All Episodes

June 25, 2024 • 35 mins

Send us a text

What if worship was more than just a personal moment with God? Join us as we uncover the hidden depths of corporate worship singing, drawing from Ephesians 5:19-20. Katelyn and I challenge the notion that worship is merely an audience of one, revealing how our collective voices can foster profound unity and encouragement within the church. Discover how being filled with the Spirit transforms our singing into a powerful tool for mutual edification.

Have you ever felt hesitant to sing in church because of personal preferences or unfamiliarity with new songs? We tackle these common barriers and encourage full participation in worship, emphasizing that singing is a command akin to the command to love. Through the rich tapestry of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, we explore how different types of music can uplift the congregation and contribute to personal spiritual growth. Plus, we paint a vivid picture of the perfect worship awaiting us in heaven.

To make the most of your worship experience, preparation is key. We delve into practical tips for familiarizing yourself with worship songs ahead of time, reducing the anxiety of not knowing the lyrics and enhancing your ability to worship freely. With heartfelt anecdotes from our own music ministry journeys, we illustrate the transformative power of a well-prepared heart and voice. Get ready to embrace the joy and encouragement that flow from singing together in worship.

Support the show

Stock Music provided by wolfgangwoehrle, from Pond5

Mark as Played
Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Hi and welcome back to the Pleasing God Podcast, a
show focused on helpingChristians to think biblically,
engage practically and livefaithfully for the glory of God.
I'm your host, jonathan Soule,and we're picking up on the
conversation from last week andCaitlin and I are going to
continue.
As we're talking about singing.
We focused mostly on kind ofthe biblical insights or looking

(00:32):
at some biblical examplesconcerning singing.
We engaged on a few practicalissues, but we thought it'd be
good to kind of bring thisconversation back up again and
dive into more practical howwould I say this?
More of a more of a practicallook at singing.
Um, how do we do that?
We were asking kind of why andthe biblical foundations for

(00:55):
that, but kind of like, how dowe do that?

Speaker 2 (00:57):
well, I think we're talking corporately, like when
we come together yeah, I mean,I'll never sing alone.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
Well, so yeah, I just wanted to I like not in the
shower, like that.
You know um yeah thinking kindof corporately, um, and how
that's done practically andultimately, just for as a
faithful Christian response tothe gospel.

(01:25):
I mean, because I think singingas a Christian is the
expression of heartfelt praiseand gratitude for the power of
the gospel at work in me or inthe individual, and that's just
the response.
I can't help but singing, youknow.

(01:47):
So, all right, so we thinkabout practically engaging when
it comes to singing, the powerof singing and what that does.
We wanted to look at Ephesians,chapter five, verses 19 and 20.
Want to read those.

Speaker 2 (02:03):
Yep, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing andmaking melody to the lord with
your heart, giving thanks alwaysand for everything to god, the
father, in the name of our lordjesus christ.
When thinking about singingpractically, I think this is a
great passage to unpack so it itbegins, and again I think

(02:24):
you're absolutely right Starthere.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
This is practical right.
So the first thing that Paulsays is addressing one another.

Speaker 2 (02:33):
I like this because I think we just kind of view
singing corporately as just kindof like we're coming together
and singing praises to God andit is, but it's also a ministry
to one another.

Speaker 1 (02:45):
Okay, True or false?
We have heard it said that incorporate worship we are
addressing an audience of one.
Is that true or false?

Speaker 2 (02:55):
It's what we, it's what's been said, but I would.
I would say it's a half truth,yeah we are.
There is an audience of one,that all that truly matters.
But I do think there is a levelof encouragement and ministry
to one another that comesthrough corporate worship.

Speaker 1 (03:12):
So is that a T or an F?
Is that a true or a false?

Speaker 2 (03:17):
False.
I guess, if I had to pick one,yeah.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
You do have to pick one.
Yeah, take a stand here.
Yeah, yeah, I would say it'sfalse um, so you're not singing
to an audience of one?
No, okay, who are you singingto?

