Today's Study...

Read the following Bible passage, then answer the short questions. Consider the practical suggestions at the end of the study.

19. speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;

20. always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;

1. In these two verses, Paul gives emphasis to singing. How big a part of your own life is singing? What kinds of singing do you enjoy? What kinds of music do you like to listen to?

 

2. In the two verses above, for what kinds of singing is Paul cheerleading?

 

Music is one of the truly great gifts of God. Musical expression touches us in ways that the spoken word simply does not. It affects the mind and the emotions. Music lodges so deeply in our psyche that when melodies we haven’t heard in years are replayed, we can instantly hum along or sing along.

Music affects us. Watch a group of young people at a rock concert. They are affected. Watch people at a hoe-down. The country music affects them and as the music plays they are freed to dance with abandon. When the carefully-crafted tune marries the truths of God’s Word, Christians are affected, too. They are moved to want to trust God, to obey God, to live for God.

Porn strugglers should try applying what the advertising world takes for granted. Music changes the way we think and live. We can hardly think of the jingle, "You deserve a break today" without humming it, and our next thought it to get in the car and head to McDonald’s! What if your mind was filled with Scripture songs and praise music and spiritual songs and God-honoring hymns? It would change you. You might even find the icy grip of pornography losing its hold on you to the warm embrace of God’s grace you hear in the music. Let the music begin!