The Original Psalmist Was an Angsty Hipster
Much of the church music we sing on Sundays is inspired by the Psalms.
Typically, from a single verse. Typically, from near the end of the Psalm.
The only problem with this approach is that the entire Psalm is the song – written by one of the original songwriters, King David.
And when we pull a single beautiful line from the Psalm, and center a new song around it, we lose all context of the original.
Because often in the Psalms, David expressed doubt. Fear. Anger. Confusion.
Real emotions. The reality of his heart in the midst of the reality of his circumstances. And only after that emotional release – his honesty before God – is he eventually able to return to a realization of the sovereignty of God – the love of God – despite his circumstances. And give us those beautiful one-liners we focus our songs around today.
But we have removed the prelude. The doubt. The fear. The anger. The confusion.
Because those emotions seem inappropriate for Sunday morning. Yet, they are real.
There are those of us who wish our church music would revert back to the glorious hymns of the past. I want to go back much further – to a time when the original Psalmist was writing angsty hipster music – and bring back true outcry to the modern worship experience.
Sticking to Psalms Protects us From Bad Theology
Some churches today only sing songs that lyrically come straight from the Bible. This conviction requires them to stick largely to the Psalms. Whether you agree with their reasoning or not, here’s the big benefit I see with this approach.
Sticking to Psalms protects us from bad theology.
If we’re writing our own songs, we run the risk of being theologically inaccurate. If we take from the Psalms, we’re safe.
The only problem is – the reason the Psalms were such powerful songs was that they directly reflected the current cry of the people. Their situation. Their fears. Their faith.
If we stick only to scripture, the best we can do is find our closest substitute. Mimicking someone else’s prayer-songs, rather than our own.
Selah: Put Pauses Back in Your Church Services
We work really hard on seamless transitions in our church music services. One song feeding perfectly into the next. Ending a song on the first chord of the following. Leaving no awkward space.
But in the process of leaving no awkward space, we also leave no thoughtful space.
In the Psalms, when you see the word, “Selah“, this literally meant to pause and reflect during this instrumental interlude.
You don’t have to have silence, even though you may find that extraordinarily powerful. You can have your synth player hold a pad. But consider giving the congregation some time to think.
Give them some Selah this week. After all, it’s biblical.
No one Uses the Word, “Hosanna”
When’s the last time you used the word “Hosanna” in conversation?
I’m going to guess never. So, why are we using the word in our church songs? Now, I can present an argument for the ‘beauty’ of the word. For the ‘reverence’ of the word. Choosing to use holy phrases to sing of a holy God.
But, in the Psalms (where we’ve hijacked the word) the Psalmist used the word, “Hosanna”, because people used the word “Hosanna”. It was, in itself, a word of great meaning to the Israel community. It meant, “God, save us”.
But, it doesn’t mean that to the modern-day church, because we don’t use the word. And I wonder how many people, if pressed, could even define it? The truth is, we sing it because it sounds ‘holy’. But can a word devoid of meaning really be that?
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