Blessed Practice - The Rev. Philip DeVaul

Sermons from the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer

I showed up to my piano lesson one day, and my teacher could tell that I was really frustrated. She'd been working with me since I was nine and she could tell that I was very frustrated. She asked, what's wrong? I said, I'll tell you what's wrong. I'm listening to Glen Gould play this invention and I can't play it like that. And she said, Phil, he's one of the greatest piano players in the history of piano, no one can play it like that. Don't do that to yourself. I said, well, I, if I can't sound like him when I play this, why play it at all? I feel like this is how we get when Jesus tells us what it means to be a disciple. Jesus stands up before us today in the beginning of what we call his Sermon on the Mount, which in the Gospel according to Matthew, is the true beginning of his earthly ministry. And these are the very first words he says. Blessed are the poor in spirit.