I believe everyone has a life soundtrack. I love my itunes playlist because the songs on my list all represent certain parts of my life and with one click of the play button I am instantly transported back in time by the sound of that particular song.Strike A Pose by Madonna reminds me of summertime when my sister and I would call the local DJ 30 or 40 times a day to get him to play that song so we could dance around the den “striking a pose”.
Higher Love by Steve Winwood reminds me of riding around with my dad and sister in the summer as he picked up checks from clients and the messed up lyrics that my sister would sing at the top of her lungs “Bake Me A Pie of Love” instead of “Bring Me A Higher Love”.
More Than Words by Extreme reminds me of my first boy/girl dance and that magical slow, awkward, sidestep dance with Mitchell, my short-lived 7th grade crush.
Galaxia by the Gypsy Kings reminds me of yummy Salvadorian food and lazy Saturday afternoons hanging out with my college roommate, Lissette.
Fiesta Pa'Los Rumberos by Albita reminds me of my salsa-dancing days and of the wonderful students in my tiny little salsa class in the back halls of our villa in Italy.
Unforgetful by Jars of Clay reminds of the thrill I felt working center spotlight for a Jars of Clay concert after my friend Christie volunteered us to fill in for a couple of sick tour members.
Perfect Love by Marc Cohn reminds me of my first year of marriage and Sunday afternoons snuggled up in a hammock with my husband, a good book, and a big glass of sweet iced tea.
I consider all of these memories fundamental to who I am, but what really strikes me as significant is the way that music can draw me into the presence of God. Certain songs, certain verses, even certain tunes can pull me into the memory of an intimate moment with my creator, or remind me of the thrill of discovering a new “part” of God as revealed in scripture through music, or make my heart pound with intensity as I sing whole-heartedly in praise to my God.
I love the book of Psalms, the “songbook” of the Old Testament, an eternal record of David’s uncompromising faith in God, and a compilation of some of the most beautiful songs ever written. As I study each verse I can’t help but wonder what feelings and memories were evoked as David revisited each Psalm. How does music draw you closer to God?
I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.
Psalm 69:30
Psalm 69:30
Your thoughts?
5 comments:
Someone sent me one of those email questionnaires, and of course as I read it I thought about what my answers would be. One of the questions was "What song makes you cry?" I tried to think of one and then quickly had a list of dozens.
Music inspires emotion in me that not much else does. I really hate to cry. But when listening to beautiful music, or a song with poignant lyrics, my soul is stirred and I often tear up. This is especially true of worship music (Third Day being my favorite), but it's not limited to songs about God. Even songs without words can give me chills or make me weepy and I can't explain why! It's a beautiful thing.
The Lord has blessed you with a wonderful talent for writing. He will undoubtedly take you down many paths that will strengthen your trust in Him. It was touching to read your post about depression...you were singing like the disciples while in prison....I am blessed by your posts.
I heard an amazing sermon last night titled “God and Hip Hop” by a youth pastor from LA. What he said was fascinating and some applied to this blog on music. I hope I can summarize concisely and not make this the longest comment ever.
His main point was that music creates an environment that fills us with a presence. The words of the music you listen to determine whether that presence is positive or negative. People say "I like the beat, I don't pay attention to the words" but that is impossible. The left side of our brain is known as the "guardian" because it is the logical side that filters information. The right side of the brain is the creative side. When words are set to music they BYPASS the left side of the brain and the "guardian" is unable to filter those words. They go straight to our heart. This is why commercial jingles are so effective. If a commercial tells you with words "You are hungry. Eat our sandwich." your left brain "guardian" can filter that and say "No, I'm not hungry. I just ate." But when the same words are set to music your brain can't filter that information and you'll find yourself craving a sandwich!
It is a scary thought that the music we listen to is feeding directly into our hearts without our brain filtering the words as good or bad. This doesn’t mean we need to stop listening to any music that’s not blatantly Christian, but the speaker’s point is that we should be careful when listening to blatantly UNGodly music as that can change the way we think without our even knowing it.
I thought that was too fascinating not to share!
Bethany -
Great comments - thanks for sharing!
Meg
Anonymous -
Thanks so much for the encouragement...it means more to me than you know. Stop by anytime!
Meg
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