I was inspired today to listen to a really wonderful album. @timcia posted a thread encouraging us to sing psalms and songs to God: https://forum.nofap.com/index.php?threads/music-and-praise.339252/ Usually I listen to podcasts on my commute home, but this afternoon I put on one of the easiest albums to sing along to. It would be great to hear your recommendations for music! Today I was listening to this: We have a wonderful tradition in Scotland of a capella psalms. Delve into church history and you can clearly see a link between the psalter and the spiritual health of the church and witness to society. For me, there is nothing quite like singing the psalms in this way. Often there is a precentor who leads the worship and everyone follows them. Traditionally everyone would have to follow a beat behind because they didn't have the words written down! In this album it's all in time. In the Free Church they (I'm now not going to a Free Church) use the metrical psalms from the Scottish Psalter - published in the 1600s, but recently updated for language. This album follows the updated one. So, in this album you have an ancient tradition of Psalms. It was recorded live in various churches in Scotland, so represents true worship and has some really well known tunes Psalm 116 to Eventide; Psalm 23 to Crimmond; Psalm 134 to If You're Happy (yep, the children's song!) The one thing I would say is that depending on location and precentor or lack of, it can be difficult to hear the words. But you can easily get a copy of the Psalter, Sing Psalms, to download for free. https://freechurch.org/praise-resources/ This all just means a wonderful way to be encouraged: All people that on earth do dwell, Sing to the LORD with cheerful voice. Him serve with mirth, his praise forth tell, Come ye before him and rejoice. Know that the LORD is God indeed; Without our aid he did us make: We are his flock, he doth us feed, And for his sheep he doth us take. O enter then his gates with praise, Approach with joy his courts unto: Praise, laud, and bless his name always, For it is seemly so to do. For why? the LORD our God is good, His mercy is for ever sure; His truth at all times firmly stood, And shall from age to age endure. Psalm 100. You can listen on Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/album/24PotV8CrSZII7DsfxQkLs?si=pucaN-TcQ0WZ05frOkAF8A
There is one song I'll list that I have listened to a lot recently The one thing Paul Colman https://open.spotify.com/track/6g2FYfbBkgFA910n29bMPl?si=afc72af9ee0a4547
Rachmaninoff's "Vespers" Very beautiful set of prayers, according to all the traditions of the Orthodox Christian chants. A-capella, again as tradition was, great choir, but it's in Russian. * * * Gregorio Allegri's "Miserere mei, Deus" Psalm 51, but it's in Latin. It's awesome. It can easily bring you to tears.
I'm on my fourth listen. I'm loving the mid 2000s vibe. Hints of delirious, Tree63, Simon Webbe and Jack Johnston. The lyrics are really good. The chorus to Gloria had me singing the first time round, with the choir. I love "you are forever/ i am a moment." Puzzled by Last Night in America, and impressed at the use of Revelation. The One Thing. Love that guitar. It felt a bit overused back then but I love it now. And those questions that we have about ourselves. "But the one thing i don't question is you; you really love me like you say you do." There's lots to scratch into with it. Looking forward to more listens of it. Have now taken it from the car/headphones and is on the family cd unit. Thank you for sharing.
Sometimes I'll listen to love songs and hear God's heart through them. Obviously not meant to replace Biblical praise songs, but the yearning of God for us really shines through even the "secular" sometimes. It's really embedded into the fabric of Reality. "Nothing's gonna change my love for you You oughta know by now how much I love you One thing you can be sure of I'll never ask for more than your love" “I have loved you with an everlasting love.." - Jeremiah 31
When we are in the Kingdom and view the world via Christ's light, the sacred/secular divide vanishes, I think. We see the world rightly, knowing that it is all Christ, through and through. There is no corner of it so dark that he cannot redeem and no place where we cannot find him at work in some capacity. We must be careful that our focus remains always on him, but as long as it does, there is nothing in the "secular" world that we need fear.
Amen. I love seeing the world through this lens of redemption. It is much more hopeful (and interesting) than labelling things as "Christian" or "non Christian". Perhaps this is what it means when it says "to the pure all things are pure"? It's eye opening to see how "from him and through him and for him are all things".
Oh gosh that is beautiful. I found the whole album on spotify just before lunch, and it's been on the main speakers since. It got my wife's "that's lovely! I was enjoying that." she's not hard to please but sometimes I don't read the mood with my music choice! I think it will be my study music this week. I thought Rachmaninoff was all about bouncy wild piano. Clearly I need to explore more of his stuff! I'm glad you have the qualifier that it shouldn't replace biblical songs. We don't want to be the church who used U2 songs for their worship. You are right though. Our handiwork reflects God's handiwork. The question is whether people are creating things for his glory or their own. A great many secular songs or movies or books get at questions and are trying to make sense of the world, questions that the gospel gives. God's general revelation is given to all humanity. We would do well to do what you do and learn to see God's imprint on the things made by non-Christians. God used non believers in the Bible to cause his purposes.... I agree that far too often we make an arbitrary division. The pastorate, mission work, theological studies are "Christian workers" snd the rest of the jobs are secular... When in fact all of us are called to be missions in our workplaces. Using language like that makes us forget the ongoing work of redemption in the world. But I think it is still helpful to have the labels...as long as we determine what we mean. For this thread i was imagining "music made for the edification of Christians to help them worship, where worship isn't just singing but glorifying God in all they do." I mean, there's some really awful stuff out there which merely point us inward and not out to God.
For someone who does not understand all these nuances, can you explain? What is wrong with using a song by a certain band as a worship song? If the words edify, build up, love, and glorify God, what is the objection?
Lots of great suggestions. I'm Reformed and about half the songs we sing in our public worship services are metrical Psalms. I like to pull out the hymnal and sing myself. Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Need: great. Rachmaninoff Vespers: great (I listened to this regularly before I ever became a Christian). I'm familiar with those. Will have to check out some of the other suggestions here. There's lots of moving classical music that I enjoy, too, much of which comes from a Christian perspective, even if in unintelligable (for me) Latin or German (Bach), etc. From Depths of Woe I Raise to Thee is a beautiful Lutheran hymn based off Psalm 130 that I sign often, text and music by Luther himself. Besides those already mentioned, here's a piece I find really amazing: So, yeah, there's some music I can listen to (like this one linked here), and then another sort that I sing (like metrical Psalms and hymns).
Great thread! Loving Emu Music at the moment (contemporary hymn revamps + originals) Thine Be The Glory:
Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (niv). This is sung in the song and has an impact on me; He is a counselor, we can talk to Him. Mighty God, He is strong and steadfast. Everlasting father, He is always with us. Prince of Peace, He is the royalty of calmness.
