It’s Sunday morning. Last evening we made the call to call off worship services in the morning. The weather forecast indicated we were going to be experiencing a good snow storm. As dawn breaks, the snow is coming down in small flakes. The winds are blowing. Visibility is about 700 feet.
I began this morning, like most, making coffee. I’m a big fan of Michigan Cherry, or Traverse City Cherry - something in that flavor range that combines cherry and good coffee. On a recent trip to Ohio, Anna and Asa stopped at a Meijer store in Indiana and picked up several pounds. It tastes so good on a morning when the ambiance is filled with snow, wind, the darkness before the dawn - a good storm.
In addition to coffee, I longed for some time in worship. In the summer of 2018 Schweitzer had a preaching series on the Psalms. The creative team decided they would turn each Psalm into a song, and together they would create a musical album: "Psalms Greatest Hits" (available on iTunes, the Google Play store, and the Schweitzer App). They gathered a great team of vocalists and instrumentalists around them and began a major work. The style of the music is broad; there is rock-a-billy, techno, notes of Chicago, and a some Ska along the way. Musically, there is something for everyone, unless you are a rock anthem fan, if so, you’ll have to wait for another album.
Listening this morning took me beyond the music - as impressive as it is. The texts of the songs draw me in.
Psalm 8 and Psalm 148 both reflect the cosmic and personal wonder in God and desire to worship.
Psalm 23 is there, reminding us of the Good Shepherd who leads us, and, who doesn’t live in a moment when we need someone walking alongside us, guiding us, leading us!
Psalm 37, a plea for justice, gains the voice of a very fun guy in Taylor Likes. The dissonance between the text, music, and voice do not strike me as making justice not essential. Instead, it makes me think that a plea for justice can arise from happy voices. This is a missing virtue in almost every circle I’ve been a part of. Psalm 88 is a haunting plea for God to appear in the midst of great sorrow. Sometimes the only voice we hear is ours.
Psalm 131 invites us to wait on God. On this day, when not much is moving or going to be moving, waiting is a an opportunity to see the Lord work. Somehow too, when we wait on God, and do it in God’s arms, in God’s house, with God’s people, we become like a contented baby - waiting with hope, now and always.
This album speaks - it’s creative, beautiful, filled with variety, and singable.
There’s one more thing that stood out to me as I listened. Unlike most songs I’ve heard in life, I know these vocalists better than any other I’ve known before. I know a bit of their story. While the text is all scripture, as it springs from their voice the text is new, in them, for them. Knowing the vocalist(s) one can see how the Psalms are embodied, incarnated if you will. Their faith is reflected in the songs, and God’s presence is being reflected back to them. Here in this album is a living witness - similar to the standing stones pillars Israel would put up to remind themselves of God’s work on their behalf and how the people trusted God - this album calls for faith, trust, and worship, on a stormy day, in the midsts of other storms.
May the Lord, who is the Good Shepherd, be your shelter and leader, now and always. May joy fill your voice. May the best coffee overflow in your cup. May snow fall deep and beautiful, to help us rest and enjoy the fair beauty of God.
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