Photos 4:  Portable Keyboards/Hymn Singing

WE GIVE THANKS FOR ORGAN MUSIC

MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH YOU,

THE ORGANIST

It can play so softly that it's barely audible at all, then, in the next moment, it's so loud it shakes the walls -- you can feel it in your gut.  Only one thing in the world of music can make this happen.  There's nowhere else on the face of the earth where one human being can be seated at an instrument and have this amount of tonal spread and this amount of power.

Those who peruse this website are likely to wonder about the generous space they find devoted to explaining and understanding what it means to follow God in this life, rightly divide His Word, and be saved by grace through faith in Christ and the work of His cross.  They may feel it detours organists away from the subject at hand, that it has nothing really to do with organ playing.

Oh.  yes.  it.  does.

THE STORY OF BEING ABLE TO BE SAVED

BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH IN THE SON OF GOD

NEEDS TELLING.

IT'S THE ORGANIST'S JOB

TO TELL IT IN MUSIC

Scripture teaches that three deadly enemies are poised to prey upon our precious life:  our own sinful human nature, this world and its ways, and Satan the devil who cunningly employs the first two to keep us from getting busy for God.  He isn't going to bother any worship congregation that has no missionary or evangelistic zeal to it.  Why? ... because they're doing just what he wants them to -- to go to sleep while being religious.  God hates that kind of stuff.  And Satan just loves it!  The devil doesn't care how much our congregations sing, how many sermons it hears, or how much the sound of the organ is used as long as they don't do anything about it.  The devil's catchphrase for church-goers is, "Just don't get busy for God -- stay busy with something else."  It's the absolute business of ALL twice born believers in the body of Christ, including its musicians, to make their own individual contributions to obeying the commission of the Lord Jesus, to inform others of and share with them the gospel of grace, and to have genuine concern for lost people who are dying and headed for the default position of hell.  We who are saved are enlisted in a conflict between two spiritual kingdoms at war with each other.  It isn't about simply sitting around being friends.  No.  Not according to Scripture.

This website's home page has already touched upon the idea that true worship stems from a sincere heart and reverence for God, and that when worship becomes focused more on musical performers and performing rather than spiritual connection it indicates a departure from authentic spirituality.  But until those who are called to this special ministry go to God, offer the prayer of faith, and are given the knowledge of what's in store for them above the clouds in terms of an instrument, how it's controlled, or the wondrous place and office it occupies in the halls of heaven, they cannot even begin to imagine what God has prepared up ahead for them.  Once a student's interest in organ playing leads them to wade into this vast ocean of learning it's inevitable that they find themselves beginning to sense -- rather sooner than later -- this conjoining between theology and performing at the organ, that it all fits together.  They then do more than simply admire the craftsmanship and workings of this musical wonder that has them forever captured, how it's built, how it creates sound, and the beauty and majesty of the music written for it; they also start crediting it for reflecting in its design and purpose the Light of an Eternal Mind.

They are left in profound reverence and awe of

  THE God Instrument.  

Once someone experiences what it's like to sit at a large pipe organ, draw its stops, press its keys in spread chords on the full organ with double pedal, and be exposed up close and personal to its sonic and visceral sensations, they're never the same again.  Our ears, our eyes, our hearts, ALL are opened up in ways not possible by any other means.  Being involved in the production of music feeds us, nourishes us, brings us great joy, and connecting with listeners in this way is always a plus.  At some churches in this present evil world however the situation is not a simple one for people called to and ordained by God for

the music ministry.

By far the biggest obstacle facing them

in carrying out their God-given calling

is religion itself.

GOD LOOKS AT THE HEART.

RELIGION HAS NEVER SAVED ANYBODY.

[THE PEOPLE WHO HAD JESUS NAILED TO A CROSS

WERE RELIGIOUS.]

PEOPLE NEED TO RECEIVE JESUS CHRIST,

NOT RELIGION.

Many people, for a variety of reasons, feel like God isn't very much in the churches these days.  A great many claim they haven't found love, acceptance, fellowship in suffering, or unity there.  Some are even reporting being treated a bit unfriendly if not snubbed altogether with no greeting.  From their experience it's been all about religion, what the church can get instead of what it can share, and more about status, position, clicks, and ear-tickling instead of reaching out to a lost and dying world -- all of which is in gear with the expected great falling away prophesied for the end time in which we live, a time when people will not endure sound doctrine.  

