"The Weekly Word"

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            Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, singing Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God! -Colossians 3:16 

               What’s my favorite hymn? Do I have to answer that? I’m a musician, so I could easily say, I like them all! But you know, we’re all musicians in that regard right? Even if we can’t all play music, we can all enjoy it. But I promise, I won’t beg off answering this question. My favorite probably still is Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing. I just feel the strength of God shining in those words. However, a close second is Horatio Spafford’s song, It is well! 

               In fact, they are almost tied in my book. I mean, the fount of every blessing makes me truly feel, all is well! And therefore, the peace of Christ rules in my heart in a way I just cannot describe when those hymns play, or a congregation sings them. But wait, who am I kidding, any hymn singing congregational wise just moves my soul to tears. The collective voices of people joined together in praise staggers me, puts me seemingly at the precipice of heaven! Somehow, when people sing in unison or in harmony, I feel transported to another worldly place where I sometimes can’t even articulate where I’m at or what I’m doing. 

               Yes, sometimes I’ll shake. Often tears will roll. A smile naturally springs to my face. God truly is working in my heart when I hear music of choirs or congregations, and I imagine the heavenly choir of angels linked with the earth’s perfect harmony for even a few moments in an amazing composition and narthex of beauty! 

               That’s the kind of peace we are called to have in life. We all have those happy places. Those moments we’re so thankful we can’t even speak. We all have those times, those passions where we’re transported to seemingly a place not where I’m standing, but somewhere special beyond what I can see! 

               Our verse today calls us to sing those psalms, hymns and spiritual songs possessing that peace of Christ however we can, whenever we can. And the middle part of the verse which I didn’t include calls each of us to remind others when they so easily forget how thankful we should be, that we can have any of this, do any of this, and even be on this great earth to experience all of this anyway! 

               So let’s not, this week forget to sing the songs when perhaps even we ourselves are not feeling all that peaceful. Let’s remind ourselves to have that gratitude even as we remember our own loss or help someone else through a certain loss! And together, let us remember, the peace of Christ will rule in our hearts and allow us to feel transported to places far beyond what we can see or imagine. 

    Yes indeed, because of the fount of every blessing, 

it truly is well with our soul! 

To God be the glory 

Pastor Brandon