Singing is a great way of hooking truths into heads and hearts.
I often mention this when speaking about church music. Presumably this is the reason that Bible writers don’t just speak truth, but they also sing truth (eg Moses, David etc). In Colossians 3.16 Paul is more specific about the way we should use song to hook truth into hearts, and it’s clear that song is one of the key elements of praise in Heaven (Revelation 5.9, 15.3-4). Singing therefore is an important part of life for Christians.
‘It does nothing for me’
So what about those for whom music does absolutely nothing? I know many Christian brothers and sisters who simply don’t get what all the fuss is about singing in church. They’re happy to sing along with everyone, and are discerning about the words that are sung, but the music simply does nothing for them. Whereas the more musically-minded can be deeply affected by a change in dynamic, key, style or mood, there are many who are totally oblivious to the way that musicians try to reinforce the words of a song through the musical structure.
Wes (a solidly good Christian friend) says that though he enjoys music, he finds it easier to remember the spoken word (eg in a sermon) than in a song. This is because there’s a greater temptation simply to mouth the words of a song without engaging the mind and heart. I asked him if this meant that he thought music was a barrier to him remembering words and he said, ‘Yes’. This makes a lot of sense – because I’ve heard him sing! To me, his singing poses a serious question as to whether he is as Welsh as he claims to be. However, what is more sobering as a church musician is that by my ‘helping’ people to sing, I could actually be a hindrance to some as they try and understand the words! Time to look for another job?
Don’t worry – if you’re a church musician you don’t need to resign (unless your singing is as bad as Wes’s), but it’s a good reminder that not everyone is as musically intuitive as we might assume them to be. Actually, music doesn’t do a lot for me either – I can’t even remember the words of the songs I’ve written!
A few things to learn though
1. This highlights even more the importance of the words we sing over the music. The music really isn’t significant – otherwise Bible song-writers would have written down the tunes to their songs.
2. Church musicians, please let’s help each other not to try and be too clever with our arrangements. The more complex and ‘creative’ we become, the more we can cloud the clarity of the words that we so passionately want people to understand. It’s a warning sign to us if people are vocal about either loving or hating our arrangements – because they can start to lose their concentration on the truths they’re singing. We need to focus less on the perceived needs of the people we serve, and more on serving the Word of God. This way, we serve the real spiritual needs of the people more faithfully.
3. It’s OK – no, it’s really OK that some just don’t get the music thing. We don’t have to make people think that they must create a false appreciation of music in order to be a proper Christian. It’s much more important that church musicians are focussed on filling the Kingdom with those who submit to Jesus’ words, because people are saved through the proclamation of the gospel, whether they appreciate music or not, or whether they can sing or not.
4. Having said that music isn’t significant, singing is important nonetheless. As I’ve said above, Bible writers sing, we are told that it is good to sing, and the saints in Heaven are singing, so we might as well get practising now! My Welsh friend says that he’s had to work hard over more than 15 years to take his focus off the music and onto the words he’s singing. I need to learn the same lessons, along with all those for whom music has proved to be more of a hindrance than a help. Keep singing the truth, because the truth will take root in our hearts whatever we think about music.