Speaker 2 (03:31):
well, we're singing to the lord and that should be
our main focus it's.
But also I know for me whenthere have been weeks where I
didn't feel like being at churchor I was going through a major
trial and struggle we talkedabout very recently on imperfect
marriage, just going throughanxiety and all of that when

(03:55):
going to church and hearing thechurch sing praises to the Lord
encouraged my heart, it put joyinto my heart and it did
minister to me.
And it's not about me, but it'san encouragement to me and it
made me want to sing out and itmade me want to praise the Lord.
And I do think there is a levelof you're ministering to one

(04:17):
another.
You're reminding one another ofthe promises that God has made
to us as a body of Christ.
We are singing some songs ofthankfulness and praise, but
we're also singing songs of youknow, when trials come, what
does that look like for us?
And we're bolstering each otherup in the faith.

Speaker 1 (04:39):
Yeah, I think that's you know, getting at what he's
saying here.
So in addressing one another, Iwould agree that you know it's
to the audience of one.
I actually think that's a superfalse statement, ah spoken with

(05:05):
good intentions you know, itdoesn't matter how you sing, it
doesn't matter what you say,like it's, you know, is, uh,
corporate worship is not privateworship.
Yeah, and it's a personalexpression, but for the good of
us all, and so are we addressing?
Uh, we can't be addressing anaudience of one when paul says
addressing one another.
But the object of our worshipis not each other or to draw

(05:28):
attention to ourselves, as we'repointing one another to Jesus.
And that's where I'm going tojump ahead a little bit, singing
, making melody to the Lord, notto your neighbor.
But, yeah, corporate worship,it's an audience of many and I
think it's beautiful, yeah, umso, but yeah, when we think
about it that way, practicallyspeaking, it's where the many

(05:51):
raise up one voice.
Yes, and the range thateverybody's in, okay, but it's
the, it's where the many becomeone in this singular voice of
praise and adoration or whatever.
It might be a song of lament,but with one voice we sing, yes,

(06:11):
and it's, you know, the bodytogether.
We are in total agreement, paul, talking about how do we engage
in corporate worship here?

Speaker 2 (06:22):
Yes.

Speaker 1 (06:23):
It's not like you're living your life as a musical.

Speaker 2 (06:26):
Well, even to go above that in verse 18, I mean,
he talks about not being drunkand then he says but be filled
with the spirit, addressing oneanother in psalms, when you are
filled with the spirit, you willsing, you will address one
another.
You will sing, you will addressone another, you will make
melody to the lord with yourheart at least that's what paul

(06:49):
is implying.
Um, so I think we, we need tobe aware if we're not doing that
.
You know, this is, this, is acommand, and I believe it's in
scripture for a reason.
And so, um, that's just a, anote of just.
You know, when you're filledwith a spirit, you should sing.

Speaker 1 (07:07):
Yes, yes, yeah, we'll talk about it.

Speaker 2 (07:10):
I mean, we can talk about that now or we can talk
about it later.

Speaker 1 (07:12):
Sure, it's fine.
I mean, I think you'reabsolutely right If you're
living with the spirit quenchedwithin you, if you're harboring
iniquity in your heart, if youlive in a state of perpetual
unrepentance, one if you aresaved.
You're miserable and it's onyour face Miserable.
People don't sing, and they seethis as a suggestion, not a

(07:34):
command.
Christians are commanded tosing, just as we are commanded
to love.
It's not like, should I lovethis person?
If I'm not, I'm sinning.
Ooh, is it a sin to not sing inchurch?
The question just kind of cameto mind.
That's a hot take.

Speaker 2 (07:53):
It's a hot take, but I believe if you're reading the
scripture and you're readingwhat Paul is saying, yeah, I
would want to ask why wouldn'tyou sing?
And if it has anything to dowith I don't sing, well, I don't
like those songs.
I blah, blah, blah.
Well then you're making itabout you and not about what the

(08:15):
Lord has done in your heart.

