Like the Sound of a Great Amen

By Nancy Shuman -
"Exult, you just, in the Lord ... sing to Him a new song; pluck the strings skillfully, with shouts of gladness.."  (Psalm 33:1 & 3) 

I read this scripture with a sigh.  Loving to sing, I can't carry a tune in the proverbial bucket. Although I savor the sounds of harpsichords and pianos and cellos and harps, I myself am no plucker of strings. 

Even with no musical talent, however, I find singing to be a path into prayer.  I like to pray with psalms, using the words as a springboard to my own conversations with God.  "I will extol you." I read in Psalm 145... and so I do.  I begin to thank Him for His goodness and kindness and mercy (this can go on for some time before I turn again to what I'm reading).  And when I feel pretty sure no one is within hearing distance, I just might burst into song.  Sometimes using a tune I know, sometimes making up my own, I sing to God of His wonders.  I set thanksgivings and praises to music; I may even bring intercession into the song.  It somehow opens my heart to do this, and helps unlock the door to conversation with God. 

The psalms are a springboard into prayer for me.  And music, even if I keep my singing "on the inside," is my personal amen.  

"I do not know what I was playing,
Or what I was dreaming then,
But I struck one chord of music
Like the sound of a great Amen."  (A. Proctor)

(painting by Francesco Vanni, in US public domain)

Comments

  1. Lady Isabella Fortuna10:04 pm, March 18, 2012

    You could do the "shout" part!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tess7:14 am, March 19, 2012

    Amen!!

    Music has a way of bypassing the mind, going straight to the heart.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nancy Shuman10:10 am, March 19, 2012

      It does indeed, as do words that sing. So I'm off to visit the Lighthouse....

      Delete

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