When the Broken Instrument Still Plays

In 1741, George Frideric Handel was a ruined man. At fifty-six, he was drowning in debt, his operas were failing, and a stroke four years earlier had partially paralyzed his right arm. London's musical world considered him finished. Then a libretto arrived from Charles Jennens — scripture passages tracing the story of the Messiah from prophecy to resurrection.

Something ignited in Handel. For twenty-four days, he barely ate or slept. Music poured from him like water from struck rock. When his servant brought meals, he found them untouched, and Handel weeping at his desk. After completing the Hallelujah Chorus, Handel reportedly said through tears, "I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself."

The man the world had discarded produced what many consider the greatest sacred composition ever written.

Here is the truth the Almighty wants you to hear this morning: your sense of being finished is not God's assessment. The season that feels like an ending may be the preparation for your deepest contribution. El Shaddai does not consult your circumstances when He assigns your purpose. He consults His own design.

You may feel paralyzed, indebted, past your prime. But the God who handed a broken composer twenty-four days of glory has not run out of assignments for you.