This is a photo of EL practicing her piano lessons. She loves listening to music, so David and I decided to start having her take lessons, hoping to give her the ability to make music of her own. To be honest, she is not real excited about practicing on her keyboard; and if I gave her the choice of whether or not to go to lessons, she would say no. But, she doesn't refuse to practice when I ask. So, I admit I am pushing her a little bit in this area. My goal is not for her to become a famous pianist, or even to be perfect in her playing. I just want her to enjoy making music. I want her to have a "hobby" she loves, and can also use to bless others. If it doesn't work out, then at least we can say we tried.
As I've thought about it more, I think EL has a hard time with piano lessons because she is somewhat of a perfectionist (like her Daddy), and she doesn't like making mistakes. When she is practicing her lessons, she goes very slowly, trying not to mess up at all. But, of course, because she is still learning, she DOES make mistakes. So, when that happens, she stops playing, says "Oops," and then starts all over again at the beginning. She will not just ignore the mistake and keep going as if it had never happened.
In the same way, no matter how hard we try as Christians, we WILL fall short of perfection while we are here on this earth. So, when we do mess up, God doesn't want us to ignore what has happened. He wants us to acknowledge it, ask for forgiveness, and then start over, making it a point to learn from those "mistakes."
1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (ESV)
Proverbs 28:13 - Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy. (ESV)