After the 2011 tsunami in Japan, there was a tendency to think that everything was beyond repair, that nothing would ever get better. When the people at Kamaishi Church found their piano upside down in a pile of mud and debris and tried playing the keys, it could still make music…though barely. Only one piano key really still worked!

As the people looked at their broken piano, they remembered the promises of God. God does not abandon us in the mud and muck of this broken world, but fixes us, encourages us, and gives us the courage to keep going and to rebuild. The piano gave people the strength to rebuild their church and their lives. The pastor personally assured me that the strength this piano gave cannot be emphasized enough!

The church now hosts a “piano of hope” concert series, and musicians come from all over Japan to play it. The piano does not just bring hope to the people of that church but to the whole region, and many who come to these concerts hear about the Christian promise of redemption for the first time.

Many artists do not see the importance of their role in helping people and in bringing hope and healing to really hard situations. Most of the time we do not get to see or hear the stories of the full effect of our art. Occasionally, God gives us glimpses into those moments.

We are excited to announce that Community Arts Media’s launched its first children’s book Pippy the Piano and the Very Big Wave earlier this month. The book tells the story of redemption through the eyes of this broken piano at Kamaishi Church.

It is our hope that this story will encourage you as we all work through our craft to show God’s love to a broken world.