Gospel.com Blog

Musical preferences are complicated and personal things. One person loves rock music, another classical, a third folk and a fourth hip-hop. And all of them might be sitting in the same pew!

Given these differences in musical preference, how should we use music in worship? Should we just standardize on one style of music and expect everyone to take part, or incorporate different styles into worship to connect with as many people as possible?

Speaking as an avid lover of music, I think that when we join a community, we need to learn to worship in the way that community worships. We need to uphold the parts of the body of Christ that are responsible for worshiping God through music, even when the style of music isn’t to our personal taste.

What about you? How do you handle the tension between your personal weekday preferences in music and what you sing on Sunday? Is it even an issue for you?

More importantly, what is it about music that connects you with God? Is it a certain style of music? Is it the words? Something else entirely? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

What springs to mind when you think of Christmas? Chances are you think of Christmas trees, nicely-wrapped gifts, holiday parties… and Christmas music. In fact, one of the first signs that the holiday season is upon us each year is the sound of Christmas carols playing over the radio or over the speakers at stores.

Lent and Easter may not have the massive culture presence that Christmas does, but like Christmas, this is a season marked by memorable music. You might not hear it playing at the local mall, but the music of Easter includes some of the church’s most powerful and insightful songs. Easter has always been my personal favorite “musical season” in the church year; I’d like to build on Chris’ last post about music and worship by pointing out some Easter music resources:

• Songsandhymns.org has mp3s and sheet music for eight of the most famous Easter songs (see the Lent/Easter section on that page). Particularly noteworthy are Ah, Holy Jesus, How Hast Thou Offended and Christ the Lord is Risen Today. The latter song is a popular one at Easter Sunday services; it’s quite something to hear it sung by an enthusiastic congregation.
• HymnTime.com has a monster list of Easter songs (but beware the auto-playing MIDI music).
• Two years ago, the Vatican released mp3s of several beautiful Lent arrangements by the Musical Chorus of the Sistine Chapel and the Institute of Sacred Music. Despite theological differences between Protestant and Catholic churches, the music can be appreciated by any Christian.
• A reflection about the famous hymn Christ the Lord is Risen Today at Christianity Today. There’s a bit more historical information at the hymn’s Wikipedia entry.
• An interesting essay about ancient Easter songs, many of which inspired the modern Easter hymns we know and love today.

Just before Jesus died on the cross he cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” This chilling question is the first line of the first verse of Psalm 22, a song of tremendous torment and devoted hope.

Paul Lusher over at The Center for Church Music has four short reflections on how Psalm 22 relates to Lent, or what he calls The Season of the Cross. They’re excellent articles that speak of the power of music and importance of worship during this season.

From the introduction to the first article:

No believer can read this Psalm without being confronted with the reality of Christ’s crucifixion. It inspires adoration – and a desire to understand what we can learn from this astonishing text. While we’ll never know if our Lord actually sang these words while hanging form that accursed tree, its words are infused with a holy wonder that can only inspire reverence and awe.

The Christian church may not be the musical trendsetter that it has been in past centuries, but the church’s “cloud of witnesses” includes several of the greatest musicians who have ever lived. Today it’s appropriate to remember one of them in particular: Felix Mendelssohn, who was born 200 years ago.

Mendelssohn was a prolific composer; chances are you’d recognize several of his works today, even if you didn’t know Mendelssohn was the composer. He was an interesting character whose reputation was heavily attacked by anti-Semite critics. Here are a few places to read up on Mendelssohn and his contributions to the field of music:

• An overview of his life at Songs and Hymns, along with an MP3 of the famous hymn “Now Thank We All Our God.”
• The NPR website has a number of excellent features on Mendelssohn and his music.
• The Mendelssohn Project aims to restore Mendelssohn’s reputation and bring many of his lost works back into the public spotlight.
• The Christian History Institute relates Mendelssohn’s efforts to revive the music of Bach, another famous Christian composer.
• And lastly, an essay about the Mendelssohn family’s Jewish heritage, and the anti-Semitic efforts to erase Mendelssohn’s music from the public square during the Nazi era in Germany.

We linked earlier this week to some Christmas music resources at Songs and Hymns. But if you’re still in the mood for more holiday music (and who isn’t?), there’s more at RBC Ministries. Here are a few links:

• Did you know that “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” was written about a family tragedy during the Civil War?
• Chances are you know the first stanza of the famous Christmas carol “What Child is This”—but as with many holiday songs, the second verse brings out a whole new meaning to the carol. Give those often-overlooked second, third, and fourth stanzas a read next time you’ve got a hymnal at hand!
• Read about the powerful social commentary lurking between the lines of “Angels, From the Realms of Glory.”
• You might not even recognize the original version of perhaps the most famous Christmas carol of all.