Speaker 1 (08:17):
We do recognize, though, that there are some
songs that could pose to bechallenging, especially if
they're newer.

Speaker 2 (08:25):
Now, not newer releases, Sure you're learning a
song or the range might be alittle higher than your vocal
range or whatever.
There's obviously reasons forit.
But mouth the words or at leastpretend.
If it doesn't work, have asmile on your face and enjoy the
others singing it.

(08:46):
You can still have a pleasantface and maybe struggle with a
tune of a song.

Speaker 1 (08:54):
Sure, so addressing one another.
That means that in our singingas it's directed to the Lord, we
also recognize it's for thebenefit and the good of those
around us.
And singing in church, singingout, singing well, I mean

(09:15):
singing benefits, the one nextto us.

Speaker 2 (09:19):
Yeah, I play the piano for our church.
I play the piano for our churchand I will tell you that when I
can hear the first few pewsaround me singing out, it just
lights a fire under me.

Speaker 1 (09:33):
Strike those keys a little harder.
Oh yeah.

Speaker 2 (09:35):
It's so encouraging to where I start singing out
while I'm playing, but I trulybelieve that we sit in the best
seat in church, the best section.
There's a ton of kids.
There are some families who arefaithful in learning the songs

(09:55):
that we're going to be singingeach week and it is just so
powerful and it makes me want tosing out even louder, even
stronger, even more just,reverently to the Lord, because
I have these people, a lot ofkids too, who are singing out
these like solid, full ofdoctrine songs and it's just,
it's really, it's really cool.

Speaker 1 (10:17):
It's amazing.
Do you ever get like thegoosebumps?

Speaker 2 (10:19):
Oh, all the time.

Speaker 1 (10:20):
Oh wow, that's awesome.

Speaker 2 (10:21):
And, like I tell, we tell people the best place to
sit is up front, because that iswhere the best singing is At
least I'm, I think, becausethat's where we sit, and it's
amazing, sure.

Speaker 1 (10:34):
Yeah, I can agree with that and it is encouraging.
There are times that we'resinging certain songs and might
be getting ready to go up thereand preach and we're on, like I
don't know, verse three, andinwardly in my spirit, or maybe
the spirit within me, it's likeI don't want this song to end,

(10:56):
like I'm almost thinking like,oh man, there's only like one or
two more verses, Like I couldjust keep going like this.
Because when we think about evenjust the whole of corporate
worship on a Sunday morning,like that is the slice of heaven
every week that we get, it'sthe closest thing to heaven on
earth that a Christian will everexperience the people of God

(11:20):
gathering, as in Jesus' name, tosing praises to the lamb who
was slain, to hear the word ofGod, the word Christ, the very
word of God Jesus, the mainpoint of every message, every
Christian worship service, andit's imperfect.
But that is when we go toheaven.

(11:43):
We will experience perfectworship.
We will sing to the lamb.
I mean you, we go to heaven.
We will experience perfectworship.
We will sing to the Lamb.
I mean you'll read inRevelation.
You hear about the song and themyriads and the myriads and
thousands of thousands, a numberthat no one can number.
I mean it can count and it'sjust, it's going to be amazing.

Speaker 2 (12:01):
Yeah, and we will be singing, so why not do that?

Speaker 1 (12:05):
And I guarantee there will not be a single soul in
heaven that mumbles.

Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (12:11):
With perfected voice.
Yeah, oh, let's go.
I'm getting goosebumps.
All right, so, addressing oneanother in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, practicallysing a variety of music.
Yes, I love psalm singing andfind myself in various preaching

(12:32):
, visiting preaching in variousstrands of the reformed
tradition, and sometimes it'spsalm singing only.
Sometimes it's psalm singingwithout instruments, sometimes
it's psalms and hymns.
But one of the reasons why Ipersonally one of my personal
convictions lowercase cconvictions, don't believe we

(12:53):
should sing psalms only, isbecause if you sing only the
psalms strictly, you will spendyour entire Christian worship
experience and you will nevername the name of Jesus.
You'll sing about the comingone, about a future one, and I

(13:14):
think there's something aboutNew Testament.
I know the New Testamentdoesn't have this real explicit
theology of what you do singnonetheless, and that's the
thing that there's noinstruments in the new testament
.
Therefore, um, okay, but uh.
So I appreciate the psalmsinging.
I think psalm singing should bea part of a whole and you

(13:38):
should sing psalms, you shouldsing hymns and spiritual songs,
and I think what pa Paul'ssaying here is appropriate
Christian worship.
And if you know, reading throughthe New Testament, paul quotes
hymns in the scripturesPhilippians, chapter 2, when

(14:00):
he's talking about the humilityand exaltation of Jesus.
Though he was in the form ofGod, he didn't count equality
with God a thing to be grasped,but emptied himself, taking on
the form of a servant.
Therefore, god is highlyexalted.
You know, he was obedient tothe point of death.
That's a hymn that Paul quotedand put into the Philippian
letter.
That's the stuff they weresinging in the first century.

(14:20):
They were singing songs or hymnsthat were richly Christological
, and the power of music is andI think we talked about it in
the first episode is that it'ssticky.
So they would sing the gospel.
The letters were justcirculating, maybe some copies

(14:40):
were being made.
So how were they beingcatechized?
How were they being trained?
What were their confessions?
They sung their confessions andit's a wonderful example.
And when we think about thespectrum, you have your Psalms.
They cover a wide range oftopics fantastic, 150 of them.
Some of them are messianic,some of them are laments, some

(15:03):
of them are rejoicing in who Godis.
Then your hymns and spiritualsongs, and I think having
variety in your worshipgathering is important.
Yes, I completely agree.

Speaker 2 (15:16):
Gathering is important.
Yes, I completely agree, and,being someone who really has, I
have a hand in the order ofservice each week that is
definitely on my mind each weekbefore I present the music to
you for approval is having avariety.
I try to include sometraditional hymn, some familiar

(15:40):
song, maybe a new song.
We do a song of the month eachmonth so that we can learn a new
song.
We talk about it all the time.
We live in a golden age wherethere are new hymns being
written all over the place andthey are wonderful.
We try to get a new song out tothe congregation and they are

(16:02):
wonderful.
So we try to get a new song outto the congregation and so,
yeah, I think that it's a goodformula to have to have kind of
a variety and we take intoconsideration that there are
different tastes, and that'sokay.
There's different preferencesto genres of music and how songs
sound, and some might prefer ahymn, some might prefer a newer
song, and so just taking thatinto consideration to try to
have a good balance.
I just read in Matt Merker'sNine Marks book Corporate

(16:26):
Worship that when you aresinging a song in corporate
worship that you enjoy and it'sa sound that you really like,
there is likely somebody else inthe congregation who's putting
down their preference to singthat song, and I think that's
such a good like humblingbalancer of you know you might

(16:48):
like this song or have it askind of like a preference, but
someone else might not, and sojust being aware that you know,
we do come together with variety, variety of backgrounds, a
variety of personalities, avariety of upbringings, and we
can come together and we cansing songs that might be out of
our preference but are stilldoctrinally sound and true to

(17:11):
the gospel, and I think that'sbeautiful.
Now we've seen and heard ofmany instances where that just
can't happen, and there's beenlots of church splits over that
type of stuff, and so it isdefinitely something to be aware
of.

Speaker 1 (17:28):
Are you referencing, like the worship wars, things
that used to occur?
Yeah, for sure.

