I Have A Confession

A large part of my job at church is leading people in singing during corporate worship on Sunday. I love that part of my job. But I have a confession to make. I don’t listen to a lot of “worship” or “Christian” music. I have never listened to the “Christian” radio station. I am not keeping tabs on the latest worship trends or latest worship hits. I tend to be cynical towards a lot of things that fly under the banner of “Christian” but I am honestly not being cynical here. I just have never been drawn to a lot of what is now called worship music. I have a few artists that I really enjoy, but other than that I have never really gotten too into that world.

Monday morning is father and son time. The past couple of weeks I have started our morning together by playing worship music in the background as we eat breakfast and get ready to go run some errands or go to the park. I have no idea why I began doing this. Maybe because it is the day after Sunday worship, and I still feel churchy and pastoral. Honestly, I don’t know why I started doing it. But an odd thing started to happen this week. I found myself putting worship music on as I was driving around town, working out, or cooking dinner. It was more background noise than intentional listening music.

As I have been playing this music in the background, I have found that I have been a bit more peaceful and joyful. I catch myself thinking about and talking with Jesus a lot more throughout the day. I have no idea if it is because of the worship music or because of some other reason. If anything, it has made me think about Jesus’ words when he said,

The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

As I have been reflecting on my worship music experience and Jesus’ words I have been taking note of what I allow to enter my mind and body. The music I listen to, the shows I watch, the news coverage I consume, the food I eat… it all forms and shapes me into a particular kind of person. I spend so much of my day passively consuming stuff, and it forms me whether I realize it or not.

I have found that as I have accidentally replaced my morning drive podcast with worship music my mind drifts to different and healthier places throughout the day. That is not to say that I don’t enjoy other music, or that I have stopped listening to podcasts. I have just found that a little shift in what I consume has made a pretty large impact on how I interact with the rest of the world around me.

I am not saying we all have to listen to only worship music. That sounds like a horrible idea. But maybe take note of what you are taking in and ask yourself if what you are consuming is forming you into the human you desire to be. With that being said, I am going to go watch The Real Housewives of Orange County with Tanya. I am sure that will not make me a better human.

Grace and peace ‘til we rise in glory.