6 min.
The Power of Music
Each of us, at one time or another, face trials, sadness, and adversity. These experiences are not signs of weakness or abandonment but part of the universal refining fire that shapes us into something higher and holier. Words of comfort and encouragement matter because they remind us that we are not alone in our struggle. When we lift one another, we rise together. Seen through an eternal lens, our hardships become sacred classrooms — places where faith deepens, compassion expands, and the divine hand molds us for greater purpose. I offer the following reflections in this spirit.
Yesterday, a young father who has recently lost a young child to death stood before us in our testimony meeting and, with great tenderness and emotion, said: “If there is one thing I wish I could tell every person in the world, it is this: you are a child of God, a unique, beautiful creation. There is no one else like you, and God loves you.”
In a season filled with celebrity speeches, country music star Eric Church touched on similar themes as he broke down what he called “the six strings of life.” Introducing his theme, he said:
“Six strings. When all six are in tune, the chords they make can stop a conversation cold, carry a broken person through the worst night of their life, or make a room full of strangers feel for three minutes like they’ve known each other forever. But if even one is off, the whole chord unravels. Not gradually, not politely. The moment you strike it, you know.” That is the power of music.
String 1: The Low E string — Faith as Foundation
The low E is the thickest, heaviest string that buttresses everything else. Your faith is the low E of your life. The thing that sits at the very bottom of you. “The people who tend to their faith in ordinary seasons do not come undone in extraordinary ones.” Faith provides a foundation when everything else in life may be in crisis. Tend to your faith, not just when you’re broken, but when you’re whole.
String 2: The A string — Nurturing Your Connection to Family
This is the string that makes you feel like you’re not alone. “Devote time to family, even if your family is not making demands on you because they think you are so busy with your life. Do not take them up on it. Call your people. Not where there’s new, not when there’s nothing. Show up when it costs you something. Let them see you when things are hard.”
String 3: The D string — Finding the Heart of Your Life in a Partner or Spouse
The D string is located in the heart of the guitar, and Church likened it to a spouse or partner. “The person you choose is the most important decision you will ever make outside of your faith. They will either amplify every other string you’re playing or slowly pull the whole instrument into an out-of-tune mess.”
He also gave advice on what to look for: “Find your best friend. Someone you want to talk to at the end of a long day. Look for shared values over shared interest. The right partner is the string that makes the whole chord ring fuller and warmer and truer than anything you could ever play alone. Choose them wisely and then love them fiercely.”
String 4: The G string — Resilience After Failure
“The world has more than enough people standing at the edge of their own potential, waiting for a permission slip that was never going to arrive.” Want the thing. Say it out loud. Build toward it with everything you have. And when you fail — and you will fail — Hemingway wrote it plainly, right in the sternum: “The world breaks everyone. Afterward, the best of us is stronger at the broken places.” Get back up. Tune the string. Keep playing.
String 5: The B string — Choosing Local Community Over Digital Life
Choose in-person local connections over digital ones, where there is “the temptation to perform for everyone and be known to no one.” Resist this. Plant yourself somewhere. Put down roots with the full intention of growing there. Learn the actual names — not usernames — of the people around you.
Volunteer as a coach or work on community projects. “Generosity is not something you do after you make it. It’s how you make it. And if you get lost — and at some point, I promise you, you will — you have a place you belong now.”
String 6: The High E string — Retaining What Makes You Unique
Avoid the “relentless, curated” comparisons to the lives of others on social media. Retain your individuality amid the temptation to follow trends or mimic others online. “Do not let them touch your string. You were made uniquely, wonderfully, distinctly. There’s a sound only you can make. A voice that has never existed before you and will never exist again. A contribution only you can bring. A way of seeing that belongs to only you. The world does not need another cover song. It needs an original.”
He concluded by noting the six strings will be out of tune at times in life, which is not “failure” or “weakness” but an “inevitable” part of life. “Take your six strings, make it worth something worth hearing and play your song.”
Reflection
In the end, every string of our lives — faith, family, love, resilience, community, and individuality — finds its true harmony in Jesus Christ. He is the Master Musician who has walked the path of sorrow, borne the weight of grief, and descended below all things so he can lift us above them. Because he has suffered perfectly, he knows how to comfort us personally. No trial is wasted in his hands; no heartbreak is unseen; no adversity is beyond his ability to transform. When life feels out of tune, he is the One who can gently retune our souls and restore our strength. As we trust him, follow him, and let his compassion, mercy, and grace steady our trembling hands, we discover that even our broken notes can become part of a far greater song — one filled with hope, purpose, and eternal promise. May these reflections lift your heart, strengthen your faith, and remind you that with Christ, your song is never over.
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