Medicine of Immortality "It's a cold, and it's a broken, 'Hallelujah!'"

MusicPosted by Rachel on August 3rd, 2011

I am most aware of God’s presence and existence when I am surrounded by music. Whether I am singing, playing, or listening, music speaks to me. It is a language that I feel I’ve always understood, but am still learning and studying every day. It communicates more deeply than a spoken language can.

I don’t feel like a master of music, and I never will. Probably because the more I delve into it, the more I am intimidated and awestruck at how vast it is. It would take more than a few lifetimes to unravel the intricacies, to understand why music speaks to so many people in different ways, and to know how it tells stories that could not be told even on thousands of pages filled with the most beautiful poetry and prose.

I surprise myself when I discover that my tastes only stretch and broaden as I become more exposed to different styles of music. I love the feel of a rock band. That speaks to me. To be caught up in deafening, soul-searching, sweat-drenched rock music—there’s something in my heart that cries along to the beat.

And then there’s the ethereal, peaceful, angelic sound of chant. It comforts me, and I feel love spilling off the tongues of those who chant in worship to God. The sweetness of it makes me eager to taste the sweetness of God in more fullness some day.

Classical music leaves me in awe of the skill, the intricacy, and the dedication of the composers and musicians collaborating to create beauty together. I see that God has created a world with order, and we mimic His orderly beauty in our music.

I could go on and on. There is something about the drum-beat in African music along with the purity and joy in the voices of those who sing along to it that makes my heart leap. There is an untamed beauty in Celtic music that makes me feel like a sun-drenched, warm breeze is brushing gently across my skin as I close my eyes and listen to it. Music, in so many forms, is nothing short of a gift from God, and the evidence for a Creator who loves beauty.

“The aim and final end of all music should be none other than the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul.”—Johann Sebastian Bach