Sing Until You Drop
Dear friends,
I have good news and bad news -- and more good news! The first good news is that over the past few months I have regained a significant amount of muscle, especially in my arms and shoulders. This is good news because I had lost quite a bit of muscle mass during several months of paralysis and inactivity last year. When I look at myself in the mirror without a shirt, my muscles are pretty well defined. I am not exactly a "Terminator," but I look pretty good. On the other hand, my muscles twitch and jump in a way that does not look very "normal." Regardless, they are muscles, and muscles mean strength -- and strength means restoration of function. This is definitely good news!
The bad news is that there are now more places in which to have muscle spasms. They are especially problematic when I wake up in the morning and try to move in a meaningful direction, like out of the bed. My body knows what it is supposed to do, but everything in it resists doing it with all its might. The rigidity and resistance are so intense as to be downright painful! I suppose there is a lesson here -- there is always a lesson. It is not enough to know what is right; we usually have to overcome significant resistance from within if we are to make it "work" in reality.
The next news item transforms the aforementioned bad news not just into good news, but into very good news! Last Sunday Carole and I worshiped in Cartersville with the sisters and brothers at First Church. We celebrated the sacrament of Holy Communion. The first and last hymns were two of my all-time favorites: God of Grace and God of Glory and Come Sing O Church in Joy. I don't know what got into me, but I really let loose in the singing of these hymns. Up until this point I have been unable to put much power into my singing. Mostly, I would give out after a few measures because my upper body became rigid and inflexible. I knew that it was absolutely "right" to sing, but my body simply would not allow it.
This Sunday was different: I opened my mouth and gave everything I had. By the end of the service, I was totally spent -- worn out, exhausted! After the benediction I had to sit down to catch my breath. I didn't feel so great at the moment, but another part of me felt fantastic. I had sung close to the top of my voice for the first time in nearly a year. There is nothing as wonderful as being with the Church, singing at the top of your lungs to God's glory!
This reminds me of the time that Carole and I led music or the Synod-Wide Presbyterian Women retreat at the Epworth Center on St. Simons Island. On the final evening we sang Come Sing O Church in Joy during our worship time. You have to picture this: nearly 800 Presbyterian women, who love the Lord Jesus Christ; who love one another, and who love God's mission throughout the world -- singing this wonderful hymn in which the refrain "celebrates the journey." With each verse, both the intensity and the harmony increased. It was absolutely heavenly! After the service, Carole said to me, "I didn't know I could play like that!" Of course, the truth is that when we "knock ourselves out" worshiping God we can always do the impossible.
There is no organization within the Presbyterian Church USA that connects joyful worship and enthusiastic mission any more effectively than Presbyterian Women. Our experience of singing together at St. Simons Island was just one event among many that connect the two intentionally. On Saturday of this week our Cherokee Presbytery PW will meet for its annual Spring Gathering. As one might expect, there will be singing in the context of worship, reporting on mission and planning for mission. A wonderful feature of this year's event will be the presence of several new PW churches.
I want to give you an example of how to use the "missional" questions on the "About Us" page at www.Cherokeepby.com. Under the final section, "We are a worshiping community," there are two questions:
Does a confused theology of worship lead to confused worship practice? How?
How does a confused understanding of worship lead the church to a misunderstanding or neglect of ministries of social justice and compassion?
When we think about a confused theology of worship, I want to suggest that the confusion is often misplaced appreciation. That is, many of us tend to favor worship services in which three things happen: the preacher is dazzling, the choir is awe-inspiring, and the entire extraordinary experience lasts 59 minutes. As someone who sits up front most of the time, I can tell you what worship services often look like. First, there are an inordinate number of electronic beeps that are heard on the hour. Second, there are many dazed looks on faces in the congregation during both the sermon and the anthem. Finally, I cannot help but notice that there are many people who simply do not sing in church.
I can certainly understand some sensitivity about not having the greatest voice in the world, but worship is not a singing contest. Worship is when we open our mouths and shout (sing) that God is the greatest; that there is no one in the world like God; that we are willing to give everything we have for God! Imagine you are a newcomer to a worshiping community, perhaps an unbeliever, and you hear loud, exuberant singing by everyone in the room, including some that don't sound so great. Imagine you are a newcomer to a worshiping community, perhaps an unbeliever, and you hear lackluster, unenthusiastic singing and half the people aren't even moving their lips. Which congregation is going to help the Holy Spirit open your heart to the Lord Jesus?