Speaker 2 (17:34):
I've been a part of churches that way, I'm sure you
have too, and it can be reallysticky.
But I think having thosevarieties where you do have some
traditional songs I've been apart of churches that way, I'm
sure you have too, and it can bereally sticky.
But I think having thosevarieties where you do have some
traditional songs, you do havesome, maybe classic praise and
worship songs or you know a newsong I think it helps balance
some of that.

Speaker 1 (17:54):
So yeah, yeah, you know, look at church websites or
whatever, and everybody kind ofnot everybody, that's probably
an overstatement, but manyplaces want to kind of advertise
what their worship style is.
So you might see someone say,hey, we're more traditional.
Or you know the ones wherethey're like make their calling

(18:17):
card like we sing out of thehymnal.
Like okay that's totally great,you know, especially if you have
an educated congregation knowshow to read music.
That's probably a benefit.
But it's almost like hey, we'retaking a stand against, like
okay well, we don't know if weneed to do all that.
Or like the blended worship.
You know, we're blended, we'recontemporary and traditional.

Speaker 2 (18:38):
Some will even go to the extent of having a
traditional service and acontemporary service.
Yeah, you have two churches,two different churches.

Speaker 1 (18:46):
Do you have the contemporary pastor and the
traditional pastor?
Do you have the contemporaryelder?

Speaker 2 (18:50):
It really just kind of doesn't make sense yeah.

Speaker 1 (18:52):
You're going to raise all my ecclesiological.
You know We'll leave it there.

Speaker 2 (18:59):
Yeah sure, Different podcasts for a different time.

Speaker 1 (19:02):
Yeah, two different services, two different kinds of
services.
To appeal to two differentpreference groups is two
different churches.

Speaker 2 (19:11):
Yeah, it's a recipe for disaster.
Oh, my goodness.

Speaker 1 (19:14):
Yeah.
What happens when they all cometogether?
Yeah, oh, we don't sing.
Yeah, but if I was to, you know, to go on our website and say,
hey, this is our worship style,I would say we strive to be
biblical, we strive to sing thegospel and it takes on whatever
form.
Sing the gospel, put it throughthe criteria.

(19:35):
What's your worship like?
We sing theologically deepsongs that point people to Jesus
, that invite the congregationwith one voice to address one
another in psalms, hymns andspiritual songs.

Speaker 2 (19:49):
Yeah, Doctrinally sound gospel-centered,
Christ-centered.

Speaker 1 (19:55):
Singing the gospel is the criteria that we want to
focus upon.
Yeah, yeah, okay.
Addressing one another inpsalms and hymns and spiritual
songs.
Bring them all into yourworship.
Don't exclude one for the sakeof the others.
Singing and making melody tothe Lord with your heart.
Why is it singing and makingmelody to the Lord and not

(20:16):
singing and making harmony tothe Lord?
Why is it singing and makingmelody to the Lord and not
singing and making harmony tothe Lord?
Does that reveal my lack of?

Speaker 2 (20:25):
understanding of music.
No, I don't know how to answerthat.

Speaker 1 (20:32):
I don't either.
That's why I asked Is melodyjust like a good?

Speaker 2 (20:39):
noise like a melody is.
Is the the tune?
It's?

Speaker 1 (20:42):
it's the main tune of the song oh, harmony is like on
the other side harmony are likethe supporting notes to make
the melody sound more beautifulall right.
So then, make make sure thatthe main point is be the main,
that the central part of yoursinging, the melody, is directed

(21:02):
to the Lord.

Speaker 2 (21:02):
Yes.

Speaker 1 (21:04):
Oh, okay, I like it.
Yeah, no, I like that actually,because harmony is support.
So the melody you can do themelody and you don't have to
have everything else.

Speaker 2 (21:12):
No, yeah, definitely, Harmonies just kind of add a
more beautiful sound to thatmelody.
But it's not needed.

Speaker 1 (21:21):
Can you have a harmony without a melody?

Speaker 2 (21:24):
I would say yes.

