I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. Psalm 104:33 (NIV)
Presence and Flow – Worship and Water Series – Part 5
Go to PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4 | PART 5 | PART 6 | PART 7 | PART 8
Often in our communities of faith, when we talk about worship, we’re talking about the part of a church service where we sing slow songs about and to God. And while music and singing and songs are not worship in and of themselves, music is an incredible vehicle of vulnerability and presence.
I was at a Coldplay concert in Sydney last year, and while they were playing ‘Oceans' from their album ‘Ghost Stories', I was transported to another place. ‘Resonance’ welled up inside of me and I felt like I was worshipping. While I write these little blog-style devotions, I listen to a composer named Ólafur Arnolds (he wrote the score for the BBC series, “Broadchurch.” BRILLIANT!). His music opens up something inside of me, I can’t explain what happens, but I feel connected to God… it makes me cry, laugh out loud and catch my breath. It speaks to the unexplainable within me.
Back in Part 3 of this series, I mentioned that the Rabbinic insight of God as being ‘Living Water' speaks of spirit, flow and presence. Intimate connection with the Divine. Music transports us to a place of spiritual connectivity and flow. Whether we’re singing about God or not, music has the ability to transcend our senses and situations. Most of us can’t help but move with the music that we love, the sounds that resonate with our spirits. As we worship God, as we connect with him through music, we flow with him, so to speak.
“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent” – Victor Hugo
“Beautiful music is the art of the prophets that can calm the agitations of the soul; it is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has given us.” – Martin Luther.
“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” – Plato
“Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness.” – Maya Angelou
“The only truth is music.” – Jack Kerouac
“Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom & philosophy.” – Beethoven
Music is the natural kissing the divine. The connection point of what can be explained, held and seen, to the unknown and the unspeakable; the wind that moves ever between our fingers.
It’s a conductor of presence.
It’s no wonder that music is our response to the holy and sacred nature of God. John Mark MacMillan says, “Worship is not a means to an end, it is the end.” But it's the means too. We worship with our lives, not to arrive at a point of completion, but to dive deeper into mystery and the pursuit of truth. The means ARE the end.
In a poem called ‘Music,’ Anne Porter writes,
“Music opens a wound in us
An ache a desolation
Deep as a homesickness
For some far-off
And half-forgotten country…
And when music comes to us
With its heavenly beauty
It brings us desolation
For when we hear it
We half remember
That lost native country…
And shining at the heart of it
Is the longed-for beauty
Of the One who waits for us
Who will always wait for us
In those radiant meadows
Yet also came to live with us
And wanders where we wander.”
If I’m feeling restless, scattered, edgy or stressed, or even when I’m feeling elated and care-free, I almost always respond to those feelings with music. Music connects me with my truth – the ground of my being – and leads me into the presence of being itself. It opens up that wound within me, the ache for something I can’t quite put my finger on, it transports me to the spirit realm, to presence. It's a mysterious and beautiful gift.
So, go put on a song, pick up your guitar, sit down at the piano and play, or just start singing. Not because you should, but because music transcends the natural and reveals Divine presence. It hands us living water and invites us to drink.
Over to you… We want to hear what worship means to you. Leave us a comment below.
Go to Part 6 – Church Service Worship »
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