Psalm 68:32

Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth.  Sing praise to the Lord.  Psalm 68:32(NIV)

In any given moment around the world someone is singing.  These songs can happen inside or outside, in groups or choirs, or even alone.  Singing can certainly be spontaneous or well-rehearsed. It is also a way that our emotions can be expressed, such as joyfulness, love, sadness, or praise.  Even when we listen without singing, music seems to move our hearts into a place of incredible connection to God.

I once had the privilege of being part of a small tour group visiting the Middle-Eastern country of Jordan.  Desiring to attend worship of some kind on Sunday, the group asked our local guide if we could worship with him at his home church. He seemed a bit surprised but agreed and made the arrangements.  His church was a contemporary, light-filled Roman Catholic structure built on an ancient site and beautiful, melodic voices were already singing as we entered the sanctuary.  

We were welcomed with great warmth and we began to quiet our hearts for worship. No one in our tour group could understand Arabic, the language spoken in the Jordanian church, but we could follow the progression of the service.  Since the hymns all had several verses, we could eventually join in with a bit of quiet humming or attempt to vocalize part of the refrain.  

We somehow knew when the Lord’s Prayer began and were able to pray along silently with the rest of the worshippers.  The final hymn sounded like one of praise and we could feel the joy within it.  Our group left with a sense of having been filled with God’s grace and love, incorporating this special experience into our faith journeys.

Sacred music has its own language and message wherever it is shared.  It knows no boundaries or limits.  It reaches deeply into our hearts whenever we hear it, sing it, or play it.  For this we give God praise. 

Prayer:

Loving God, fill our hearts with your boundless love that reaches around the world.  Help us always to nurture our connection to you, whether it be through music and singing, through worship, or through praise.  We open our hearts to you.  AMEN.

This devotion was written by Jenny Green and read by Susan Daves.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.