MUSIC
O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless His name; tell of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous works among all the peoples. Psalm 96: 1-3
I’ll never forget the first time I went to choir practice. I hadn’t sung in a choir of any kind since 9th grade. At first I thought I was in the wrong place. No one was singing, but the director had everyone jumping up and down and grunting. Is this how you make music?? Apparently it is. I guess this is a sort of relaxation technique, and I must admit I have successfully applied it to the softball team on occasion (we call them, as did Alan, Lutheran caveman grunts)! It’s hard for me to describe what singing in our choir means to me. The truth is that I didn’t realize what it meant to me until the opportunity was taken away.
In a way, singing in the choir is like softball - - a team effort. We have people of all different abilities. Some have absolutely beautiful voices; others just love to sing! Some can read music and some can’t, but what brings them all together is a love of singing and the desire to make a joyful noise to the Lord. To start with a completely new piece of music, and to work at it, over and over until it comes together in (we hope) beautiful harmony is very rewarding. For those of us who have been blest by God with a love of singing, participating in the Holy Trinity adult choir is an awesome experience. I encourage everyone to try it.
I’m not sure that Psalm 96 is really just about singing. I’m sure the Lord would agree that even if you can’t sing a note, you can still spread the good news. So, sing if you can, and shout it out if you can’t, but praise the Lord and bless His name for everything He has done for us.
Dear Lord, thank you for everything you do for us every day. Thank you for bringing our music director, Ted Barr, to us. Thank you for the gift of song. May we use our hearts and voices to make a joyful noise to your glory. Amen
Cynthia Mussinan