With song books and wood pews taken away and replaced with teaching from ipods and screens with the lights turned off, congregants are understandably uncomfortable and feel like they aren't being nourished in the fullness of God's Word but are simply being entertained and played.  In church after church they find pastors in this age of grace promoting either their own or the official denominational stance of worldly compromise and tolerance when it plainly contradicts the Word of God.  This includes such things as a) the prosperity gospel [claiming that every Christian should be prosperous financially and physically and that any hardships encountered indicates insufficient faith], b) legalism [extra rules for salvation such as speaking in tongues, water baptism, prescribed penances, etc., as if salvation can be earned], and c) hypergrace & love [preaching only God's love without acknowledging His holiness, even falsely asserting that love is the God we seek], among other things.  For those would-be new congregants who regularly walk with God in Bible reading and prayer, have investigated the original meanings of biblical words and passages, and are clear on the scriptural doctrine of salvation by faith, this is a complete turn-off.      

Any gathering of the body of Christ today is supposed to be a place where the Spirit of Christ is there, reflecting His peace and the presence of the Spirit of truth in the hearts of all twice born believers present.  And yet, the way so many churches operate today, supposedly in His name, they give a potential new congregant a thousand reasons to quit attending.  As for the music situation, the major denominations may still have an organ of some kind in working condition, but most, sad to say, do not have an organist.  More often than not they rely upon a piano to accompany any live singing.  As for the listeners, a fair number of them really do not prefer the "pop concert" swing-and-sway atmosphere which now pervades the church music scene.  High-tech assisted worship, for them, is unnecessarily complicated.  They want it simple, not so communication glutted, easy to figure out and easy to follow -- something that doesn't get them lost.  This means a simple hymn book with music lines, a single song-leader, and plain accompaniment as opposed to the most up-to-date sights and sounds of a modern technology-glutted, communication-glutted society.

  To hear so many congregants talking today the well-meaning rock band performing all kinds of special music of their own, while all well and good, is, frankly, wasted on them in a worship setting.  They agree that there is plenty of room for musical creativity, excellence, and talent, but they also admit that it should work with and not compete with assembled voices uplifted in worship.  They want to hear ALL of God's people united in praise, not merely the praise band singers.  They don't want to be forced to stumble through or silently listen to unfamiliar music and words they have trouble following while gazing at lines flashing across a Jumbotron screen.  They want to KNOW the music so they can sing it from their hearts.  Even those reticent souls in the pews who really don't care to share their opinions and hardly ever open their mouths at all, not even to join in saying "Amen," see it this way.

These trends have pushed many an organist, whether deliberately or not, out of the picture right along with the traditional hymn book.  The current so-called shortage-of-organists can be attributed in large part to the concert atmosphere that's developed and the fact that church offerings, for the most part, have been dwindling.  Consequently fewer young people are undertaking the study of an instrument which consumes a great deal of their time and energy to develop and then maintain the several skill sets involved but doesn't provide commensurate financial return on their investment.  There are some organists out there, of course, who make a full-time living from their music with a pay scale which provides for all of their needs, health coverage, and other considerations, but it's reasonable to venture that these would not be in the majority.  The best case scenario for the majority seems to be relying on doing something else for their primary income which will allow them to pursue their music ministry with a mind free of undue concern.  It's actually more accurate to say that there's an acute shortage of churches willing and able to pay their organists as trained and qualified tradespeople and which haven't abandoned their organs to fall into disrepair and disuse.

In those churches where the pastoral team has decided that organ music was discouraging people from attending because it was too "old-fashioned," the need for the traditional organist at those locations has been eliminated altogether.  More recently they seem to be discovering that the reasons why congregants haven't been filling the pews so much lately include such things as personal health and safety issues, fatigue from working regular jobs, family responsibilities, and/or some negative past experience, among other things.  The very misguided disuse of the hymnal and organ in worship has been far more of a hindrance than a help in this respect.  There are probably a very great many people who don't really care whether or not they're singing with an organ, but it's as if hymnals and organs have become the scapegoats for the decline in attendance.  The resulting fallout in education has involved school faculties which seem to be more challenged than ever before to recruit organ students.  Among denominations where organ music and accompaniments are or might still be embraced, there are fewer local churches open than ever before, fewer ministers, fewer congregants, smaller choirs (where there is a choir), greater costs for upkeep of the building and the functioning of worship, and more internal legislation on security, youth, insurance, etc.

While the musical mindset of pastors and worship teams is no longer what it was half a century ago, it still rings true that church services have little to do with what people prefer and everything to do with what they need.  It's still true that when people reverently and routinely come together to hear the Word of God, fellowship with the body of Christ, and sing praises to Him, this points to the use of a type of sacred song that's a) strong in doctrine, b) not mantra or emotionally driven, and c) not filled with repetitive lyrics.  These are foundational conditions, and, in churches where hymnals have been gathered up and are sitting in boxes or stacked in hallways, the ministry there would do well to remember that traditional hymns meet these requisites better than anything else [See blog, Hymns, Parts I-XII].