Speaker 1 (21:27):
Oh yeah, I don't know .
I mean, I'm really, you know,asking you the question because,
like, I have no clue, like youcan get rid of all of this, I
don't care.
Okay, you can get rid of all ofthis.

Speaker 2 (21:36):
I don't care.

Speaker 1 (21:39):
Okay, singing and making melody to the Lord,
interesting, he says with yourheart and not necessarily with
your lips.

Speaker 2 (21:50):
Well, our praise and our adoration comes from within
it comes from our soul.
It comes from our heart.
It's not just vocal cords.

Speaker 1 (22:01):
But singing is with the vocal cords.

Speaker 2 (22:03):
The act of singing is the vocal cords.

Speaker 1 (22:06):
Okay, so what he's doing here is he's talking about
a process that is rooted in theheart.
Yes, so from the heart comes amelody of singing directed to
the Lord, a heart that's filledwith the.
Spirit that is filled with theSpirit, go back to there right
and then a heart filled with theSpirit, living in fellowship
with God and one another.
Who is you know?

(22:28):
Again, this is Ephesians 5, whois living out?
Ephesians 1, 2, 3, 4, theexpression of blessed be the God
and Father you know, and allthe doctrine, all the theology
that Paul has laid down.
The expression of this is frommy heart.
I want to make a melody, ajoyful noise to the Lord by

(22:49):
singing and one anotheraddressing one another.
We're going to do it together.

Speaker 2 (22:57):
I think it's interesting in verse 21, he says
submitting to one another outof reverence for Christ and that
kind of harkens back, maybe alittle bit to when I was talking
about you know our preferencesand how.
That doesn't have to be theforefront of our worship and
that we can submit to oneanother as one body to come

(23:18):
together.

Speaker 1 (23:19):
Yeah, that's an interesting verse too, because
if you would read and look atcertain Bible translations, I
don't think translationcommittees know exactly where to
put that verse.
Does that start a new section?
Does that finish out the oldone?
I think it.

Speaker 2 (23:33):
Oh, I see, because where you head into verse 22
about submission, yeah, husbandsand wives, and that.

Speaker 1 (23:40):
And so does submitting one another out of
reverence for Christ.
Does that end this section ordoes that begin the new one?
And my answer is yes, Insofaras I think it is a perfect
bridge verse.
It does open up the section onthe order of submission and

(24:00):
again, that's a whole differentpodcast.
Oh, it is.

Speaker 2 (24:02):
A whole different podcast.

Speaker 1 (24:04):
But remember that Paul's instruction of submission
comes first with submitting toone another out of reverence for
Christ.
And this is what it looks like,you know, broken down from
there.

Speaker 2 (24:16):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (24:17):
But one another, right.
And so, yeah, sometimes we laydown our preferences.
And in laying down ourpreferences, we're not sitting
there begrudging becausesomeone's worshiping, because
this is the song that they loveor you know, right, you know,
you see the joy on their faceand you're like I can get behind
this, this ain't my jam.
But way to go, like, if you'relike I can get behind this, this

(24:49):
ain't my jam but way to go.

Speaker 2 (24:50):
If you're singing Psalms and spiritual songs to me
and it's not my preference youcan still help tune my heart to
worship.
Yeah, that's where.
And we should constantly bepraying that the Lord would
soften our heart, widen ourviews on things, you know, not
staying stagnant that like I'vegot to sing these songs and only
these songs, and you know, havethat kind of curmudgeon, kind

(25:11):
of I think we should.
We should pray that if it's nota sin, like if the song is
biblically sound and it's aboutthe gospel but it just doesn't
meet our preference, we shouldbe praying that we would be open
to learning, to growing, to nothaving a negative view on that
song just because you don't likeit.

Speaker 1 (25:30):
It's not the song I grew up with.

