Music

As well as our Life-Songs concert last week, we also went to Worship Central's evening event in Oxford with Tim Hughes and Al Gordon on Wednesday and one of Delerious? last gigs on their farewell tour on Friday. So much Christian music in one week! Grace and Jack just had the best time this week!

It was very encouraging to see Worship Central doing, very successfully, exactly what we are trying to do on a much smaller, local scale with Life-Songs. It was helpful to remember how difficult it was for churches in the 1970's who had to work so hard to update music in the face of incredible opposition. It's also useful to know that the very same vehement criticisms assaulted Isaac Watts in the 1700's when he introduced songs, which we now think of as 'hymns', in the vernacular to churches solely familiar with the chanting of psalms. The introduction of the organ was resisted by the people who, at one point, thought it was an instrument of the devil. Some were smashed to pieces by congregations.

Opposition to change isn't new. Brave souls desperate to bring the Lord Jesus to people in a musical language familiar to them aren't unusual either. Each new wave of revival in this country has been accompanied by its own new song-writers and music. Martin Smith of Delerious?, Matt Redman and Tim Hughes have all played their part in the current wave of British youth evangelism.

Tim and Al Gordon reminded us of the work there is yet to do in spreading the Gospel, of how music can play a vital part in evangelism and of how church musicians and worship leaders need to hold on, to persevere against opposition and to never give up. They prayed specifically for musicians who had been badly hurt by the people in their churches. A lot of hands went up for those prayers. It seems it's a common thing for churches to abuse the members of their worship teams, even though they are often among the hardest working members of the congregation. Jamie and I stood at the back and held hands and tears ran down my cheeks. It was painful to realise how we'd been injured by our brothers and sisters over the last 2 years and how tired it makes us. But also helpful to hear the prayers going up on that night for us and all the people like us, who are struggling to bring relevant contemporary Christian music to their towns.

If you are reading this, please pray for the musicians of your church, whether they are young guitarists and drummers or an elderly organist. And maybe even thank them tomorrow for the work they put in on your behalf. They need your love and encouragement.