Faith-Filled Music as Prayer

Music stirs our souls

Faith-filled music stirs our souls and draws us deeper into worship, uniting us with the Body of Christ on earth. The rhythm and poetry of music invite us on a beautiful journey of enduring prayer as we learn to pray through our deepest longings in new ways. 

WORSHIP MUSIC AND HYMNS

“Hymns come soaked in a rich history that tells what our brothers and sisters in Christ have been through.” (Amy Sullivan)

We become what we sing (Colossians 3:16), and as we raise our voices, we join with believers across time and around the world, a single voice raised to Jesus. As we sing, we unconsciously memorize words we can access and draw on in difficult times, even years later. Even in the later stages of Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia, patients remember the words to the songs they learned decades earlier.

“The gift of language combined with the gift of song was given to mankind to let him know that he should praise God with both word and music.” (Martin Luther)

HYMNS:

• are rooted in Scripture.
• comfort and encourage us.
• remind us we are not alone in our struggles.
• give us the courage to face challenging situations.
• connect us to God.
• remind us of God’s grace and promises.
• build unity and community among believers.
• express deep and meaningful theology.
• mark spiritual occasions.

WRITE A HYMN OF PRAYER TO THE LORD

Some of the best-loved hymns were written in very simple poetry. Hymn writer Fanny Crosby said, “It may seem a little old-fashioned, always to begin one’s work with prayer; but I never undertake a hymn without first asking the good Lord to be my inspiration.”

Modern hymn writer June Edwards writes, “I begin to write usually when something is bothering me, or I have strong feelings. Often, it is something that is troubling me enough that I’m praying about it … and the resulting hymn is the answer to my praying.”

TIPS TO BEGIN:

• What are you struggling with today?
• Have you taken it to God in prayer?
• What Scripture verses come to mind?
• Compose a simple poem about your experience. Weigh and contemplate the words before gently placing them in your hymn.
• If there is music from a hymn or song you especially enjoy, use that to compose your lyrical prayer.

Though its author is unknown, this sweet, lyrical hymn was written in 1866. Let your thoughts still and your mind rest as you read through these poetic lines.

 A HYMN PRAYER

Though art my hiding place, O Lord!
In thee I put my trust;
Encouraged by thy holy word,
A feeble child of dust,
I have no argument beside,
I urge no other plea;
And ‘tis enough my Saviour died,
My Saviour died for me!

‘Mid trials, heavy to be borne,
When mortal strength is vain,
A heart with grief and anguish torn
A body racked with pain;
Ah! What could give the sufferer rest,
Bid every murmur flee?
But this, the witness in my breast,
My Saviour died for me!
(Author Unknown, 1866)                                                                                                                    

PRAYING THROUGH GREAT HYMNS

Sometimes, we come to prayer empty, sometimes with no words. Hymns can help us express our heart’s deepest and greatest longings in ways we might never have experienced. Use these lines to step into a refreshing new journey of prayer. (If the music is unfamiliar, Hymnal.net is a great resource.)

