Why we sing…

I’m not sure if you ever wonder, but if you do wonder why we sing in church, one answer is that it’s good for us. I don’t see God as one who sits on a throne waiting to be praised, though I do see God as one who deserves to be thanked and praised. I spoke last week, in part, about how singing out our thanks and praise to God might act as a reminder to us to live lives of thanksgiving beyond our church walls. We might also sing, as Christian musician Rich Mullins has said, “because it’s the most reiterated command in the whole Bible. Over and over it says sing, sing, sing… There must be a reason!” He adds, this singing to God thing “is a lot easier than loving my enemies so maybe I should start with the easy stuff and maybe by the time I am really old I will have been able to tie the more complicated knot.” As the holidays approach let’s sing praise to the God from whom all blessings flow, it’s good for us. It’s not something just for angels and radios, it’s for us too.