Daily Delight

Music has always been part of my life.  My childhood soundtrack was a mix of my parents’ Southern Gospel LPs and my older brothers’ folk and rock collections.  Piano lessons, Guitar class, Choir at church and school…all contributed to my eclectic taste in music.  There always seemed to be a song in my heart to express the feelings of the moment.

Music communicates the deepest emotions of our hearts.  The writers of the Psalms expressed the whole of human emotions within the context of music.  Worship, Joy, Lament, Anger, and Hope all find expression in the pages of the Psalms.  This gift of music is from the Lord, Himself.  We read in Zephaniah 3:17 that the Lord rejoices over His children with singing.  No wonder that it is innate in us to make music and to seek out music in the midst of our life experiences.

I remember the time I was surprised by a song that was in my heart.  It was a song that rose up from within - a song a worship and praise to God. But it was sung in the midst of the deepest grief I have ever known.  Our twin sons had been in a car crash just a few weeks earlier.  Our son, Greg was killed instantly and our surviving son, Steve was in the midst of a 6-month coma from traumatic brain injury.  I was at the hospital with him, washing his clothes in the pediatric floor’s patient laundry room, the only private place on the floor.  The washer was spinning, the dryer was humming and I was softly singing a hymn of praise with tears in my eyes.

Even in the midst of grief, there was still a song in my heart.  So much of me was broken…and I feared that I would never be able to experience joy again.  But, “He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God…” (Psalm 40:3a).  It was in that moment, I discovered the healing power of music, especially the song of praise to my Father even in the midst of grief.  

What is the soundtrack of your life?  Listen closely for the ‘new song’ God may be giving you as you walk through all the emotions of life.

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Photo: @jaydayie

	Bonnie Arends
	Bonnie is a woman who finds her identity and mission in Jesus. She is passionate that others will come to know the Living Hope that she lives in and from each day. Bonnie's life verse is, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" (1 Peter 3:15). Bonnie lives 'in the middle of a cornfield' with her farmer husband and son. She enjoys the space and quiet of rural living and is especially thankful for the beautiful sunsets she experiences over the farm's vast pastures.