In my last post I talked about a Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir song that we also sing in my church choir. “Thou Oh Lord” is a powerful song of praise and proclamation of God’s goodness but it also happens to be a great song in its own right.
The older I get the more I realize how important music is to me as vehicle for praise and as a way to set my thoughts towards worshiping God. These days I often listen to something inspirational as I eat breakfast and as a way to lead into my Quiet time. The artists and music styles I choose are varied and diverse but they all have one thing in common. They all point the listener’s thoughts towards God and knowing Him better.
Good influences are extremely important to the Christian and if we are to practice what Paul wrote about in Colossians 3:2 where he said “Set your mind on things above, not on things of the earth” then we need to surround ourselves with things that inspire, bless and teach us more about God and His ways. Because music is so important and so influential to me I strive to listen to Christian focused music on a daily basis as part of my walk with the Lord. Doing so greatly blesses me and also shields me from many of the negative ideas and emotions found in popular music today.
That’s not to say that I listen to 100% Christian music, because I don’t. I just make sure that the secular music that I choose doesn’t distract me with bad language or imagery and ideals that are not pleasing to God. Fortunately there’s an abundance of good Christian artists out there singing and making music in all kinds of genres. I encourage you to take a look at the music that you listen to and ask some tough questions about how it is influencing you and if it is promoting a Godly life. If your music isn’t encouraging you in that way then use the power of the internet and do some searching for some Christian based music in the style that you like or visit your local Christian bookstore where you can often sample various artists’ work and talk to folks who are familiar with the material.
To finish this post up I’m going to post another video that is still completely praiseworthy yet resides in a completely different genre than “Thou Oh Lord”. This one is loud, fast and completely awesome and I hope you enjoy it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unbdMFgDEiM
[…] day that I don’t have a song playing in my head at least some of the time. As I’ve previously written about, I enjoy music from many genres and in many styles. Music energizes me and lifts my […]