Music and Singing

Music and singing are an increasing feature of our lives.

Some people seem to listen to music almost all day, with headphones attached to whatever gadget they have with them. It seems that music and singing have become an essential life-support system. Why is that?

Do you remember the old Heineken advert slogan? 'Heineken refreshes the parts that other beers cannot reach?' As a Heineken virgin, having never tasted the stuff, I can't vouch for the truth of that claim. But it stuck in my mind. 

I think it is true that music and singing often reaches parts of our lives which other expressions cannot reach. Football crowds sing, huge crowds gather for concerts for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, or the Olympics, and enormous interest is taken in the X Factor and such like. Somehow, a great performance of a good song moves us more deeply than we could imagine.

Which is why we sing Christmas Carols! 

The story to which the carols refer is a great story - God stepping into our world, to rescue and redeem us. And singing the story for ourselves, rather than letting someone else do it for us, leads us into worshipping the God who made the universe!

And of course, within the story, there is a heavenly choir of angels. Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and singing, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” (Luke 2.13-14) 

In the Book of Revelation, John glimpses the worship of heaven on a number of occasions, and every time he hears singing crowds. For instance, 'And they sang a new song with these words:

“You are worthy to take the scroll
    and break its seals and open it.
For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God
    from every tribe and language and people and nation.
 And you have caused them to become
    a Kingdom of priests for our God.
    And they will reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5.9-10) It appears that we shall be singing throughout eternity, so we might as well get into the habit now!

As approach the Christmas season, with all the ridiculous commercialism, we can become more deeply immersed in what God has done for us, as we use music and singing to express our worship and adoration. It may be, too, that others who merely "come along for a good sing" find themselves caught up in the deeper significance.

On Friday evening, Daniel Natnael and others from St. Andrew's have been invited to sing Carols outside Waitrose, from 6.30pm onwards. P{lease come along if you are available.

Many thanks,

Richard