Songs of worship, by Nicki Copeland

One of the things I have been missing most during the lockdown and the ongoing restrictions is singing with my brothers and sisters in church services. There is something about corporate sung worship that I really love.

Music and singing help me to draw close to God. I love to sing about my love for him, to worship him in that way. The right tune combined with the right words can be truly awesome!

Worship, of course, is more than just singing. Worship is what we do with the whole of our lives. Everything we do, say and think should be an expression of our worship to God. But there is something special about sung worship – something powerful about gospel truths put to music.

At an online prayer meeting last week, we read together the words of a well-known worship song. (Not quite the same as singing them, but I wasn’t about to do that on Zoom!) It led into a beautiful time of prayer and worship. 

Now, of course, song lyrics do not replace Scripture. That goes without saying. But singing words of Scripture set to music is also very powerful (and it’s a great way to memorise words of Scripture too!).

Songwriting isn’t something I’ve done much of. My daughter, though, has written song lyrics, one set of which has been put to music, and we sing it sometimes at church. Knowing her as I do, and some of the things she has wrestled with over the years, it makes it so very special, as the words have come from her heart and speak of her love for God. It’s personal. 

When we sing worship songs, we’re joining our hearts and our voices with the songwriters and our fellow Christians through the ages and across the world. Whether we’re joining our voice with thousands at a Christian festival, or we’re on our own in the car singing along to a CD, our worship brings pleasure to God. Our prayers and our worship even have an effect in the spiritual realm. It shifts things for us too, just like it did for King Saul when David played for him (1 Samuel 16:23). And as it did for the psalmists, enabling them to transfer their focus to God and his goodness, rather than on their own difficult circumstances.

Words have great power – songs, poems, testimony, teaching. I’m so grateful to those who share their words with us in this way, enabling us to join our voice with theirs in worship to our Lord and Saviour.

Nicki Copeland is a freelance writer, speaker, copy editor and proofreader – and loves anything to do with words. She is the author of Losing the Fig Leaf and Less than Ordinary? She is also responsible for the day-to-day running of Instant Apostle publishers. When she has the luxury of some free time, she can invariably be found with a book in one hand and some chocolate in the other.