SING
By Melanie Tierce
Since I was saved at the age of 15, I have been utterly fascinated with the “off script” pieces of our times of corporate worship. What I mean by that is….
“Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.” (Psalm 96:1)
“Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy” (Psalm 33:3)
“He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.” (Psalm 40:3)
“Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, and His praise in the congregation of the godly ones!” (Psalm 149:1)
NEW songs written right there on the spot when the people of God gathered! Faith, expressed through melody by singers and non-singers alike! My goodness, it was beautiful! And exhilarating! It was so clear what special role God had designed “new songs” of worship to be!
Now, I know that this space in worship is not one that all denominations emphasize or practice. I wrote “Sing” as an invitation and challenge for those who are used to this way of worshipping Jesus AND for those for whom it is completely new! Its aim is to leave space for the believer to practice a posture that I believe is crucial to the life of faith. Brand new, in the moment praise, and the practice of it corporately, is a skill, a muscle, and I would even say a weapon, that God has given to His saints, and that we have the joy and honor of learning how to yield.
“Sing” is a means of posing to you this question, Church. Do we as a people know only how to follow another in worship, or do we, each of us of our own accord, know how to boldly enter the throne room of God by faith with thanksgiving and praise - any time and anywhere? When discouragement rears its head, and there is no one there to encourage us to sing, will the muscle be developed in us to recount the glories of God? Do we know how to stir our hearts to thanksgiving and praise IN SPITE of how we feel on any given day?
Have we rehearsed the wonders of His character to such a degree that it is our first response when life shakes us to the core and no one is looking?
Perhaps, this powerful skill is a small piece of what it looks like for us as the Body of Christ to continue growing up into “the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).
It is time we practice our praise.
Is it risky? Perhaps a little. Of course it is essential we stay grounded in the Word and always only offer healthy food to the body of Christ! However, it’s not risky enough to not do it! The Holy Spirit is excellent at teaching us the ways of praise!
Is it awkward? YES, AND THAT’S THE BEST PART. It is truly a fast track of growth for the Body! It immediately requires the corporate letting down of pride, and the LEAPING right on out of our comfort zone! It allows the worshipper to declare “I care more about God being praised than I care about what others think of me”
Is He worthy? Oh, yes. And that truly is the bottom line. Jesus is simply worthy of it ALL. Worthy of 100 percent of the glory. Worthy of a joyful noise, even when we look like fools! So go ahead and fling the doors of your heart wide open. Tell Jesus how much you love Him! For His glory, for His fame, right there in your living room, right there in your car! As we make our way all the way home... (Isaiah 35:10)
SING, saints of God.... go ahead and sing a new song!
If there were no more words on the screen
Would we still know how to sing?
How to bring a true offering of our devotion
We can’t rely on building drums
To come and stir our faith up
We’ve gotta know how to come
and lead ourselves in worship
Sing, saints of God, Sing!
Make your own melody of praise
And tell Him how you love Him
Sing, saints of God, Sing!
Let your hearts now respond
To our God and give Him glory
All it takes is “You are Good”
All it takes is “Thank you, Lord”
All it takes is “Worthy is the Lamb”
Isn’t he worthy?!
Worthy of a joyful noise
Even if I look like a fool!
My Jesus is just that good
I can’t contain it!