Monday, October 25, 2010

Music In My Heart

"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."  Ephesians 5:19-20

I always have music playing in my heart.  I guess it's kind of an internal soundtrack- I always have a song going through my head- sometimes I even sing along a bit.  There have been times where that very thing has annoyed me to no end- whatever the song of the day is will keep me awake at night, because it just won't stop.  But you know, it's been a while since a song has annoyed me like that because I think I'm finally realizing that when a particular song is running through my head- it's supposed to be there.  I think that it's the Holy Spirit, looking through the catalog of music that I know and cuing up just the right one to fit a situation that's coming up, or to fit the day in general.

Most times, the songs running through my head are some kind of worship song- it just seems to happen that way.  But every once in a while that will change and I'll get something more unusual going through my head.  An old song from my teenage years, or a song from a musical- secular, not secular.  Over the last few weeks there actually has been one song in particular ending up in my head a lot- from one of the kids favorite musicals.  Not only has it been in my head a lot, but I even hear it when I'm out shopping over the loudspeaker in the store. After two or three weeks it finally dawned on me to ask God what He's trying to communicate to me with this song- if anything.  Maybe it's just getting stuck in my head.

Here are the main lyrics from the song that's been in my head.

We can't back down
There's too much at stake
This is serious
Don't walk away
We can't pretend it's not happening
In our own backyard
Our own home plate
We've been called out
Do you hear your name?
I'm not confused
Let's win this thing
We can't back down
There's too much at stake
Don't walk away
Don't walk away
 I have to say that in this case, when I read these lyrics, it is no trouble at all to see that maybe God is trying to tell me something with this song.  As Christians, we can't back down!  The world around us is crumbling and dying, and we can't just ignore it and walk away- we win in the end, and it's our job to take as many with us as we can. 

And yet sometimes, we can get fired up and charged up, and then we just kind of take a break or fizzle out.  Wouldn't you know, the Sunday morning sermon yesterday was all about not losing momentum.  It was about staying focused on God and not settling back to relax (spiritually) for even a minute. 

At the same time, yesterday I was having such a rough day.  I felt like I hadn't slept in weeks- I was so tired and exhausted.  The kids were far from pleasant (and I mean far!) and for a good deal of the day I went back and forth on whether or not to go to the Sunday evening service.  I always go to the Sunday evening service, and every time I contemplate not going, I end up going, and I find that there is something in the message that I really needed to hear.  Yesterday though, I was conflicted.  All I wanted to do was stay home, relax, put the kids to bed early, and go to bed early myself.  Was I backing down if I skipped going to church? Was I losing focus if I stayed home for the purpose of physically resting?

Just as I was thinking about how torn I was about whether or not to stay home, the kids had a particularly yucky argument.  They were obviously tired, and I had a thought come to mind about all the bugs and flu's and sicknesses going around, and I realized that tired kids and tired me are not repelling disease like we should.  If our physical bodies are worn down, we can't fight off those bugs.  I know that God placed that thought in my head.  He let me know that it really was okay that I was staying home with the kids for the purpose of resting. It wasn't compromising anything if we took an evening to get extra rest.  And that's exactly what we did.  I let the kids relax and watch TV for a while, and then I put them to bed early.  Shortly after Andy came from church, I turned in myself.  And slept.

And this morning, I am so thankful to God for the peace in my heart about staying home last night because I feel like I really got some rest.  I feel like I slept well (although the jury is still out on the kids) and I am ready for a new day. 

And that song that has been in my head- is still there. And you know, when I think about it, not only does it have a message for me, but the song itself has got a really energizing beat.  Something to help me look at the week ahead and decide to tackle it head on- thanks to the wonderful rest I got yesterday.  God is so good to give us just what we need.  And as I look one more time at this verse this morning, it makes me laugh a little.  It says right there to speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.  Sounds like a musical to me!  Can you imagine if we were standing in the grocery line and just started singing to the person next to us?  And yet, isn't that really what this verse is telling us to do?  It's something to think about, because we've already learned that our words have power.  If we add some song to those words does that make them even more powerful?  Hmm, thoughts for another day I think.

God is so good.  Tell Him that today, and ask Him to show you something new and exciting today.  He loves you, and He's hoping you'll ask today.

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