These devotionals are a reminder that there’s more to Christmas music than catchy tunes and familiar words—there are important stories and messages behind them. Your appreciation for these songs will only deepen if you take a moment this Christmas season to really ponder what they’re saying.

The church I grew up did a candlelight service every Christmas Eve. Upon entry into the building we would be handed unlit candles, and I would spend the rest of the service waiting for the moment when we’d start lighting things on fire during church.

After an interminable time, we’d start singing Christmas songs in the dimmed lights while two people would walk from the back with candles to start lighting our candles. I remember staring transfixed as the flames multiplied and cast strange shadows on the faces in the sanctuary.

It was in this setting that we would sing songs like “Silent Night” and soak in the peaceful feeling of Christmas eve. Despite the familiarity of the tunes and the words, Christmas music is still wonderful and worshipful.

If you’re looking for the music, history or for some of those classics (Silent Night included) check out the Songs and Hymns website.

Have you ever wondered what kind of thought and planning goes into choosing the songs you sing (and sometimes play) in a worship service? If you’re a worship leader, do you have a solid, Biblical system for thinking through and choosing music pieces that fit each church service?

The process of selecting worship music will be different for each individual congregation and worship style, of course. But to help you think through your music choices, FarsiPraise has collected some thoughts on the matter from a variety of church and worship leaders (both are in PDF):

• An essay by Paul Oakley (of the Church of Christ the King in Brighton, England) that walks through seven steps for considering and choosing worship music.
• A second collection of short mini-essays by seven other church leaders explaining how they choose music for their churches.

If you’re a church leader struggling to pick the right music, these thoughts from other leaders might help. And if you’re a congregation member who’s always wondered who chose the music and why, they might give you some insight into an important part of weekly worship planning!

Bob Cilman, musical director of the Young @ Heart chorus, is very happy that the film named after his group is bringing the talents of these post-retirement-age singers to a whole new audience. They are all in their 70s, 80s, and 90s, and he has found that the audience for Young @ Heart tends to be on the younger side.

Past the Popcorn Managing Editor Greg Wright talked with Cilman a couple of weeks ago over the phone after the film’s press tour canceled its flight out of Dallas due to storms. Cilman enthusiastically endorses suggestions that the film is ideal field trip material for retirement home residents. “It’s hard for older people when they come to see us,” he says, “because they don’t know much of the music.”

Young @ Heart, however, is not a musical documentary, nor is it about the music itself. It’s about the people behind the music, about the sacrifices they make, about living and dying with pride and hope, and about connecting with other real people. It’s a film that older audiences should connect with particularly well, as they will see a great deal of themselves in the various chorus members.

Have you ever thought about the function of a worship leader? Is it just to look cool? Maybe you’re the person behind the keyboard or guitar every week wondering what in the world you’re doing. This short reflection from studentsoul.org talks about The Importance of Being a Worship Leader. Here’s an excerpt:

Do you sometimes feel insignificant or inadequate as a worship leader? Worship has the potential to bring people before God, and worship leaders, like doorkeepers, assist by standing at the door and welcoming people into God’s presence.

I remember being on the worship team at a retreat and feeling depressed because I didn’t possess the same gifts as the others. When I shared my insecurity, one of my friends quoted Psalm 84:10: “I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.”

It made me feel worse.

…

Jump over to their blog to read more on this from Sundee Frazier.

Psalm 84:9-12

Behold our shield, O God,
And look upon the face of Your anointed.
For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside.
I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
The LORD gives grace and glory;
No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
O LORD of hosts,
How blessed is the man who trusts in You!

Why is singing such an important part of the Christian tradition? That might sounds like an odd question, but how many other religious or social groups get together regularly… to sing? The latest edition of Uplook Magazine is out (and freely downloadable as a PDF), and its focus is on the songs we sing, and the reasons we sing them. Among the articles are in-depth essays looking at some of the most famous songs in Psalms, “the hymnbook of God’s people.” This issue would be especially useful if you or your small group is working through the Psalms in a Bible study.

Download the January/February issue of Uplook Magazine here. Previous issues are also available for download in the Uplook archives.