Music That Inspires Faith in Difficult Times

I probably know more songs based on Psalm 34 than any other chapter in the Bible. Here are the first eight verses:

I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
let the humble hear and be glad.
Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
and let us exalt his name together!

I sought the Lord, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant,
and their faces shall never be ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him
and saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

I love David’s enthusiasm and commitment to praise the Lord in these verses. “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” And it’s contagious, too! “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!”

If you’re reading these verses with no additional context, they sound like a wonderful passage to read as a call to worship in a worship gathering or a wonderful reminder that the Lord is near and that He hears our prayers. And both of these are true! However, after I got a glimpse of what David was going through as he wrote Psalm 34, I’m even more amazed by his commitment to the Lord and his trust in the promises of God. I’m also reminded that music combined with a God-honoring lyric can play such an important role for the believer when we find ourselves in difficult circumstances.

The heading of Psalm 34 reads, “Of David, when he changed his behavior before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away.” You can read more about this situation in 1 Samuel 21:10–15, but the short version is that David acted like a madman in order to avoid being captured in Gath. Not only did David write a song to the Lord amid difficult circumstances, we still find ourselves reading and singing those same words today. God honored David’s allegiance and blessed his song far beyond the moment he wrote it.

There’s a new song based on Psalm 34 that has meant so much to me in recent months. Written by Brandon Lake, Cody Carnes, and Brooke Ligertwood, Bless God is an amazing song that, like Psalm 34:1, encourages us to bless the Lord “every chance we get,” both in good times and bad. The beginning of the bridge says:

Bless God in the sanctuary
Bless God in the fields of plenty
Bless God in the darkest valley
Every chance I get I’ll bless Your name

April and I met at Shorter College (now University) in Rome, Georgia. We were both music education majors and sang in chorale together. She’s always said that she knew I liked her because she would catch me staring at her across the room, from my seat in the bass section to her seat in the soprano section. And she was right! I really liked her! Like turned in to love and we were married 15 months after we started dating.

A few years later, Dr. Martha Shaw, the conductor of the Shorter Chorale at the time (and a wonderful friend!), asked me to write a piece for a reunion weekend. This special weekend included a gathering of alumni and current students. We rehearsed together on Friday night and Saturday morning. The weekend concluded with a concert on Saturday evening.

When Dr. Shaw extended the invitation, I’ll admit that I initially wanted to write a really challenging piece since the choir would be full of former and current music majors. Instead, the Lord drew me to a familiar passage in Matthew 11:28–30, when Jesus said:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

I had loved that text since I was a child. Christ’s promise to provide rest for the weary and hurting was such an encouraging promise to me. I wrote the piece and submitted it to Dr. Shaw. She was kind enough to let me teach the song that weekend and conduct during the concert. It was an absolute thrill, one I will never forget. To make the weekend even more special, the concert was recorded, and everyone who participated received a CD in the mail a few weeks later.

Life moved on and April and I found ourselves with baby number three on the way! After a season of waiting and praying, we were so thrilled for Emma Kate’s arrival right around Christmas Day. I’ll never forget dropping April off at her doctor for a check-up the week of Thanksgiving. I ran a quick errand and came back to pick her up. To my surprise, she got in the car and said, “We’re having a baby today.” I had a million questions, but didn’t ask any of them. I just stepped on the gas and headed straight to the hospital. Emma Kate made her entrance a few hours later. Initially she seemed perfectly healthy, but we soon saw signs that she was struggling to breath on her own.

The next few minutes seemed like hours as the doctors started working with her. A decision was made to take her to the NICU. Still in recovery, April was unable to leave her room, so I went with Emma Kate and watched helplessly as the team of doctors and nurses connected her to all sorts of machines.  She was so little and beautiful. I already loved her so much and couldn’t stand the thought of her suffering in any way. I stood there in her room, crying and praying. I wanted to update April, so I left Emma Kate’s room once she was stabilized.

As I turned the corner, I came face to face with a friend from college. Scott was also a music education major when we were in school together. Since then, he had begun a wonderful teaching career. I hadn’t seen him since the reunion weekend, but knew that he and his wife, Laura, were expecting twins. I said, “Scott! What are you doing here?” With tears in his eyes, he told me that their precious twins also made an early arrival. Their son, Joseph, was in the NICU fighting for his life. Tragically, their other son, Campbell, had taken his last breath on this earth the day before.

After sharing this unimaginable news with me, Scott said, “I can’t believe I’m standing here talking to you. Do you remember that recording from the reunion concert? Well, I loaded it on my phone after we received the CD in the mail. Yesterday, when the doctors told us Campbell was not going to survive, I laid him on my chest and put my phone beside him. As we left this earth to meet Jesus face to face, he was listening to your song Come Unto Me.”

I had always read that text in Matthew 11 from the perspective of turning to Jesus when I was weary. But that day, I read those verses from Campbell’s perspective: as a call to come home. That helpless child stepped into eternity that day into the perfect care of a perfect Savior.

I think of that moment in the NICU with Scott every time I hear a choir sing Come Unto Me or when I read that text in my quiet time. Music combined with truth has the power to challenge, teach, and encourage us in every season. What a gift from our loving Father who created every note!