Hymns and Spiritual Songs

My congregation assumes that I know absolutely nothing about music and I help perpetuate that widely held belief. The less they think I know about anything, the less they expect of me. Fact is, by my choice, most people generally believe me to be a minimally functioning adult. I have discovered that if people find out you can do something, they expect you to do it.

It was early in life that I learned that lowered expectations were to my advantage. So, when I tell you that I played the guitar for about 20 years, played in a garage band during college and sang in the church choir and the select chorus during high school; just keep it to yourself. I also studied hymnology in seminary, but that wasn't really music. The congregation enjoys thinking I am ignorant about certain things and since they assume I can't carry a tune in a bucket, I don't have to do a bunch of work in the music ministry. Thus, many folks feel superior to me and I don't have to take on another ministry in the church. It works out for all of us.

If you have been paying much attention to the church culture over the past couple of decades you are aware of the worship wars that have raged in many church. People in our churches have been choosing up sides and smelling armpits over styles of worship for a long time. Which is best? Which is right? Which is holy? Which is pleasing to God? Of course, the reality in all of this is that the wars have not been really been about rightness and holiness. The wars have been about matters of taste. We fighting Christians (Sounds like a football team, doesn't it?) are much too much in denial and way too tightly wrapped on our righteousness to ever believe that we are fighting over matters of taste and opinion. We love to fight but we hate to look shallow. So we deliver our arguments with high sounding spiritual rhetoric, positioning ourselves on the side of God (Like God cares about our goofy little opinions.), and surrounding ourselves with only like minded people. And then we battle over whether we should sing hymns or praise choruses, if we should use an organ or a keyboard, are drums to be allowed in the sanctuary, should we or should we not use preprinted liturgy, are prayers better if they have been written down or must they be spontaneous, what is the proper attire for a worshipper, must the preacher wear a robe, and the list of things to be disagreeable about goes on and on.

Before I continue I must confess… I don't care. I love most of the old hymns. I love most of the newer praise choruses. I could not possibly care less what one wears to worship – as long as it isn't distracting. I have seen some women wear outfits that were not conducive to my thinking holy thoughts while attempting to worship and some men wear outfits that just flat gag me. Gentlemen, I realize you think you are gorgeous but please cover up the legs. What is appropriate on the golf course or to hang out at home is just a little more than I want to have to look at during worship. I like wearing a robe to preach just because I don't have to worry if my fly is down while I am standing up in front of a crowd. I do miss my pulpit but I can live without it.

I have heard both clergy and laity alike carry on that all hymns are superior to the modern praise music and others pontificate that real worship doesn't happen until the praise choruses start. They all sound like braying jackasses to me. There are several hymns that I manage to muddle through that are way too difficult to sing and understand. Why, I wonder, if they were written to be sung in church, are they written in such an unsingable key? And some of the theology in many of the great hymns of the church is abysmal. "This is My Father's World." No it's not. He gave it to us and we have been screwing around with it ever since. Don't blame this mess on God.

I could rave on about hymns for a while but I don't want you to think I don't like them. What got me thinking about hymns and praise choruses happened this past Sunday during worship. We were singing one of my favorite praise songs when it occurred to me that I really like most of that song. I like all of that song except for one little line. Unfortunately, as we are apt to do when singing praise choruses, we sang that line over and over and over and over and over and over again. Singing it repeatedly really got on my nerves and when something is on my nerves, worshipping pretty much goes out the window for me.

The song I am referring to is "Let My Words be Few." Perfect for me. I think we all talk too much – about everything. We talk too much about God and don't do enough about having God in our lives and letting God direct our lives and change our lives. The song says, "I stand in awe of you;" which is exactly right. "You are God and heaven and here I am on earth." I love that line. You are God and I am not and that is the simplest of truths that we all struggle with in various ways everyday. I love that song. And then out of nowhere this line shows up and slaps me up side the head. "Jesus, I am so in love with you."

No I am not. I love Jesus. I appreciate Jesus and what He has done for me. I am awed by Jesus. I want to hang out with Jesus. I worship Jesus. But I am not in love with Jesus. I am in love with my wife – only her. I love my children, I love my siblings, I love my coworkers, I love my church family, I love southern fried chicken, I love watching a really good football or baseball game, l love spring days and summer nights. But the only person or thing I am in love with is my wife Nancy.

Perhaps it is a guy thing. So be it. Even with all of the pressure that has been around for a couple of decades for the entire human race to become more feminine, I still have no inclination to apologize for being a guy. It is probably true that, generally speaking, women are more comfortable singing about being in love with Jesus. I'm not. In love is what happens when a guy and a gal are attracted to each other and all kinds of really exciting physical things happen that I will (Thankfully) not write about in this blog. Needless to say, those things are great and being in love with Nancy is great and I am so in love with her but I am not going to ever be "in love" with Jesus. Please don't make me sing it.

So, there you have it – my own personal little worship war.

Copyright © 2008, William T. McConnell, All Right Reserved