Skip to main content

The Power in Singing

And Mary said, 
“My soul magnifies the Lord, 
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."
(You can read Mary's Song here)

What I appreciate most about The Magnificat (Mary's Song) is its poetic form. Her song provides an unusual and surprising insight into the power and goodness of God. For me, Mary is a model of faith by completely accepting her part in God’s salvation plan. Her singing celebrates receiving that role in God's plan. 

I particularly like the poetic form because, biblically, it represents singing and singing is powerful.

Singing is powerful. It moves our souls.

For example, Psalms, such as laments (see Psalm 79), help cope with the difficult emotions of grief and fear while removing their crippling capacity. Songs of praise and thanksgiving (see Psalm 34) unite us to God. And canticles, such as the Canticle of Simeon (see Luke 2:29-32), describing courage, promise, and hopes as they become real.

Singing is powerful. It has transformational power.

For example, at the Berlin Wall the citizens of Leipzig gathered in peaceful protests on Monday evenings around St. Nikolai church. In a candlelight vigil, they would sing songs of hope, protest and justice. Their numbers grew constantly to hundreds of thousands of voices. Finally, their singing shook their nations' powers  and changed the world.

Singing is powerful. It voices our collective desires to God.

"Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” sings with the same confidence and hope of Mary. "Joy to the World" sings of celebrating and participating in Christ's arrival in the flesh.

Singing is powerful.  It is, as St. Augustine, is credited with saying, "Those who sing pray twice."

Singing our carols as we gather on Christmas Eve, especially in today's tensions, singing includes us in God's plan to save and redeem the world. 

Like Mary, it is our "praying twice" for God's mighty acts of salvation that includes us in the plan.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Ruler of All Earthly Kings

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. (from Rev. 1:4-8 ) About 17 years ago I wrote a letter to the people in the United Church of Underhill. The purpose of the letter was to explain I was retiring at the end of the Conference Year. I felt the time had come for me personally to move on and for the church to grow with a new pastor. I secured a moving company while the church formed a search committee as we both prepared for the inevitable. This is the nature of the book of Revelation, as recorded in 1:4: “John, to the seven churches in the province of Asia.” This is Revelation’s context: it was written for the benefit of particular people at a particular time for their particular situation. John’s letter narrates a drama about God’s imminent invasion of the “kingdom of this world” ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Grantchester's Warning

"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, the owner would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (from Luke 12:32-40 ) I regularly watch Grantchester; a murder mystery set in 1950s England. The main characters are a local detective and an Anglican priest who, as a team, solve mysteries set in the town. Two aspects of Grantchester impress me. First, the simplicity of the 1950’s police communications done by a landline phone and not cell phone. Second, the simplicity of daily life with little television and fewer possessions allowing the characters to focus on their vocation of detective and priest. This simplicity is more than a nostalgic return to the “good old days”. Instead, it’s a Shaker type of simplicity where austerity allows freedom from distractions to focus on worship and community. Today’s distraction-filled world has seemingly countless activ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Jesus, Deliverance, and Demons

"Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind." (from Luke 8:26-39 ) Astrid is a streaming program I often watch. The plot is a basic cops and robbers action until the criminal is caught. The uniqueness of the program is Astrid, who is on the Autism spectrum, is brilliant at solving puzzles including connecting clues to solve the crime. Watching this program has given me a more profound insight to people living with this condition and their acceptance in society. My first-hand experience with children on the Spectrum was driving a Special Needs school bus for 6 years. With this experience, I can imagine the life the possessed man was experiencing, especially living among the tombs, bound with chains and shackles, having to live in the wilds. It was no wonder he cried for mercy. Jesus, with his power and mercy, cast the demons out and even...
Post a Comment
Read more