanked him.

Something similar happened during the ministry of Jesus. In Luke 17, He healed ten men suffering from leprosy. All ten experienced something extraordinary, but only one stopped to thank Him.

Jesus asked, "Didn't I heal ten men? Where are the other nine?" (Luke 17:17).

It’s possible to experience God’s blessings and still rush through life without stopping to acknowledge Him. The nine lepers and the commuters kept moving, giving little thought to what they were leaving behind.

Today, choose to be the one who notices. The one who is thankful. Take a moment to thank God for the beauty around you that you might otherwise hurry past.

Gratitude begins when we slow down long enough to notice what we’ve been given.

- Ron Reid