…..God created music. He created sound and our ability to
hear it and create it. He created our imagination, our fingers, our dexterity
and all that's required ot produce an amazingly diverse array of sounds, and he
created our ability to enjoy it, sometimes to the point of reaching a feeling
of indescribable jay. Of course the ultimate expression of the gift of music is
in praise of our creator…..
…..Instead of shoving the older people out into the old
chapel out of sight, let's all be real Christians and go for unity, fellowship
and love…./20/what-should-church-music-sound-like/http://nickyfisher.com/2013/01/20/what-should-church-music-sound-like/
.... ancient hymns accomplished something that the new songs weren't. While contemporary worship seemed to take the listener on an exciting and emotional rollercoaster, the old hymns engaged the mind with deep and glorious truths that when sincerely pondered caused a regenerated heart to humbly bow before its King.....
.......I began the practice of singing one hymn each week. There were times where my peers would teasingly ask what an "Ebenezer" was. What I found was that when I gave them a basic definition of these seemingly obsolete words we were singing, their response was usually something akin to, "Oh? Cool. I never knew that!" I think when they asked, they half expected me to say, "I don't know! Weird word, huh?" Instead they were being challenged to learn, not merely a new word, but how to ponder the things of God deeply when we sing His praises.
Hymns have begun to take precedent in my song selection for two reasons
First, hymns have been sung by the giants of the faith who have gone on before us over the last two millennia.....When we sing A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, we join with Martin Luther who wrote it, and with Calvin and Spurgeon and Edwards who invariably sang and cherished it.
Second, the content of hymns is almost always vastly more theologically rich.
Rather, the theology in the hymns is typically more sound or healthy than much of contemporary worship music. As I said earlier, contemporary songs engage our emotions more often, where the hymns engage our hearts by way of the mind.
....................By way of example, one of the top ten contemporary songs being sung in American evangelical churches right now is called One Thing Remains. While there is nothing in the song particularly bad (in fact, much of it is pretty good), it seems to me that the purpose of the song is to work the listeners into an emotional state. The chorus is:
"Your love never fails / It never gives up / Never runs out on me / Your love never fails / It never gives up / Never runs out on me / Your love never fails / It never gives up / Never runs out on me / Your love / Your love / Your love."
With the repetition of a simple lyric like that, it isn't a stretch to say that the composers' goal was not to engage the listeners mind.
................So I make this plea to my fellow ministers, do not neglect these milestones from ages past. http://www.dancogan.com/home/my-journey-away-from-contemporary-worship-music