Hymns are theological statements set to music.

• Hymns serve as a means to teach and reinforce the foundational beliefs of the Christian faith.  Many contemporary songs simply lack the depth and theological richness that hymns provide.  Hymns can help educate and spiritually nourish congregations of all sizes.
• Hymns have connected generations of believers throughout history.  The singing of just one hymn at an appropriate moment, something approved of and encouraged by Jesus Himself (Matt. 26:30, Mark 14:26), can serve as a bridge between the church's past and its present, reminding all participants they are part of a much larger, timeless group which shares unity and continuity in worshiping God.
• Hymns are easy to remember.  Their melodies and lyrics stay with people for a lifetime.  Congregants can carry the messages and lessons contained in hymns throughout their lives, reinforcing their faith.
• Hymns can be a unifying force among a diverse congregation.  They transcend cultural and language barriers and provide an opportunity for people of different backgrounds to worship together.  They are a beautiful expression of unity in Christ among various sundry peoples that gives them a real sense of identity and belonging.
• Hymns can offer a broader musical palette and a sense of balance in worship.  They are flexible, arrangeable, and can accomodate a wide multiplicity of musical tastes and preferences.
• Hymns often carry deep emotional resonance.  Their melodies and lyrics can evoke strong feelings of reverence, joy, comfort, and pleasant memories of departed loved-ones.  They reach deeply into the soul, beckon the unsaved, and provide a safe space for people to express their emotions, a place where they can find solace and healing.
• Hymns can be powerful teaching tools.  They can be and are very often used to instruct and encourage, especially in conjunction with the preaching of sermons.  Many hymns are directly tied to biblical passages and stories, making them valuable teaching aids.
• Hymns preserve a sacred legacy for future generations.  These timeless songs of the church are a way that children and grandchildren have the opportunity to experience the same spiritual heritage that has been passed down to the present generation.    

   While it would be narrow-minded to think that hymn singing out of the hymnal is incapable of joining in praise with other kinds of worship music when congregations gather to offer praise to God, it does provide a great deal of spiritual depth, theological richness, timeless connection, memorability, inclusivity, variety and balance, and emotional resonance while serving as a powerful teaching tool with a living legacy.

There's something else to consider:  just holding a hymnal during worship is important.  Practically speaking, hymn books cannot break down in the middle of a liturgy like technology can.  Musically, they teach -- looking at notes on a page as opposed to just lyrics helps people learn the basics of melodic direction and rhythmic value, giving them the first steps in learning to read music.  Theologically, congregants don't just see what the worship leader has selected but are instead exposed to the full repertoire.  They can turn the page and encounter hymns in other languages, reminding them of the church's diversity.  Seeing old hymns next to newer ones unites them with all believers throughout history.  Hymnals are also symbols of consistency.  Unlike a screen that fades or a paper bulletin which is discarded, they demonstrate that what is being sung is worth keeping around as well as reminding everyone that prayer is continuous and can't be turned off or discarded.  Hymnals are something that can and should be held proudly in the hands.

The fact that congregants have a voice and the organist has an organ which can lead them remains a very dynamic way to enrich the spiritual lives of congregations by maintaining connection with the church's roots, providing a robust theological foundation, reminding people of God's love and grace, and fostering unity and inclusivity while helping to stir souls and draw them closer to God.

NOTE:  By the same token it's also important to admit to the truth that in a faith service where praise songs, hymns, anthems, unaccompanied choir music, or vocal solos are performed in any combination, the Holy Spirit is still present, so, in that sense, under these circumstances, it isn't for man to judge which species of music is "better" than another.  There is value in having a variety of reverent and venerating music available for worship, God is still anointing composers and song writers, and we know that all of our time-honored hymns found in our hymnals were at one time new songs.

That being said, it can be surprising if not alarming to learn of the behind-the-back if not open griping that can sometimes emerge from some of the older members of a congregation against the newer praise music, folks who are claiming in so many words that it is "not liturgical or honorable enough" for "church."

This makes it all the more important for organists/choir directors, worship leaders, and music directors to keep in mind the following:

a) Worship is not a concert but a corporate expression of one's love for the Lord.

b) God loves wondrous variety, He's been inspiring great worship music literally for centuries, and that by confining the music to one style we may be excluding from active participation certain people who are being drawn by the Holy Spirit to be there.

c) New songs and hymns, like all change, are best introduced gradually and carefully, such as by doing one new one a month, then maybe revisiting it every 3-4 months for a year.

d) The text of each song, new or old, always should be examined for biblical and theological truth and not merely for tunefulness, singability, or emotional impact.

e) Worship doesn't take place just in the church building.