I am musically bilingual, able to worship through almost any type. But certain high and holy music becomes a deliberate act, done alone, no one watching. No one to see but God. I sit in the middle of the musical maelstrom, caught up, whirled around, shaken and wrung, emptied of self and filled with the glory of God that bursts through a temporary rip in the fabric of the universe.What is your musical language? Do you speak hymns, praise songs, classical, rock, or maybe “elevator music?”
I don’t do this often. Such moments of pure worship cannot be borne easily. They are costly, as many of the prophets well knew. In Daniel’s encounter with a heavenly being, he says, “I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless.” (Daniel 10:8) After at least one of his visions, he lay exhausted and ill for several days. (8:27)
Prophets in general were prickly—not the sort you’d invite to afternoon tea. But
when you consider their occupational hazards—Moses’ thunderbolts atop Mt. Sinai,
Ezekiel’s UFOs, Isaiah’s burning coals—we can understand their lack of patience for
small stuff. Standing as they did at the interface of heaven and earth, such details as
a change in the order of worship or too-loud drums wouldn’t have mattered at all.
Worship music is different for different people. People who love contemporary praise songs might hold their ears against classical music, whereas classicals might be bored by the simpler chord structure of praise songs.
I believe that the higher we reach both spiritually and musically, the closer we get to heaven’s musical interface. God spoke music into the world; music continues to speak his word.
God’s musical language penetrates every fiber and bone of my body. It is physical. It
is emotional. It is spiritual. It knows me. It finds my weaknesses. It cannot remove
weaknesses; only the blood of Jesus can do that. It can only touch sore points and
bring me to tears. It gathers all human sorrows and joys from every land and every
time and cries out, “Lord God, King of heaven, thou that takest away the sins of
the world, have mercy upon us.”
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~Sally Wilkins, Sports and Games of Medieval Cultures
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~Cliff Graham, Lion of War series
My favorite type of worship music are the Hymns of Old. They speak more to me than "today's" music does. I don't have a favorite song, it is whatever song pops into my head and then I start singing.
ReplyDeleteJanet E.
von1janet(at)gmail(dot)com
I enjoy all kinds of worship music. While I never want to lose the hymns of the past that have uplifted and encouraged so many people I am revived and motivated by the upbeat music and lyrics of praise and worship. I think that God wants us to be reverent but He also encourages us to "Make a joyful noise"!
ReplyDeleteConnie
cps1950(at)gmail(dot)com
As long as I can understand the words, I enjoy most worship music. I believe that most churches display the words on screens, so that the congregation can sing along. My favorite all time worship song is Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
debsbunch777(at)gmail(dot)com
Thanks, ladies, for your comments. I'm glad you all appreciate the rich hymns we grew up with. And yes, I too love Come Thou Fount!
ReplyDeleteLike Debbie, as long as I can understand the music...but I think my favorites are the hymns, and Shout to the Lord...and choruses...and scripture like Psalm 42 set to music...
ReplyDeleteI have to say I enjoy the hymns from my youth. Great is Thy Faithfulness, Old Rugged Cross, What a Friend we have in Jesus. These are hymns that give me the most comfort.
ReplyDelete