Why do we sing anyway? Over the past two weeks I have been using a devotional volume called, The Art of Prayer. There is a section written by Theophan the Recluse, a Russian Orthodox monk of the late 19th century, called, The Purpose of Church Hymns. Theophan is not exactly "contemporary," but he is quite relevant. He writes as follows:
"Speaking to yourselves in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord" (Ephesians 5: 19).
How should we interpret these words? Do they mean that when you are filled with the Spirit, you should then sing with your mouth and your heart? Or that if you wish to be filled with the Holy Spirit, you should first sing? Is this singing with the mouth and heart, mentioned by the Apostle, meant to be the consequence of being filled by the Spirit, or the means towards it?
The infusion of the Holy Spirit does not lie within our power. When it comes, this infusion will so greatly animate the powers of our spirit that the song to God breaks out of itself. Freedom of choice lies only between leaving this song to be sung in the heart alone, or expressing it aloud for all to hear.
The purpose of church songs is precisely to make the spark of grace that is hidden within us burn brighter and with greater warmth. This spark is given by the Sacraments. Psalms, hymns and spiritual odes are introduced, to fan the spark and transform it into flame. They act on the spark of grace as the wind acts on a spark hidden in firewood.
I would love to encourage our sessions to begin a lifelong practice of training people for worship. We must teach people how to sing joyfully because it is not always clear whether singing brings the Spirit close or is the result of the Spirit indwelling us. We must teach people how to hear the Word responsibly, because the purpose is not merely to criticize the preacher but to do what the Word demands of us. We must teach people to pray around the world, bringing life and passion to the Prayers of the People. We must teach people that they should not give because the church needs it; they should give because God has given His only Son as a perfect act of love. Worship is the most important thing the Christian Church does -- we must do it enthusiastically, excellently, and with an eye to God's mission in the world.
Last Sunday I knocked myself out singing to God. I plan to do the same thing this Sunday!
The peace of Christ be with you.
Jim
I have good news and bad news -- and more good news! The first good news is that over the past few months I have regained a significant amount of muscle, especially in my arms and shoulders. This is good news because I had lost quite a bit of muscle mass during several months of paralysis and inactivity last year. When I look at myself in the mirror without a shirt, my muscles are pretty well defined. I am not exactly a "Terminator," but I look pretty good. On the other hand, my muscles twitch and jump in a way that does not look very "normal." Regardless, they are muscles, and muscles mean strength -- and strength means restoration of function. This is definitely good news!
The bad news is that there are now more places in which to have muscle spasms. They are especially problematic when I wake up in the morning and try to move in a meaningful direction, like out of the bed. My body knows what it is supposed to do, but everything in it resists doing it with all its might. The rigidity and resistance are so intense as to be downright painful! I suppose there is a lesson here -- there is always a lesson. It is not enough to know what is right; we usually have to overcome significant resistance from within if we are to make it "work" in reality.
The next news item transforms the aforementioned bad news not just into good news, but into very good news! Last Sunday Carole and I worshiped in Cartersville with the sisters and brothers at First Church. We celebrated the sacrament of Holy Communion. The first and last hymns were two of my all-time favorites: God of Grace and God of Glory and Come Sing O Church in Joy. I don't know what got into me, but I really let loose in the singing of these hymns. Up until this point I have been unable to put much power into my singing. Mostly, I would give out after a few measures because my upper body became rigid and inflexible. I knew that it was absolutely "right" to sing, but my body simply would not allow it.
This Sunday was different: I opened my mouth and gave everything I had. By the end of the service, I was totally spent -- worn out, exhausted! After the benediction I had to sit down to catch my breath. I didn't feel so great at the moment, but another part of me felt fantastic. I had sung close to the top of my voice for the first time in nearly a year. There is nothing as wonderful as being with the Church, singing at the top of your lungs to God's glory!
