Psalm 9:2
"I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O thou, Most High." James 5:13 "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise." Psalm 95:1 “Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!” Psalm 104:33 “I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being.” It is evident in scripture that music is a gift from God, a method of worshiping and praising Him, of healing, of learning and memorizing scripture and more. There are so many wonderful benefits to music. Sadly, like with so many things that were meant for good, Satan has found a way to pervert music and use it to harm and destroy. A look at sister Ellen G White’s writing reveals that: Music can help us, like it did Jesus, resist Satan. -- When Christ was a child like these children here, He was tempted to sin, but He did not yield to temptation. As He grew older He was tempted, but the songs His mother had taught Him to sing came into His mind, and He would lift His voice in praise. And before His companions were aware of it, they would be singing with Him. God wants us to use every facility which Heaven has provided for resisting the enemy. --Manuscript 65, 1901. (Evangelism, p. 498) Music can be used as a “means of impressing spiritual truth”. --Song is one of the most effective means of impressing spiritual truth upon the heart. Often by the words of sacred song, the springs of penitence and faith have been unsealed. --Review and Herald, June 6, 1912. Music can help us when we are discouraged. --If there was much more praising the Lord, and far less doleful recitation of discouragements, many more victories would be achieved. --Letter 53, 1896. (Evangelism, p. 499) Music can enhance our worship and our Christian experience. --Evening and morning join with your children in God’s worship, reading His Word and singing His praise. Teach them to repeat God’s law. Concerning the commandments, the Israelites were instructed: "Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." Accordingly, Moses directed the Israelites to set the words of the law to music. With this in mind, we wanted to give our students, who are all teenagers and especially susceptible to the negative influences of music, the opportunity to learn about how music can be a positive, beautiful blessing or a mechanism to draw their eyes away from God and to the world. Our friend and brother, Victor Dominquez, and his family, spent almost 2 weeks at Eben-Ezer this year ministering to our staff and students about music, heavenly music. Victor and his wife serve at a ministry in Bolivia called Quebrada Leon and Victor serves there as the education director and music director. He has a love for music, heavenly music and has spent years researching and learning about music and how it impacts us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Victor walked us through the different elements of music including rhythm, melody, harmony and much more. He helped us to understand the impact that each element has on brain function and thinking and how when working together, these elements create music that will be uplifting, inspiring and draw us toward our loving, Heavenly Father. Our theme song for the event was fitting…and one that many of you probably know well! In My Heart There Rings a Melody I have a song that Jesus gave me It was sent from heav’n above There never was a sweeter melody ‘Tis a melody of love Chorus: In my heart there rings a melody There rings a melody with heaven’s harmony In my heart there rings a melody There rings a melody of love I love the Christ who died on Calv’ry For He washed my sins away He put within my heart a melody And I know it’s there to stay ‘Twill be my endless theme in glory With the angels I will sing ‘Twill be a song with glorious harmony When the courts of heaven ring
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