When I was in high school, my favorite class was Sociology. The class gave me an opportunity to take the things in which I had interest and use them in the assignments given. One such assignment gave me the opportunity to discuss my greatest interest (at the time) which was music. We were allowed a report on any subject we chose. I chose to do my article on the topic of “Music’s Effect on Individuals.” The report covered issues such as: Columbine, the effects of music on a person, and if the two were directly responsible. Recently, a brother in Christ quoted James 5:13 which put a remembrance of the report in my mind.
“Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms” (James 5:13). The point he was bringing to the group was, “Do you take the time to sing praise to God daily, not just in worship?” It was an interesting statement because we do have a command to sing before God during services. These are set forth in the scripture but do we take time to sing praises to our God outside of services?
It is proven that every genre of music will have an effect on the human body. One study proved that Heavy Metal will increase the heart rate, speed of breath, and make one more aggressive. It will also plant angry emotions in an otherwise normal person. Before anyone jumps on the “Heavy Metal is from Satan” bandwagon, it has also been proven that Rap creates stronger emotions of anger than Metal. Those who listen to country are more likely to commit suicide than those who do not. Classical music relaxes one’s mind and puts it more in the mood for study. It has also been proven that those who listen to Slow Jazz experience less post surgery pain. These are just a few facts about the effects of music on the human body.
That being said, this is type of music which we listen to throughout the week. We generally sing “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” two days out of the week. We may sing two to three songs on Wednesday night and twelve or so songs over the course of a Sunday. Compare that to how often we listen to other type of music. Am I saying that these other forms of music are inherently sinful? No. While we should listen to music which is without foul language or that which does not contain harmful messages, it is not wrong to listen to these genres. The point that I am trying to make is this: If music affects the body in different ways and this is what we bombard ourselves with on a weekly basis, what type of mind do we have in worship? Will someone who listens to metal or rap have an angry mind? Will someone who listens to country be at services with a saddened personality? What if we gave time to sing to our God throughout the week? These songs are intended to draw our minds into the mindset of proper worship. If we took the time to sing praises to our God throughout the week, would that not affect my attitude during worship? Would that not help me with my worship toward God?
We learn the words to numerous secular songs which we can perform by heart. Why not learn songs of praise and draw ourselves closer to God.
What are you singing throughout the week? Why not add a few songs of praise to the playlist?
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