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Eliza, one of my father’s older cousins, was the piano player at a small church in the mountains of Western North Carolina. But most folks called her Lizzer. I knew her as Cousin Lizzer. Still, I never really knew her—only from a distance.

As a small child sitting on a wooden pew in the middle of the church, she was very visual. She was lean and tall. Her salt-and-pepper hair, long and scraggly, framed her face—the very epitome of a mountain woman. Yet, her heart was pure. And she was a worshiper. When the Holy Spirit touched her, she would worship—yet continue to play the piano. Her hands would lift off the keys and high into the air. When they again descended, however, her fingers always hit the keys in just the right place—never missing a note. She was a character, but she was also anointed.

As a teenager, I was invited to this same church. Eliza was now old and unable to attend. Members, however, had been praying for a new pianist. When I walked through the door, that prayer was answered—a testimony to the persistence of prayer. That morning I came forward and gave my life to Christ. After church, I was handed a songbook with a list of hymns to practice. That same evening I was at the piano in Eliza’s place—playing music for the first time in a church setting. It was an anointed calling that I now cherish.

I don’t believe Eliza ever had one piano lesson. Her ability did not require written note. It came from an anointing to “play by ear.” I also have that talent. I wish I’d known this distant cousin named Lizzer. Still, I appreciate her creativity and the talents I inherited through this same bloodline. I’m grateful to have witnessed her in action.

As a teenager, I was handed Eliza’s baton just as Elisha was handed Elijah’s baton in days of old. That same anointing will also keep me until my time comes to pass the baton to someone else. If you desire to pass your baton, learn to live in the anointing of the Holy Spirit. And when your baton is passed, that same anointing will continue far into the next generation.

(Photo courtesy of office.microsoft.com.)

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