CYPRESSWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST
July 4, 2010
25424 Aldine-Westfield, Spring, TX.
77373
www.blakehart.com/cypresswoodbulletin.htm
LIFT UP IN PRAYER THE FOLLOWING:
God’s will for our
congregation
Various friends, relatives and co-workers
God’s will for our
nation
Our nation, leaders and military
HAPPY
BIRTHDAY
TO:
George Mearns (13th), Sharnel Mearns (13th), Larry Ross
(17th) Travis King (18th)
HAPPY
INDEPENDENCE
DAY
Today we celebrate the
founding of our nation. Many of us
believe that it was God’s will to put in place this great country.
As such, for over two hundred years we have attempted to practice, at
least in the American psyche, the Judeo-Christian ethic.
We have not been perfect at it as some continue to tell us.
Yet we have turned enemies into friends, have taken aid around the world
to rescue those who have faced natural disasters, and want to share our
political philosophy. I would like
to explore some of this, Lord willing, in future articles.
For today, I ask that we pray for our nation.
If repentance is needed, and many think that is the case, then pray for
repentance. If we need to return to
God, and many see this, then pray for another great religious awakening.
Pray for our leaders and for those who serve our country and their
families. May God’s will be done.
COME LET US SING
“Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and
admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns and songs from the
Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts”
(Colossians 3:16).
Music is such a valuable
tool that we have been blessed with from God.
The book of Psalms was, and is, Israel’s songbook.
We sometimes forget that they were meant to be sung, and today some are
attempting to remind us of that.
Some of the songs that have been put to notes that we are familiar with; Psalms
23, 95, 100, and 148.
Singing inspires a
nation. Today as we remember our
founding, we might hear some of the songs we sing about our country.
America the Beautiful, God Bless American, Yankee Doodle, and
It’s a Grand Old Flag are just a few (1).
A song reminds us of past events.
Play or sing Dixie and sees what happens.
The World Wars had songs that directed the nation in any number of ways.
Since the advent of “Rock and Roll” and its various offshoots, patriotic
songs have been few and far between.
“Country and Western” has been more in touch with the patriotic mood of
the country as well as the religious mood.
A song can bring back memories.
Each of us has a story about that.
I remember the first time I heard If I Had A Hammer, a folk song
sung by Peter, Paul and Mary. I was
in grade school standing with my class in front of Lincoln Center in New York
City. Kids were singing it.
We in churches of Christ
have emphasized a cappella music for a number of reasons (2).
What we sometimes do not realize is that we are not the only ones who
sing a cappella. Recently I
read an article by a fellow who sang with an a cappella group called
Glad (3). In it he tells of
three ways in which song serves the Word.
Let’s take a look at these.
The first is that
singing can help us remember words.
That is probably one of the reasons the Psalms were sung.
We do that as well with any number of texts.
We already mentioned some of the Psalms that we sing.
Other texts would be Matthew 6:33 and 7:7-8 in the song Seek Ye First.
Other texts that have been put to music are Romans 8:1 and Philippians
4:6. Want to memorize scripture,
put it to music. You can be like
the Mennonite song leader I heard when he was teaching us songs without notes.
He would sing it and told us to add the melody, which meant, make it up
as you go along. That works for me;
I could sing any note I wanted. Now
I’m not suggesting that we do this with all songs (though those who hear me
sing know I do do that) but it is a way to learn scripture.
The author thinks that
we should memorize songs and to not be too dependent on songbooks and screens.
That is what I like about some youth events I’ve been to; kids singing
from the heart. There might be a
lesson in there for us.
The second point is that
singing helps us engage the words emotionally.
How do the words we sing affect us?
There is a debate among us that we should keep emotions out of worship
(4). Sadly, this misses the point
that God wants all of us involved in worship; and while there can be abuses to
this, it is something we should keep in mind.
I am moved by certain songs that are sung at youth events because of the
words to the song, how they are sung, and because of events associated with the
songs from the pass.
Let me relate a couple
of events surrounding the song, Amazing Grace.
There are at least two renditions of this song that are very moving.
The first I heard in a chow hall in Japan when I was stationed there in
the Air Force in 1970. Judy
Collins, a folk singer, sung a great rendition of it a cappella style as
I remember it. The second occurred
in England in 1972. The pipes,
drums and band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards played, what one could
arguably call, one of the most moving renditions.
It started with a single piper playing on the bag pipes, then move on to
more pipes on the second stanza, and finally the entire band.
It ended with the lone piper.
This version became the number one song in England on many stations
throughout England, including “Rock and Roll.”
It was so moving that it brought tears to my eyes, and still does.
Singing connects heart
and mind as we worship God.
The last point made is
that singing can demonstrate and express our unity.
That is what Paul is getting at both in Colossians 3:16 (see context
from verse 1) and Ephesians 5:19 as well.
Song brings us together. We
saw this after 9/11/2001. People
came together and sang. When we
talk about the marks of the church, one of them is our unity (John 17:20-23).
When we complain about a new song or style verses an old one, we forget
that we are to be united together (5).
Singing brings us together and it is something we should keep in mind,
remembering the common bond we have in Christ.
These are just a few
ideas about what a cappella
music can do for us (6). Let’s keep
these in mind when we come together in worship and praise, and even in our own
personal time when we seek out the Lord.
George B. Mearns
(1) Let me say that we,
as Christians, need to keep in mind that our citizenship is in heaven with
Christ. While we live in the United
States, and in many ways support our nation, in the end, it is not the nation
but Jesus Christ who we follow.
Separating the two can be difficult.
There are brothers and sisters in Christ who do not salute the flag or
say the Pledge of Allegiance; that is their choice.
There are others who do and recognize that there is a commitment to the
nation. Then there are those who
see things in the love it or leave it mentality.
Since scripture isn’t clear on some of this, though some think it is, we
need to be careful when we assemble together as to what we emphasize.
More on this later.
(2) The use of
instrumental music in worship has been debated on and off for over a century.
Today the debate continues as some reexamine from scripture and history
the subject. Darryl Tippens of
Pepperdine University has had his second conference on the importance of a
cappella music in our tradition.
(3) Bob Kauflin, What
Happens When We Sing in Worship?, copied 4/8/2010 from
www.crosswalk.com
(4) See Joe Ed Furr,
Entertainment or Worship?, copied 4/8/2010 from
www.singingschool.org as he attempts to find a middle ground.
(5) When we sing new
songs that the youth like, we forget that when some of us were younger, we too
sang “new” songs that are now standards, but more likely were not popular with
the “older” generation of that day.
A song leader received a letter complaining about the new song that was sung
the past Sunday. It was too modern,
irreverent, and should never be sung again.
This was written in the 1890s.
The song: What A Friend We Have In Jesus.
(6) See Keith Brenton,
What I Can Say About A Cappella Music, copied 4/14/2010 from
http://keithbrenton.blogspot.com