Jeff Adams

Have you ever heard that if you start talking to someone at random anywhere in the world, before you get seven layers deep in talking about relationships, you will find a common contact? I’m not sure that’s an exact quote and I can’t even remember where I heard it, but I am beginning to think there may be some truth to it.

Back in February I wrote about discovering KC Strings in Merriam, Kansas, just to the southwest of downtown. To this day I can’t drive by on the freeway without getting excited when I think about what is going on there. Before you go on, please go back here and read wrote so you will have the background for what I am about to tell you.

Sarah Kim is a very talented young violinist, one of the Apple Hill Players, and currently lives in New York City. She is also the daughter of a couple in our church.  Her dad and I have been going through the Directions study this year. When I saw KC Strings, I knew that I would have to take Sarah there the next time she was in Kansas City. That time came last Monday. It was good to see Misha and Rick again. This time we got to meet Misha’s son Anton, the master violin maker. It was fun to watch Sarah interact with some or their fine violins. Later, as they were giving us the tour, Anton was mentioning some of the top tier professional musicians who now play on their instruments.

“Jut last week,” Anton said, “a very fine young violinist was in the shop. His mother lives here in the Kansas City area and he stops in whenever he is in town. He plays one of our instruments. Have you ever heard of ________?”

“I have known him for years,” Sarah exclaimed. “We went to music camps together when we were younger. We went to school together. We’ve played concerts together. I know him very well. I had asked him about his instrument and remember that it is a modern instrument, but I had no idea it was from here!”

Small world? You ain’t heard nothing yet.

I got an email earlier today from our worship pastor, Arturo la Cruz, Peruvian. Anton had called him all excited. He has been corresponding with the director of the Honduran Philharmonic who is very interested in buying a number of instruments, from violins to basses. Anton asked Arturo to help him with the communication and serve as a bridge since the Honduran maestro’s English is not the best and Anton doesn’t do Spanish. (Do you remember me talking about a symphonic set in the previous post I asked to you read above? Still haven’t read it? Shame on you! Go back and do that right now! Then, you might figure out why Anton would be so excited about an orchestra that is contemplating the purchase of a number of his instruments).

Arturo emailed me to see if we have any contacts in Honduras. I immediately thought of my friend of 30 years, Nelson Guerra, who directs the Latin America ministries of Great Commission Ministries and currently lives in Miami. I emailed Nelson to see if their group of churches might have any classical music contacts in Honduras. He immediately shot back that not only did he have contacts, the Honduran maestro is a good friend. His sister is a member of their church and sings in one of the praise groups! Is that neat or what?

Think back over what I just related. This has to do with an American pastor (me) who used to live in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and El Salvador, a Russian Jewish father/son team who make world class violins in Merriam, Kansas, a Peruvian worship leader, a Korean/American violinist, an American violinist whose mother lives in Kansas City, a Honduran ministry leader/pastor who lives in Miami and a Honduran orchestra conductor. By the way, this all got started when an Italian/American friend of mine insisted that I meet Misha and see his stringed instrument shop and hear about his dream of making a symphonic set.

Now, what all this means and where it is all headed, I have no idea. Even if nothing more comes of it, it’s a blast just seeing all the contacts and connections come together. Oh, another interesting detail — Misha had been a double bass player in the Kansas City symphony for years when he got a visit one night from a wild man in a pickup truck who wanted to sell him a plywood cello. MIsha had to politely tell him that he had no use for a plywood cello, but before he could finish, the wild man had grabbed a guitar and started settling into Misha’s house to sing him some songs he had written.

When the guy finally left, Misha was left wondering if God would have some purpose in such a chance and bizarre encounter. He concluded that there must be a purpose in there somewhere. Just a couple of months later, the wild guy in the pickup had sent another mutual contact to Misha to buy a quality cello for his son who was looking to upgrade his cello. This cello-buying father was Rick, master woodworker and designer, and now one of the partners with Misha and Anton.

My point is that we never know how and why God is bringing people across our paths. God is constantly weaving a network of human relationships and we never know when or how he is going to tie them together, or to what purpose. The next time you are tempted to brush someone off, maybe you should consider how that person may be a key link in the chain someday. Got a story to share?