I was listening again to the the song We Believe by Newsboys, and one phrase in the song really stuck with me this time
So, let our faith be more than anthems
Greater than the songs we sing
It got me thinking about my faith, and the reason I attend church. In the Salvation Army we can at times put a lot of our focus on our musical sections (both our junior and adult bands and choirs). This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as our musical sections can most definitely make a huge contribution to our worship through their music.
I personally find the music provided by our musical sections, as well as the congregational songs used in worship often bring me closer to God, and being able to be part of that music making is a great privilege for me, as I believe this how God wants me to contribute to worship.
What the words of this Newsboys song reminded me was that I must never let the music or music making be the reason I worship. Worship must be first and foremost about praising God and learning more about Him. Yes, we can praise God through our music making, but that should not be the main reason we go to church. Our faith must definitely be more than anthems, more than the music.