Speaker 2 (25:32):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 (25:34):
For sure.
Okay, so singing, making melodyto the Lord with your heart
Starts, the heart expressedthrough the mouth, giving thanks
always and for everything toGod, the Father, in the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
Giving thanks always.

Speaker 2 (25:56):
That's just the boiling down of why we sing.
It is to express thankfulnessto our God and Father for
sending his son, for loving us,for choosing to love us.

Speaker 1 (26:09):
Oh man, this is pretty cool.
I just got a message from achurch member while we're
recording this right now, whohas just listened to the last
episode on singing, and she waswell, she, yeah, she was saying
how awesome it was in listeningand something that really stood

(26:31):
out to her was Jesus singingwith his disciples before
betrayal.
What worship that was and howthankful.

Speaker 2 (26:40):
Oh, that's awesome, yeah, and literally you got that
Slack message and I got amessage on Twitter of someone
that we know that goes to ourchurch, who just got a hymnal
and was like super excited aboutit.

Speaker 1 (26:53):
Let's go.
Yeah, that's awesome.
We're so thankful for music andpeople that care about it and
want to grow and learn and justgive thanks to God for singing
and for music that happened atthe exact same time Wild yeah
that is really wild.
So should we give thanks always?
We both looked at our phones atthe same time.
Giving thanks always and foreverything.

(27:17):
Slack and Twitter Thanks alwaysand for everything.
Slack and Twitter, where we canstay informed and hopefully be
a blessing to God's people andbe blessed by God's people.
Praise God for technology, butit is the expression of giving
thanks always and this continuesas the command giving thanks

(27:42):
always.
I just lost my job.
I just was told on friday thatmy my job is going to be
terminated in and you got to goto church on sunday.
How can you sing?
Giving thanks always?
Or I just lost the baby?

(28:03):
I just got news on Thursday.
My heart is broken.
I am devastated.
Saturday comes around.
I don't think I should go tochurch.
No, no, no.
You need to go to church andyou might not be able to sing,
but you could close your eyes.

(28:24):
You could hear those words andyou will hear addressing one
another in psalms, hymns andspiritual songs and them giving
those words.
And you will hear addressingone another in Psalms, hymns and
spiritual songs and them givingthanks and you will sing.

Speaker 2 (28:33):
Yeah, I was going through that really difficult
time.
In the fall I purposefully didAfflicted Saint to Christ, drawn
Near, let's go as our song ofthe month.

Speaker 1 (28:44):
Afflicted Saints to Christ Drawn Near.
Fantastic song, great forcongregational worship, great
for whatever you, if you'regoing through a really tough
time because I was just sobbingevery week.

Speaker 2 (28:57):
I think that might be the instance where like don't
sing, you know, would be okay ifyou're not going to sing
because you just emotionallycannot, but man, hearing the

(29:20):
congregation sing it reallylifted my spirits just so much
and it really I felt like it wasa huge hug of like God's love
and care for me through thesaints singing that song to the
Lord and to one another.

Speaker 1 (29:32):
Yes, and I want to piggyback on that because when
we're talking about practically,I think there are appropriate
times to not sing, and the Bibletells us there are appropriate
times to not sing.
In Proverbs 25, 20, we readwhoever sings songs to a heavy
heart is like one who takes offa garment on a cold day and like

(29:56):
vinegar on soda, and I might belike really filled with joy in
a really happy place and I knowI've got a friend, I've got a
brother or sister in Christ.
That is just in the.
You know the depths of trials.
I should not impose and justlike bring about all this.

(30:18):
I need to.
I need to enter into their hurtand mourn with them.
I need to weep with those whoweep and I might be filled with
joy, I might be just like reallymy relationship with the Lord
is going good.
There's so many good things andjust because I'm in a very good
spot doesn't mean I shouldproject that upon them, and so I

(30:40):
think that's just really beingmindful of where others are at.
And also in Ecclesiastes 7.5,it reads.
And also in Ecclesiastes 7.5,it reads it is better for a man
to hear the rebuke of the wisethan to hear the song of fools,
and so this is a time wheredon't fake it in your singing.

