Sometimes, I don’t love playing second fiddle. I don’t know anyone who truly loves it. The phrase second fiddle, is, of course, based on the orchestra, where you have first chair, second chair, etc. The first chair musician is the elite musician. They are the best at their instrument in that orchestra. Second chair means you are ALMOST the best, but there is one greater than you. I can remember years ago when the U.S. men’s hockey team lost the gold medal game in 2010 to our neighbors to the north, USA goalie Ryan Miller shared from a defeated podium, how he was grateful for his silver medal, but he said, “You win gold, but you lose silver”. There is so much truth to that. We often view those in 2nd place with pity, & when we find ourselves out of the driver’s seat, we don’t always love it.
Some of us LOVE making decisions/being in control. Truthfully, this is where I find myself. I ALWAYS have an opinion, & I feel my opinion is always right. If someone asks how something should be done, I will gladly share my uneducated opinion… Some people love being out of the drivers seat. They will gladly just go with the flow & they are very passive when it comes to decision making. Sometimes, these two people find each other, marry & have a great marriage. Sometimes they marry someone very like minded & fight over every decision, or never make a decision …
Today I want to remind us all, myself included, that we need to be in the second chair when it comes to following the leading of the Holy Spirit.
If you have a bible close, turn to Galatians chapter 5. Galatians 5:22-23 are the well known fruits of the spirit, but I actually want to look at Galatians 5:25. “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” What does this verse mean? What does it mean to keep in step with the Spirit? Interestingly enough, the greek word used in this verse is, “stoicheō” literally means to walk in line, or to march in military rank. We see here that Paul tells the church in Galatia that if they are to live by the Spirit, they need to follow the Holy Spirit like a soldier listening to his commander.
Not that the Holy Spirit is legalistic & rigid, but rather that we would have that obedience of a soldier headed to battle. Let’s have a honest reality check here, do we respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit with total & immediate obedience? I know I sure don’t…. (If you haven’t picked up on this yet, I am not perfect…. sorry……) I know that sometimes I want to argue with God that I don’t have time, or I don’t want to, or He must have the wrong person. As my children are getting older, we are in the full blown phase of questioning EVERYTHING I tell them.
They HAVE to know the why behind everything I tell them. I then carefully remind them that I need them to trust me & do what I ask of them. That is us 100% when it comes to following the Holy Spirit. We want to know the why, or we want to argue our viewpoint on things. What if we obediently submitted? Not as robots, but as a people who trusted the Lord in all things? What if we allowed him to take first chair, & we obediently sat in the second seat, following Him.
Sometimes, if my wife & I haven’t meal planned for the week, we will turn to the other asking what we want for dinner. Some days, one of us will simply say, “I am done making decision for the day, you choose.” I have learned there is a lot of freedom in not always being in charge, or being in control. While I do enjoy making decision & think highly of my own opinion, I know that I don’t have all the answers, but I know the one who does! I just need to submit to Him & His will for my life. This is easier said than done… Today though, I want to remind us all to just S.T.E.P.
S – Surrender our plans. We need to remind ourselves that God gets the first chair. Mark Batterson reminds us that when praying the Lord’s prayer, we are to pray God’s will be done, not God’s will be changed! Surrender isn’t giving God permission to bless the plan you already made; it’s genuinely placing the plan in His hands.
T – Trust His wisdom. Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us not to lean on our own understanding, but rather to acknowledge His plans & He will direct our steps. Often, obedience comes before explanation!
E – Examine His Word. We should never use “the Spirit led me” as an excuse to do something contrary to what God has already revealed in Scripture. God’s Word gives us the boundaries and direction for discerning His will (See Psalm 119:105)
P – Promptly Obey. When God’s direction is clear & noticeable, we need to move. Don’t negotiate, stall, or wait until obedience becomes convenient. We are reminded in James 1 to be hearers of the Word, but also to be doers of the Word too!
Think of that greek word “stoicheō” again.. To promptly obey & walk in line behind the Holy Spirit. Being second fiddle, which is where we want to be in our spiritual walk. God in that first chair & us following His lead! As always, pursue Him, honor Him, glorify Him, in ALL you do! Be blessed!
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