Twenty-Four Days in a Locked Room

In the summer of 1741, George Frideric Handel received a libretto from Charles Jennens — a collection of scripture passages arranged to tell the story of redemption. Handel was fifty-six years old, deeply in debt, and his reputation as a composer was fading fast. He had every reason to set the manuscript aside.

Instead, he locked himself in his London home and began to write.

For roughly twenty-four days, Handel barely ate. His servant found plates of food untouched outside the door. When he finally emerged with the completed score of Messiah — including the thundering "Hallelujah" chorus that would move kings to stand — Handel reportedly said with tears on his face, "I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself."

Obedience rarely looks dramatic from the outside. Sometimes it looks like sitting down and doing the work God has placed in front of you, even when you are tired, even when the world has written you off, even when no one is watching. Handel did not know he was composing one of the most beloved choral works in history. He simply responded to what was set before him.

The Almighty does not always call us to grand gestures. More often, He calls us to faithfulness in the room where no one sees — to pick up the work He has given and not put it down until it is finished.