This reminds me of the time that Carole and I led music or the Synod-Wide Presbyterian Women retreat at the Epworth Center on St. Simons Island. On the final evening we sang Come Sing O Church in Joy during our worship time. You have to picture this: nearly 800 Presbyterian women, who love the Lord Jesus Christ; who love one another, and who love God's mission throughout the world -- singing this wonderful hymn in which the refrain "celebrates the journey." With each verse, both the intensity and the harmony increased. It was absolutely heavenly! After the service, Carole said to me, "I didn't know I could play like that!" Of course, the truth is that when we "knock ourselves out" worshiping God we can always do the impossible.
There is no organization within the Presbyterian Church USA that connects joyful worship and enthusiastic mission any more effectively than Presbyterian Women. Our experience of singing together at St. Simons Island was just one event among many that connect the two intentionally. On Saturday of this week our Cherokee Presbytery PW will meet for its annual Spring Gathering. As one might expect, there will be singing in the context of worship, reporting on mission and planning for mission. A wonderful feature of this year's event will be the presence of several new PW churches.
I want to give you an example of how to use the "missional" questions on the "About Us" page at www.Cherokeepby.com. Under the final section, "We are a worshiping community," there are two questions:
Does a confused theology of worship lead to confused worship practice? How?
How does a confused understanding of worship lead the church to a misunderstanding or neglect of ministries of social justice and compassion?
When we think about a confused theology of worship, I want to suggest that the confusion is often misplaced appreciation. That is, many of us tend to favor worship services in which three things happen: the preacher is dazzling, the choir is awe-inspiring, and the entire extraordinary experience lasts 59 minutes. As someone who sits up front most of the time, I can tell you what worship services often look like. First, there are an inordinate number of electronic beeps that are heard on the hour. Second, there are many dazed looks on faces in the congregation during both the sermon and the anthem. Finally, I cannot help but notice that there are many people who simply do not sing in church.
I can certainly understand some sensitivity about not having the greatest voice in the world, but worship is not a singing contest. Worship is when we open our mouths and shout (sing) that God is the greatest; that there is no one in the world like God; that we are willing to give everything we have for God! Imagine you are a newcomer to a worshiping community, perhaps an unbeliever, and you hear loud, exuberant singing by everyone in the room, including some that don't sound so great. Imagine you are a newcomer to a worshiping community, perhaps an unbeliever, and you hear lackluster, unenthusiastic singing and half the people aren't even moving their lips. Which congregation is going to help the Holy Spirit open your heart to the Lord Jesus?
Why do we sing anyway? Over the past two weeks I have been using a devotional volume called, The Art of Prayer. There is a section written by Theophan the Recluse, a Russian Orthodox monk of the late 19th century, called, The Purpose of Church Hymns. Theophan is not exactly "contemporary," but he is quite relevant. He writes as follows:
"Speaking to yourselves in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord" (Ephesians 5: 19).
How should we interpret these words? Do they mean that when you are filled with the Spirit, you should then sing with your mouth and your heart? Or that if you wish to be filled with the Holy Spirit, you should first sing? Is this singing with the mouth and heart, mentioned by the Apostle, meant to be the consequence of being filled by the Spirit, or the means towards it?
The infusion of the Holy Spirit does not lie within our power. When it comes, this infusion will so greatly animate the powers of our spirit that the song to God breaks out of itself. Freedom of choice lies only between leaving this song to be sung in the heart alone, or expressing it aloud for all to hear.
The purpose of church songs is precisely to make the spark of grace that is hidden within us burn brighter and with greater warmth. This spark is given by the Sacraments. Psalms, hymns and spiritual odes are introduced, to fan the spark and transform it into flame. They act on the spark of grace as the wind acts on a spark hidden in firewood.
I would love to encourage our sessions to begin a lifelong practice of training people for worship. We must teach people how to sing joyfully because it is not always clear whether singing brings the Spirit close or is the result of the Spirit indwelling us. We must teach people how to hear the Word responsibly, because the purpose is not merely to criticize the preacher but to do what the Word demands of us. We must teach people to pray around the world, bringing life and passion to the Prayers of the People. We must teach people that they should not give because the church needs it; they should give because God has given His only Son as a perfect act of love. Worship is the most important thing the Christian Church does -- we must do it enthusiastically, excellently, and with an eye to God's mission in the world.
Last Sunday I knocked myself out singing to God. I plan to do the same thing this Sunday!
The peace of Christ be with you.
Jim
posted by Pierce | 8:00 AM
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