The Spiritual Power of Music

It was a few weeks ago that Heather Estay was giving an excellent Sunday service announcement for the then upcoming SLC Gala.

I love the way Heather does announcements. She gets the key points across. But she does it in a way that has real humor and panache! She holds the congregation’s attention through the whole announcement — and that is a major accomplishment.

She mentioned that there were several reasons for holding this year‘s Gala including: raising money for SLC; having fun; and this year, honoring our Director of Music, Arts, and Production, Paula Mandella.

Heather noted that this year was the 20th anniversary of Paula coming to Spiritual Life Center. She comically added, “'Oh yeah, we have this wonderful music team' — we can say half taking it for granted.”

Sometimes it takes me talking with my friends back East to remind me how fantastic SLC’s music team really is. I will send a friend back east a link to one of our Sunday services, and my friend will enthusiastically exclaim, “Boy, your music is over the top. It is some of the best I’ve heard at any church!”

“Well, what about the sermon,” I’ll ask?

“It was okay, I guess. But the band and singers were wonderful,” my friend responds.

What I also feel very grateful for is that Paula always sees that the music is advancing and enhancing the theme of the service. She sees that there is a real unity between the music and the spoken word.

A number of months ago I was in a conversation with Paula where she emphasized the spiritual strength of songs and instrumentals. “Music really has the power to take you there,” she said. 

We are so blessed at SLC to have Paula, our soloists, and Soul Light Connection. They make such a difference in every SLC Sunday Experience and in so many other ways throughout the year.

My first church was in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and I will always remember the time when an older member of the congregation came up to me and said, “You know, Rev. Rick, it doesn’t matter whether you go to a very liberal church or a very conservative church. The order of the service is very much the same. The musicians are like the supporting actors leading up to the main event – which is the minister and his sermon.”

He continued: “But when you get to heaven, you’re gonna find out that it’s completely reversed. The minister is the warm-up act and it all leads to the main event, which is Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Merle Haggard.”

With all of the above in mind, a recent post by Cindy Lee, who is an English writer for The Upper Room, caught my attention. “Worries raced inside my mind, and though I wanted to pray, I was unsure of what to say,” she explained.

So instead of traditionally praying, Cindy decided to listen to music, which would relax her mind and help her meditate on God‘s healing love. As she listened to the music, she started to feel calmer.

 “Classical instrumental pieces allowed me to breathe and wait on God, who is more powerful than the problems we endure. The traditional hymns I sang as a child reminded me of my hopes and dreams,” she added.

Songs of praise lifted her spirits and helped her feel closer to the Divine. “Music helped me to focus on God’s love and renew my relationship with God during a challenging time,” she affirmed.

I often get a similar uplift when I am listening to Paula and Soul Light Connection’s music. I apologize for a crummy sports analogy, but often I think that the spoken word can get you down to the 20 yard line. However, it is music that is going to get the ball into the end zone. 

Cindy reminds us that King David found so much hope and comfort in composing the psalms and singing them. Many leading modern biblical scholars question whether David actually wrote the psalms, but there is another truth that Cindy points to. “Even now — thousands of years later — Music has the power to transform people and to connect us to our Creator. I am grateful that God has given musicians and writers the gift to change lives through music,” she says.

I hope that music is at times a key part of your prayer and meditation practices. It is such an important and vital way to deepen our connection with the Divine and realize who we really are.

Many blessings,

Rev. Rick