And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

   - Isaiah 51.11

This voice of the venerable man, when he sang in the church with the brothers, was raised in an incomparable manner, and was heard at a distance sometimes of four furlongs, that is, five hundred paces, sometimes even of eight, that is, a thousand paces.

  - Adomnán, Life of Columba, Irish, 8th century

I’ll just let you know up front that this is the occasional singing rant, so if you think you know the theme already, you probably do, and you can just skip to the end.

Colum Cille (Columba) was a leader in every way – discipleship, scholarship, friendship, evangelism, and worship. Like many of the great saints of the Celtic tradition, Colum had a fine voice, and he employed it with gusto in singing the psalms, as Adomnán notes. His voice lifted others and inspired them to exert even more effort in singing, so that together the men of Iona loved the Lord with great strength in worship.

I long to be in services of worship where the people are enthusiastic and energetic in singing. I want to be carried aloft by the voices of my fellow worshipers and transported to unseen realms by the power and beauty of their song. I want that wondrous, almost miraculous combination of lyrics and music to reach into my soul with power and haul me into the presence of God’s glory.

We just don’t seem to understand how important singing is to the life of faith, and even when we are given opportunities to sing, it all seems so mechanical and insincere.

Like paying your taxes.

What will it take? I don’t know; I wish I did. But I suspect that if we began to focus on one hymn and to take the trouble to learn it by heart, to contemplate the meaning, rhythm, and poetry of the words, and to discover how the melody is working in a spiritual and aesthetic way to draw us out and up, then, having mastered one hymn, we might find the next, and the next an even greater delight.

Whatever it takes to move us to sing with rejoicing, let us not hesitate to take it up at once. The ransomed of the Lord have much to sing about, and should sing about it with much joy.

Psalm 95.1, 2, 6 (Tidings: “O Zion, Haste, Thy Mission High Fulfilling”)
Come, let us sing with joy to God, our Savior!
Let us with joy to Him, our Rock, bow down!
Come now before Him, grateful for His favor;
Let joyful psalms break forth from all around.
   Come let us worship, kneel to our Lord;
   Worship our Maker: Father, Holy Spirit, Word.

Lord, let Your Spirit lead me to sing with greater joy to You, because of Your so great salvation.