Sing Again

As part of a campaign called “Get America Singing . . . Again,” a group of music educators has published a list of forty-two songs that it believes Americans must continue singing to preserve an important part of the national culture. The list begins alphabetically with “Amazing Grace” and ends with “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.” The group’s president said, “We have a whole generation that has grown up without singing songs like these–songs that are . . . part of who we are.”

Not only in the United States, but in every country and culture, music is an important part of who people are.

As Christians, we have a wonderful heritage of music. I enjoy using a hymnbook along with the Bible during my time of daily reading and prayer. Sometimes words written many years ago bring a fresh message of hope. I may encounter a familiar song that sparks a memory of God’s faithfulness or rekindles a flame of devotion. More than a memory of the past, it becomes a vehicle to praise God today.

Psalm 96:2 encourages us to “sing to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.” Why not open that long-neglected hymnbook today, rediscover some marvelous messages of faith, and sing . . . again!  

— David C. McCasland