Music memories

Growing up as a child of the 1960s I still love much of the music from that time period. My favorite radio stations on Sirius XM are set to music from the 60s and 70s as well as Classic Vinyl. Often, listening to a song reminds me of where I was when I heard it back then. For instance, when I hear sitting on the "Dock of the Bay" I'm reminded of a cafeteria at Great Lakes Naval Station where I often ate lunch while going to A school. Every time I hear "Ode to Billie Joe" I think of a little restaurant just off the Navy base in Bremerton, Washington. Our ship was undergoing repairs, and I would stop in that restaurant for a cup of coffee just before returning to the ship from liberty. Back then a quarter would buy six songs on the jukebox, and that was one of the songs I would always select. Many other songs bring back vivid memories of places, people and good memories.

The same is true of songs of faith. This is why I always fear when churches get involved in music wars. Many churches believe they need to throw out the great hymns of the faith and fire up a loud band to attract new people into the church. I actually visited a church one time that had boxes of ear plugs for people who needed them during the worship service.

Before I continue let me clearly state that I have no problem with modern worship music. Some of it is excellent, theologically sound, and helps lead people into a spirit of worship. I fully understand how different music appeals to different people. I believe it was Rick Warren who said that once a church determines the style of music it will use in worship it has also determined the people it wants to reach.

My problem is when churches decide to throw out the old for the new without considering how that decision impacts the people who have supported those churches for decades. Some of the hymns bring back very meaningful memories to the saints. A song may remind them of the day they accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. It might be a song that inspired and ministered to them during a difficult time in their lives. Songs might remind them of times when their mother would sing them to her children. For a church to just do away with such songs shows disrespect for those memories, and it shows how they don't understand that those hymns also lead people in the worship of God.

While some churches do a good job of blending their worship music my experience has been that many do not. As the saying goes: They just make everybody mad half the time. It seems that it's better to offer two worship services, one with traditional music and one with some other style of music. Smaller churches will balk at the suggestion noting that they don't have a handful attending the service anyway. It seems foolish for them to even consider a second service, and that would be true if the second service was a repeat of the first one. However, if the other service had a different flavor in an effort to reach new people then it makes sense to do it. Yes, it will be a challenge to find people to lead a different service, and it might take time to build up the attendance in that service, but who said serving as a leader in a church was supposed to be easy?

Dance with the one who brought you is a reminder to not forget those who made the present a reality. Do not neglect your senior saints and their need for valid worship opportunities in an effort to try to be contemporary. Honor their memories as you attempt to help other create memories of their own.