Surrounded By Song

Year 6 - Day 262: Today, I am grateful to be surrounded by song.

Music is more than something for entertainment listening. It is so much more. Music is spiritual. It lifts our spirits, helps us get out a good cry, inspires us to stand strong or even calls us to make a difference. Music soothes the soul and calms anxieties if we choose the right song. Our choice in music can help direct our paths. 


Did you know that King Saul called David to his side to play his harp? 

And whenever the tormenting spirit from God troubled Saul, David would play the harp. Then Saul would feel better, and the tormenting spirit would go away. -1 Samuel 16:23  

David spent hours alone in the fields with the sheep. The harp was his companion, as we imagine the cowboy with his guitar. Music soothed David and kept him company. He was an excellent musician and it allowed him to soothe the king. 


I wonder when the first song was sung and the first tune hummed? Was it about the glory of flowers in the fields or was it an attempt to join the birds in song? Only God knows? Music is an important part of any culture. 

The songs in our heart typically reflect who or what we worship and adore. I am grew up playing and singing. Some of my favorite moments of childhood involved school music groups and events. Swing choir, Madrigals, Band, musicals, competitions and at church... music brings us together. When we make music together... in harmony... the sound is more beautiful. 

Jingles get stuck in our heads. They are everywhere. The ones who write them are brilliant. Barry Manilow wrote some commercial jingles that are now deeply rooted in the history of the product or brand they were selling. Yes, they surround us.(Earworms love to sing commercial jingles.) 

When we are surrounded and swimming in song, we are empowered and recharged. At other times, a song humbles me to tears with the depth of God's love and Jesus's sacrifice. Sometimes, a song fills my heart to near bursting with praise and joy. 

Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts. And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. -Ephesians 5:18-20

What will we wrap ourselves in this day? Fear or the confidence? Hope or dismay? The choice is a prayer ... or a song away. Some of my favorite songs are prayers set to music, just like the Psalms. 

"You unravel me, with a melody; you surround me with a song. 
Of deliverance, from my enemies, Till all my fears are gone.
I’m no longer a slave to fear
I am a child of God" 
 -No Longer Slaves, Jonathan David & Melissa Helser
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8TkUMJtK5k

Today, I am grateful to be surrounded by song.