 Thoughts
from our Music Ministry
Sing it to me again Daddy! by Fr. Ron Drummond
For
this second installment of the "musician's notes," I have decided to
expand on this idea of the song of God. Last time I wrote of Zeph. 3:17
and the truth that God rejoices over his children with singing. In my
recent reading I came across a perfect illustration of this truth from a
real life story. Let me share it with you:
"One day a friend of mine walking through a shopping mall with his
two-year old son. The child was in a particularly cantankerous mood,
fussing and fuming. The frustrated father tried everything to quiet his
son, but nothing seemed to help. The child simply would not obey. Then,
under some special inspiration, the father scooped up his son and, holding
him close to his chest, began singing an impromptu love song. None of the
words rhymed. He sang off key. And yet, as best he could, this father
began sharing his heart. "I love you," he sang. "I'm so glad you're my
boy. You make me happy. I like the way you laugh." On they went from
one store to the next. Quietly the father continued singing off key and
making words that did not rhyme. The child relaxed and became still,
listening to this strange and wonderful song. Finally, they finished
shopping and went to the car, As the father opened the door and prepared
to buckle his son into the car seat, the child lifted his head and said
simply, "Sing it to me again, Daddy! Sing it to me again!"(1)
 What
a tender expression of love and joy! This is the same love and joy that
God longs to express to us. It is one of the many aspects of his Father's
heart. It simply means that God is excited, joyous, and just plain happy
that you are around and that you are his boy or girl. This truth may be
wonderful to ponder and even perhaps to believe, but it begs the question,
"How?" How does God sing to us? How do we hear it? Does God sing off key
like the father in the story? Perhaps it is well to approach the answers
by asking one more question. How does God continue his manifest presence
on earth now that Jesus sits at His right hand? The answer is simple: In
you and in me. God has ordained the Church, the living Body of Jesus
Christ to be his presence in the world today. Paul writes so eloquently of
the interdependent life of the Body in his letters, especially First
Corinthians. We are to be the song of God to each other! It is simply an
extension of our call to minister to one another.
Musically, we can see this happening in bodies of Christians worldwide who
are flowing in the "River of God." Times of worship are yielding to times
of spontaneous singing in the Spirit over the gathering. New songs are
pouring forth as musicians are getting glimpses into God's heart and
sharing it with the Body. Words from God are being manifested in music and
song in addition to the spoken word. The areas of liturgical dance and
pageantry are even reflecting this as they, too, are areas of expression.
God is expressing Himself to us and has been since the beginning of time.
Maybe you can't sing or dance. Don't worry. In my experience, the song of
God goes far beyond mere music. It engages all the senses and yet
transcends them all at once. The song of God can be heard or sung by
anyone willing to listen or willing to sing it. It is heard in the cooing
of a precious newborn or the laughter of two old friends. It is seen in
the hands of those that feed the poor and hold the lonely. It is
felt in a comforting hand on a shoulder during a time of loss, or an
embrace celebrating a victory. It is smelled in a fresh garden or even in
the stench of the inner city. It is tasted in precious Body and Blood of
Our Lord in the Eucharistic love feast.
The song of God is everywhere. My hope and prayer for you and me is that
we can take the time to look, to reach, to feel, and to receive the song
of God in our lives. It will calm us and comfort us just as it did the
young son in the story. And we will say with him. "Sing it to me again,
Daddy, sing it to me again!"
(1) As told by Richard Foster in "Prayer,
Finding the Heart's True Home" (San Francisco, Harper Collins, 1992)pp.
3,4 |
|
Listen for the song of God! by
Fr. Ron Drummond
All of
us, especially those of us with a deep love for music, know how vital it
is in our Christian life to sing to the Lord and lift up our voices to Him
in song and worship. The results of our worship are clear: the wonderful
sense of His presence, intimacy with Him, and the breaking of strongholds
and bondages. The forces of evil flee at the sound of God's people singing
God's praises. I was made very aware of that fact coming off of a
month-long ministry trip on the road. It is an awe-inspiring
privilege to see God move in such mighty ways.
 But
have you ever heard God sing to you? Does that thought even sound
ridiculous? I never even gave it a thought until God brought to me His
word in Zephaniah 3:17.
This text says that God will rejoice over us with gladness and exalt over
us with loud singing. What an incredible thought!! God not only loves us
and sent us Jesus to save us, and fills us with His Holy Spirit....He is
so pleased with His children that He sings to us! Imagine a young father
holding his newborn while he tenderly sings her to sleep. That is the
Father's heart for you. Even when you veer off of God's path a bit, or are
tired or discouraged, God has a song with which to quiet you and renew
you. Now that's good news!
God's song, as I have experienced it so far, comes in many different ways.
For me it comes during times of meditation on Him, even if it is in the
car. Sometimes it will come like a prophecy during a holy hush in a
worship setting. Someone will be inspired to sing a spontaneous expression
of the Father's love. What we must do is listen and listen quietly. This
can be frustrating as we are constantly being bombarded with the thoughts
and cares of this world. But be assured, God's "loud singing" will break
through and renew and refresh you.
Zephaniah 3:17, look it up for yourself
and just linger on it. Ruminate in it. Drink it in until the tender voice
of the Father sings away all of your fears and burdens and calls you to
simply bask in His amazing love for you as His creation. |