This weekend, we welcome a new addition to our pews, which we sit in and stand in front of for a relatively short period in the grand scheme of our day-to-day living. And yet, in that precious glimpse of time, we hope for spiritual nourishment, enough of a hope-jolt to get us through the next set of days, a renewed outlook on ourselves and the world, an opportunity to give thanks and praise to God for whatever blessings come to mind that particular worship instance, and more. One way we Lutherans tend to believe for all of those expectations (and then some) to be fulfilled is through the music, whether an organ, piano, guitar, drum, voices, or whatever else.
Over the centuries, the church has been thoroughly blessed not just with incredibly talented musicians, but those who can put the actual notes to paper for others to play and sing all over the world. Granted, as we have gradually moved to more digital means for ease on a variety of fronts (including cost and environmental/Creation conservation), I still have my moments of awe when glancing over to the hymnals on my shelf. They are almost considered artifacts now in the scope of modern music, and the way that art is shared, including in the church. One was published in 1941, another in 1958, and then 1978.
Some of the hands that held those collections of songs were my grandparents and I’m sure numerous other random pew-filling, die-hard, stubborn-as-all-get-out, joy-filled, Jesus-loving Lutherans (or not) from the last 85 years. There’s something rather awe-inspiring and even holy about that: to consider that “cloud of witnesses” who passed down those near sacred pages that encouraged us to sing boldly, even if not always perfectly. And because we Lutherans adore the music for our spiritual nourishment and more; yes, we’ll sing the hymns sung by our grandparents and long before them, but we don’t mind (well…sometimes we don’t) adding a few to our repertoire with the never-ending gifting of the Holy Spirit on those with the artistic talent to put the musical notes of compassion and grace and mercy to pages.
With that in mind, this upcoming weekend, our latest addition to the near holy collection of our musically-entrenched history will be All Creation Sings. We are thoroughly grateful for the anonymous members who contributed to them being added to our pews, where we sit and stand from for worshiping this God who has been there through all the decades of the ones who graced those spots before us. That isn’t to say everyone will need to use the hymnals, as we can do so from digital screens well enough. But, every once in a while, it might be helpful for a quick glance to the front pages of it for a prayer that hits just the right spot at that moment in our faith journey: perhaps one about financial difficulty, or one of recognizing despair, or for those to enter hospice care. Or to turn to the hymns in the back, as they can very well serve as devotions themselves for whatever we bring into a sanctuary space.
In the end, we give thanks to God that the music has not stopped from being inspired and written and played and sung and finding a way to still reach us all, further impacting our discipleship. We give thanks amidst all the life difficulties and sometimes overwhelming despair from world events and realities, that we can still collectively lift our voices out with joy and hope. We give thanks that there’s more than enough reasons to sing to the rafters and well, well beyond. We give thanks that another rendition will be added to our treasured musical history: another reminder that “All Creation [Still] Sings!” Thanks be to God!
In Christ,
Pastor Brad