Dear PPPC,

Do you remember the first song you ever learned? Maybe it was the ABCs, or Jesus Loves Me? Maybe it was a lullaby that a parent sang to you?

You might not be able to remember the very first song, but you might remember several of the earliest songs you ever learned.

And I’m sure you’ve heard stories or seen videos of dementia or Alzheimer’s patients who have otherwise lost their ability to communicate clearly, but with a guitar provided, they can sing to you every word of Amazing Grace, clear as day….

Singing is so important to human life. When we sing, something happens to us. When God created us, God built music into our very bodies: our breath, our heartbeats, our movement. Neurologists have shown that when we hear music, every area of our brains that has ever been mapped, responds. It makes sense then, that music and singing are a part of our worship.

The songs we sing help us to articulate our faith in God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. It’s kind of incredible, isn’t it, that every Sunday, we sing songs that other Christians around the world, are also singing in their worship? Songs that have been sung by our parents and our grandparents, their grandparents…for generations. And songs that are new to us. Many of the songs will outlive us long after we are gone.

For the next three weeks, our worship will have this theme: How Can We Keep from Singing?

We’ll sing some beloved hymns…and as we do…I encourage you to think about why they are so beloved to the church…and to you. For example, why does Great is Thy Faithfulness move so many to tears each time it is sung or heard? What does that melody and those words evoke in you? How is it an expression our faith?

Our scriptures in worship will be songs or hymns from the Old and New Testament – did you know there are songs in the scriptures? We read them, but some were originally sung. What do these holy words reveal about God…and about us?

See you in church.

Yours for the journey,
Pastor Molly