The Harp
Hi, everyone. I’m back in studio with my good friend and co-worker Shauna Amick. Shauna, good to see you!
SHAUNA: Good to see you too, Joni.
JONI: The last time we talked you were sharing a story about your daughter, Sarah, and her incredible love for music. You know, I’m still smiling at the thought of not only what I learned about music therapy from what you shared, but Sarah’s God-given talents to make music unto the Lord. Good for her!
SHAUNA: Good for all of us. It is wonderful to think, not only of how God has used music in Sarah’s life, but how He uses music to sooth all of us in our times of distress.
JONI: Oh, absolutely. You know, in my darkest times I sing to comfort myself. I sing my way through suffering; I give myself a hug and remind myself of brighter days ahead with the words of a beautiful hymn. I think that is what we see happening in music therapy, is that not true? Children with special needs, those who are over-stimulated, agitated, crying. So often it is music that calms them down and settled their spirit – that’s music therapy, right?
SHAUNA: Oh, it sure is and Joni, God uses music to calm me down when I am agitated as well.
You know, when Sarah was born, she very quickly started dying. In fact, we lived for the first three months of her life in the neonatal intensive care unit in the hospital. She was just so weak and could not even be removed from her life support system. And while Sarah was fighting for every weak, faint heart beat, I was honestly fighting for my sanity. I was a strong Christian, or I thought I was a strong Christian before Sarah was born, but watching my baby die every day really put my faith to the test. I know that Scripture told me in 2 Timothy 1:7 that God did not give me a spirit of fear, but one of power and love and of a sound mind, which I held on to every day. But I was feeling like I was losing the battle in those three months. And at my darkest point in that journey I remember just literally verbally crying out to God next to Sarah’s hospital bed and in that very moment—it was almost as though I was watching a movie, and right on cue the most beautiful harp music started to play.
JONI: From where?
SHAUNA: Well it sounded like from out of heaven, but I thought for sure it must be a CD, but as I listened it just sounded too real to be a CD. I finally peeked my head out of Sarah’s hospital room door and lo and behold the most beautiful harpist was sitting not far from her room with a full-sized harp playing hymns in the neonatal intensive care unit.
JONI: Oh, my goodness! Now that’s an answer to a desperate prayer of yours, isn’t it?
SHAUNA: I knew it was God’s answer for sure sending that woman right at that very moment to be someone to calm me in my biggest storm. Years later, I went back to that same hospital and as I was about to get on the elevator, who should come to the elevator but that same harpist dragging a full size harp with her. I was then able to tell her “thank you for being the answer to my prayers so many years ago” and the two of us just stood in that elevator with tears in our eyes praising God for the way He unites the Body of Christ.
JONI: So God did a little bit of His own musical therapy on you that time, didn’t he?
SHAUNA: Oh, it really was a gift from heaven.
JONI: Friend listening, oh my goodness, I pray you will find a creative way to use your gifts. Maybe like that harpist with her concert grand harp, dragging it in to a neonatal unit. But however you do it, use your gifts to encourage someone else today, right Shauna?
SHAUNA: That’s right Joni!
JONI: Friend listening please go directly to joniradio.org where you can find all sorts of opportunities to put your spiritual gifts into action today.
© Joni and Friends
