When the Song Becomes Your Story

"O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth." 

Psalms 96:1

I've been stuck on "songs" lately it seems. Songs are a language all their own though. They touch the heart in special ways. People write songs, people sing songs. Songs can inspire, bring joy, conviction, and hope.

It's something to stand in a church service and lift your voice in praise with a congregation. We join together and sing unto the Lord on a regular basis. It's part of my life! I've been singing to the Lord since I was just a child. I remember riding along as we'd go to and from church, learning to sing harmony with my family. We'd sing. Dad was the choir director. (Mom played piano.) It's what we did! A way of life.  As I aged, different singing experiences presented themselves...and I just kept on singing.

There's something to be said about singing though: it's one thing to sing a song. It's an entirely different thing to sing your story. 

One of my favorite songs we sing at church today is entitled "Worth". (It's written by Anthony Brown if you'd like to YouTube it.) I thought I'd share the lyrics with you:

 You thought I was worth saving

So, You came and changed my life
You thought I was worth keeping
So, You cleaned me up inside
You thought I was to die for
So, You sacrificed your life
So, I could be free
So, I could be whole
So, I could tell everyone I know

Then there are other songs I could share with you.

What a Friend We Have In Jesus

It's My Desire

How Great Thou Art
I Give You Jesus
I Surrender All

...and many more!
 

When you're all alone, feeling hopeless and desperate for help, the song "What a Friend We Have In Jesus" becomes a song of desperation, of hope. You sing it from a deep heart level. When you're feeling worthless and you just want to know someone loves you, the song "Worth", which I shared above, takes on a deeper meaning. After you've experienced God in an amazing way, "How Great Thou Art" can be sung with such conviction! 

 

"And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, 

and fear, and shall trust in the LORD."  

Psalms 40:3

You see, as I've grown older and have had different experiences and trials in my life, as I've awakened to the goodness of the Lord who has extended His grace and mercy to me, these songs have taken on a completely different meaning  to me. They have become heart songs. They have become part of my story.

When a song becomes your story, it becomes new. You no longer just sing it. It becomes real. You pour your heart into it - and it pours out of you. It becomes your testimony! There's something to be said about that type of singing. It touches the singer's heart. It touches the heart of others. It also touches the heart of God. 

Think about it...what song are you singing differently these days? Do you have a new song? Sing it out, my friend.