February 20th - Psalm 98:1

Psalm 98:1 Sing a new song to the LORD, for he has done wonderful deeds. His right hand has won a mighty victory; his holy arm has shown his saving power! I love the fact that God’s people through thousands of years have enjoyed singing. The psalmist had a very clear reason for encouraging people to sing: God’s salvation. Throughout his dealings with his people, he had shown them his ability to save, supremely when he led them out of slavery in Egypt. After 400 years in that land, God set them free in the most dramatic way. Nothing has changed. Salvation should spur us into singing today. Salvation never changes because God has always been in the business of setting people free from sin, guilt and lifelessness, but the way in which that salvation is experienced will be unique for every individual. I love hearing the testimonies of other Christians, and what always strikes me is that each is a one-off. God comes to us as individuals and meets us in the specific context of our lives, so there is endless variety to the ways in which we encounter him. As a consequence, we always need to be looking for new songs to sing to the Lord. There is nothing necessarily wrong with the old songs, but the creativity of God’s Spirit encourages every generation to look for new ways of addressing their praise to God. The ways in which churches sing to God these days varies enormously. There are some churches that only ever sing hymns led by an organ, and others that only ever sing songs that have been written during the last few years to the accompaniment of a band. We should embrace and enjoy every form of worship because the different styles of hymns and songs reflect the rich diversity of the Church and remind us of the need for every kind of person to celebrate the salvation which God generously offers to us. Question How important is singing in your Christian life? Prayer Lord God, I thank you that you have given me something to sing about. I praise you for your gift of salvation to me. Amen