If you know me, you know I love to sing. I always have. I was in my elementary school’s chorus. I remember wearing a black and red reversible vest, a green bowtie, and a black derby hat to sing Christmas carols on stage. I dreamed of being a professional singer,but the whole being in front of people, the fact that I am not that great, and I was only 10ish at the time kept that at just a childhood dream. I still like to sing: in the car, in the kitchen, in the shower, and in my head.

Singing brightens our mood. Singing teaches. Singing brings us together. Research on singing has been done and it is believed to relieve anxiety and contribute to the quality of life. Studies also show that singing “can produce satisfying and therapeutic sensations even when the sound produced by the vocal instrument is of mediocre quality”. We don’t need to be pitch perfect singers to reap the benefits of singing, which is good to know! If you can talk, you can sing. It’s amazing that God has given us all that ability, some better than others (I’m no Taylor Swift or Julie Andrews), but we are still able.

We are still able to carry out the command that God has given us in Ephesians 5:19 (Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;) and in Colossians 3:16 (Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.) God wouldn’t command us to do something and not give us the ability to do it (1 John 5:3). The purpose of our singing in worship is to praise God and teach and admonish each other. The words in a song teach us something in a way that we can remember. Amazing grace how sweet the sound… Now that this song is being sung in your head, what does it teach? It teaches about the grace of God that saves a wretch like me. What if we sang that song slow, would it still teach? How about fast? What if we sang it monotone, are we still learning from it? Absolutely!

God didn’t say we all need to be professional singers in order to praise, teach and admonish in song. He just said sing with grace and make melody in your heart to the Lord. So open your mouth and sing to the Lord.

“I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.” Psalm 104:33

by Kristina Odom

Kristina and her husband, Justin, serve with the church of Christ in Fairfield, IL where her husband is the preacher. Kristina is a stay-at-home mother to their three teenage kids and the author of Be A Light.