Singing with spirit and understanding

Ephesians 5:18-19 “And be not drunk with wine wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.”

As I think about this passage, the words of one of our great songs come to mind, “Sing and Be Happy”. The chorus rings out such a beautiful message: Sing and be happy, Press on to the goal, Trust Him who leads you, He will keep your soul, Let all be faithful, Look to Him and pray, Lift up your voice and praise Him in song, Sing and be happy today”.

Using our ability to sing is an avenue through which we express vocally our thankfulness for the many blessings God bestows upon us, both temporal and spiritual. We should praise God and through singing our hearts rejoice and declare praise to him for all of his marvelous blessings, temporal as well as spiritual (Ps. 9:1-2). God is our source of strength, our shield and defender, our comforter, our refuge and salvation (Ps. 28:7; Ps 46:1; Isa. 12:2; Heb. 6:18). Our hearts should be overflowing with joy, joy that will result  in singing praises to him (Ps. 57:7). With our affections fixed firmly and steadfastly on God we will count it a great privilege to engage in singing and making melody in our hearts to the Lord.

 Singing with spirit and understanding (1 Cor. 14:15) will impart to us strength and courage that will lift us up to greater heights of love and devotion to God. When we sing with grace in our hearts we are employing one of the great ways to teach and admonish each other (Col. 3:16). “O Love That Will Not Let Me Go—I rest my soul in thee” (Rom. 8:35-39). “My Jesus Knows Just What I Need—My Jesus knows when I am burdened, He knows just how much my heart can bear” (1 Cor. 10:13; Ps. 94:17; Heb. 4:13-16; 1 Pet 5:7; Ps. 121:1-8). “Each Step I Take—Each step I take my Saviour goes before me, And with His loving hand He leads the way” (Ps.23:1-3; John 10:27; 1 Pet. 21; Heb; 13:5).

Psalms 104:33—“I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.” I love this passage because it expresses exactly how I feel as it regards singing. As I sing, the words that come forth are not always on key, they may not have that perfect pitch and I am sure that sometimes those around me will shake their heads and wonder but I don’t sing to please man.  I sing to please and praise my God and when I do so with a heart of understanding and sincerity, I know that I am making a joyful noise unto God (Ps. 95:1). I only pray that it is the same with each of you.

Charles Hicks