• The Lord has promised good to me, his word my hope secures; he will my shield and portion be as long as life endures. (Amazing Grace by John Newton, 1779)
• Praise God, from whom all blessings flow … (Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow by Thomas Ken, 1674)
• Joy that seekest me through pain, I cannot close my heart to thee; I trace the rainbow through the rain, and feel the promise is not vain, that morn shall tearless be. (O Love That Will Not Let Me Go by George Matheson, 1882)
• I need Thee ev’ry hour, In joy or pain; Come quickly and abide, Or life is vain. (I Need Thee Every Hour by Robert Lowry, 1872, and Annie S. Hawks, 1872
• O, God, our Help in ages past, Our Hope for years to come, our Shelter from the stormy blast, and our eternal Home. (O God, Our Help in ages Past by Isaac Watts, 1719)
• As by the light of opening day, The stars are all concealed; So earthly pleasures fade away, When Jesus is revealed. (Let Worldly Minds the World Pursue by John Newton, 1774)
• When we’ve been there ten thousand years, Bright shining as the sun, We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise Than when we first begun. (Amazing Grace by John Newton, 1779)
• On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand; all other ground is sinking sand. (My Hope is Built on Nothing Less by Edward Mote, 1834)
• Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace. (Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus by Helen Howarth Lemmel, 1922)
• Lord, how your wonders are displayed, where’er we turn our eyes, if we survey the ground we tread or gaze upon the skies. (I Sing the Almighty Power of God by Isaac Watts)
• Come, thou Fount of every blessing; tune my heart to sing thy grace; streams of mercy, never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise. (Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing by Robert Robinson, 1758)
• This is all my hope and peace: nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Nothing But the Blood of Jesus by Robert Lowry, 1876)
• Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness! Morning by morning, new mercies I see; all I have needed Thy hand hath provided: great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me! (Great Is Thy Faithfulness by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1923)
• Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace, Freely bestowed on all who believe! All who are longing to see His face, Will you this moment His grace receive? (Grace Greater Than Our Sin by Julia H. Johnston, 1910)
• This my song through endless ages: Jesus led me all the way. (All the Way My Savior Leads Me by Fanny Crosby, 1875)
• When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, “It is well, it is well with my soul.” (When Peace, Like a River by Horatio Gates Spafford, 1873)
• Be still, my soul; the Lord is on thy side; bear patiently the cross of grief or pain. (Be Still, My Soul by Kathrina von Schlegel, 1752; translated by Jane Borthwick, 1855)
• Amazing love! How can it be That Thou, my God, should die for me? (And Can It Be, That I Should Gain? By Charles Wesley, 1738)
• My shepherd is the living Lord: now shall my needs be well supplied; his loving care and holy word will be my safety and my guide. (God Our Shepherd by Isaac Watts)
• Dear Refuge of my weary soul, on Thee, when sorrows rise, on Thee, when waves of trouble roll, my fainting hope relies. (The Soul’s Only Refuge by Anne Steele)
• Could we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made; were ev’ry stalk on earth a quill, and ev’ryone a scribe by trade; to write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry; nor could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky. (The Love of God by Frederick M. Lehman, 1917)
• …be Thou my best thought in the day and the night, both waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light. (Be Thou My Vision, translated by Mary E. Byrne, 1880-1931)
• Oh come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant… (O Come, All Ye Faithful, attributed to John Francis Wade; translated by Frederick Oakeley, 1814)
• Breathe on me, Breath of God, fill me with life anew, that I may love the way you love, and do what you would do. (Breathe on Me, Breath of God by Edwin Hatch, 1878)
• A thrill of hope – the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn! (O Holy Night by Placide Cappeau, 1847, translated by John S. Dwight)
• Soon shall end this earthly story, swift shall pass the pilgrim days, hope soon change to heav’nly glory, faith to sight and prayer to praise. (Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken by Henry Francis Lyte, 1825)
• Cast thy burden on the Lord, Whose goodness doth sustain; The tender mercies of thy God Shall ease thy load of pain. (The Wings of a Dove by Caroline L. Goodenough)
• Come, ye weary, heavy laden, lost and ruined by the fall; if you tarry till you’re better, you will never come at all. (Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy by J. Hart, 1759)
• O, the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free, rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me. (O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus by S. Trevor Francis)
• When life’s dark maze I tread and griefs around me spread, be Thou my Guide; bid darkness turn to day, wipe sorrow’s tears away, nor let me ever stray from Thee aside. (My Faith Looks Up to Thee by Ray Palmer, 1830)
• Oh, how praying rests the weary! Prayer will change the night to day. So, when life gets dark and dreary, Don’t forget to pray. (Did You Think to Pray? By M. A. Kidder, 1876)
• …discord filled my heart with pain, Jesus swept across the broken strings, stirred the slumbering chords again. (He Keeps Me Singing by Luther B. Bridgers, 1910)

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