(31:00):
Sometimes it's like, oh God,this is just hard for me right
now, but don't avoid worship.
So I think those are some ofthe times, and obviously there's
others.
If you're living, like the world, in wickedness six days a week,
you don't have a song to sing.
On Sunday you should sit inquiet repentance.

(31:24):
The Lord even says in Amosconcerning wicked people, he
says take away from me the noiseof your songs.
To the melody of your harps Iwill not listen.
So on that side of things too,like the expression of heartfelt
, joyful Christian worship comesfrom a repentant heart who is
resting in the promises ofChrist, sins forgiven and

(31:46):
seeking to walk in the newnessof life.
Yeah, yeah, okay.
So we want to definitely makethat something that we
understand, but we always cangive thanks because sins
forgiven, because of the gospel,and for everything to God, the
Father.
In the name of our Lord, jesusChrist, we appeal to the Father

(32:12):
by the Son, through the Spirit.
All Christian worship isTrinitarian and we have access
to God through Jesus Christ, thesecond person of the Godhead,
very God, of very God, theGod-man, jesus Christ, who has
granted us access, reconciled usto the Father by his own blood,

(32:34):
and that truth and that realityhas been applied by the Spirit
who washed us and regenerated usand given us new life,
manifested in our faith andrepentance, and so, because of
that, we sing.
So how do we do this faithfully?

Speaker 2 (32:52):
You go to church and you sing.

Speaker 1 (32:54):
Show up, each week Show up.

Speaker 2 (32:57):
Even if you don't really care for the song.

Speaker 1 (32:59):
Show up.

Speaker 2 (33:01):
Even if you can't hit that high note.

Speaker 1 (33:04):
Try it.

Speaker 2 (33:07):
Even if you're worried about your voice.

Speaker 1 (33:10):
Show up.

Speaker 2 (33:11):
Yeah, I think it really is as simple as that
Laying aside your own thoughtsand opinions and feelings, maybe
sometimes on that day, and singpraises to one another, with
one another, to the Lord.

Speaker 1 (33:28):
You will be all the better for it.
You never regret worshiping onSunday.

Speaker 2 (33:34):
And you do that faithfully, and that's it.

Speaker 1 (33:39):
Any final thoughts?

Speaker 2 (33:41):
It's kind of random.
But if your church gives youopportunity to learn the songs
in advance or know what thesongs in advance are, I can tell
you that putting in a littlebit of work listening to those
songs, learning if it's a newsong of the month, learning that

(34:02):
song before coming intocorporate worship, it takes the
pressure off of not knowingwhat's being sung, not knowing
the lyrics, not knowing the tuneor whatever, and you will be
able to freely worship a littlebit better.
So I would just say, if yourchurch has that option, I know
for us we put out a song listeach week and we encourage the

(34:25):
congregation to listen throughthe playlist.
I just think that that isreally helpful, especially
coming from someone who's in themusic ministry, and it will
allow you to one be encouragedthroughout the week listening to
those songs, but also you'relearning and you're growing in
your knowledge of music and inthe songs we're going to sing on

(34:45):
Sunday.
So anyway, that's just a littleside note.

Speaker 1 (34:49):
Thanks for this conversation.
Yeah, it went.
That's fine, though.
I really appreciate it.
It's good and for us to justkind of express where our hearts
are and thinking aboutpractical, faithful ways in
which we, as a body of believers, can worship Jesus faithfully.
It's important because God'sword says it's important.

(35:11):
I want to thank you forlistening to the Pleasing God
podcast.
If you have any questions, Iwould love to hear from you.
You could reach out atquestions at
pleasinggodpodcastorg.
And remember 1 Thessalonians4.3,.
This is the will of God, yoursanctification.
Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know
Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

The Breakfast Club

The Breakfast Club

The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.