BOOK SUMMARY: SING! HOW WORSHIP TRANFORMS YOUR LIFE, FAMILY, AND CHURCH - CHAPTER 4 - SING!...WITH HEART AND MIND

Songs are food for the soul. What you sing, and don't sing, changes you.

Spiritual songs shape our priorities and behavior. Often times our prayers will contain phrases we learned in a song.  Truth soars on the air of a great melody.  Eat good "food" on Sunday morning.

SINGING TAKES SUNDAY'S TRUTHS INTO MONDAY

The songs we sing on Sunday provide the soundtrack for our week. Christ-filled songs are there to motivate us when we don't feel like getting out of bed to face the day's challenges. They give us faith when we are fearful. They help us share the gospel when we forget what to say. 

Every day we walk to the sound of two voices: Wisdom and folly. Spiritual songs help us listen to wisdom. Singing a song like Rock of Ages will help set your mind straight against the competing worldviews that are out there.  Hope comes from above! We were condemned to die and Christ diverted God's wrath away from us and on to Himself. Be singing the gospel.

See Philippians 2:7-11.

SINGING SUSTAINS YOU IN EVERY SEASON OF LIFE 

We need to cultivate a habit of selecting a variety of songs that can feed us through a variety of situations. We need songs about creation, the incarnation, the crucifixion and the resurrection.  We need to feed on the "whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27). 

The Psalms are songs to God, about God, sung in the community with the people of God. They contain the whole season of life! They teach us how and what to sing about. They are songs for practical living. 

(1).    They give us a vast vision of who God is. - What makes musical worship delightful should not be novelty, beauty or aesthetic, but its OBJECT.  God!  He is Judge, Shepherd, Holy, King, Creator. See Psalm 75, 23, 15, 2, 19.  There are Psalms that describe His voice, His attentiveness to our tears and burdens. Psalms tell of His marvelous deeds and promises to us yet to be fulfilled (Psalm 29, 56, 25, 78, 31).  We need a rich and vast diet of songs to help us mature in Christ. Go to the Psalms. 

(2).    They show us how to deal with real life. - Psalms reach into the fullness of the human experience. See Psalm 13:1, Psalm 16:9-10, Psalm 18:33, Psalm 103:14, Psalm 88:18, Psalm 16:11.  Over a third of the songs are laments. This is where many of us are on Sunday mornings. We don't always have pep in our step. We need songs for both occasions. Abide With Me is a hymn for lamenting. Do our songs present a facade of happiness rather than a robust joy in the midst of pain?

We can sing because we are happy. We can sing because we are sad. We need gospel perspective in both. We need to gaze upon our Savior.

SINGING REMINDS YOU OF WHAT GOD HAS DONE IN YOUR LIFE

Great Is Thy Faithfulness is a great hymn that calls us to never forget God's unchanging faithfulness and provision. It's often our experience that certain songs mark important moments in our life (conversion, grieving, tragedy, celebrations, etc.). The truths in those songs remind us of what God has brought us through and done for us experientially. 

SINGING KEEPS YOUR MIND ON ETERNITY

We need songs to keep us focused on the very real presence of God in every day life, but also to point us to the new creation of heaven on earth. We also needs songs to remind us of the judgment to come for those who do not know Christ as Savior. Consider getting a hymnal to read through and use as a guide to help your prayers. We need songs that we can grow old with to help us with life's hardships as we near our entrance to glory. 

SCALLOPS AND SINGING

You might not like scallops, but if prepared right, you may come to love them. Your palate might change in regard to food. The same is true with songs and music.

When you're at church, and it's time to sing, focus on what is going on. Think about the words and respond in prayer while singing. Be mindful of those around you and how they need to hear truth through your singing. Enjoy being part of something bigger than yourself. Follow up in the week by singing the songs you sang on Sunday. Do this at home, when you wake, at work, in the gym, with your family, as you drive, as you fall asleep at night. Put playlists together and sing for God, for your soul and for others. 

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

(1).    Is there a hymn, or hymns, from your past that acts as a "milestone marker" for your walk with Christ?  Why does it still speak to you today?

(2).    What modern song has connected with you in such a way that you believe it may become a milestone for you in the future?

(3).    Do your favorite songs that you love to sing give a broad and deep picture of the character and nature of God? Can the same be said of how you think about God and how you pray to Him?

(4).    Do the songs we sing connect us to every season of life (suffering, confession of sin, thanksgiving, celebration)?

(5).    How much do we lean on hymns we sing in church throughout the week (in the morning, in the car at work)?