Generosity & Humility

+ I will be uploading this coming Sunday service later, and will send it out by email and post it on Sunday morning. It is my sincere hope that I will only have to do this 2 more times - June 20 is looking good! We will continue to stream the service on Facebook live and send it out by email. 

Today's Thought - Generosity & Humility

Last night we went to our first live music event in almost 15 months. The Doubletree Hotel in Reading (along with Boscov's and the Berks Arts Council) sponsored Wynton Marsalis and his septet, and they were amazing! This is the third time we have seen him in some iteration - the first was in the late 1980's in a high school auditorium (it was really big and fancy) in Livingston, New Jersey. His brother, Branford, and the amazing pianist Marcus Roberts, were just two of the remarkable musicians playing with him that night. Mr. Marsalis is, arguably, the greatest living trumpeter (maybe the best ever), and has won Grammys in both jazz and classical music. 

The second time we saw him was at the Berks Jazz Festival a few years back. He came with his big band, and the skill of musicians was awe inspiring. To play with Marsalis, you would have to be at the top of your field. What struck me every time I have seen him, though, is his generosity and his humility. While he may be the greatest trumpet player ever, and his skill and knowledge of his craft is astounding, he, unlike some performers I have seen, shares the stage and the limelight with grace and humility. In a line of work that is often all about egotism, Wynton Marsalis lifts others up without fear of losing the spotlight himself. He is generous, and he has humility.

There is a difference between ego and being egotistical. Anyone who wants to excel at something needs to have a strong sense of self. Their ego has to be solid for them to strive to be the very best they can be at whatever they feel called to do. Egotism, however, is the sign of a narcissist; a person who may be extremely skilled, but also behaves jealously when around others who are also excellent at what they do. I remember seeing a performer at a music festival who was so in love with himself that he played every instrument in every song, and the only musician who shared the stage was a drummer, who was tremendous. Even then, this musician had a drum set brought out so he could play along. I don't begrudge him his skill, but I was turned off by his unwillingness to allow his drummer to shine.

In a culture filled with people shouting "Look at me!", performers like Wynton Marsalis - and the musicians he chooses for his groups - give me hope. They give to the community - they support up and coming artists - they tell self-deprecating stories - they know they are good and they feel joy when others are too. Egotistical people feel the need to float above other boats (or sinking them), but people like Wynton Marsalis believe that we are better when all boats rise together. That is what builds a great society.

Prayer - We are grateful, God, for the gifts You have given each one of us, and we ask that we live generous lives with humility. We will all be better off when we are all able to shine. Amen.

Today's image is Wynton Marsalis.