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Play Skillfully... Hitting the High Notes


Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.  Praise the LORD with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre. Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy. (Psalm 33:1-3)
            This is a time of year in which hymns are more familiar. Most people have heard "Silent Night."
Silent Night
Holy Night
All Is calm
All is bright
Round yon virgin
mother and child
holy Infant
So tender ... and mild
Sleep in heavenly
peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
            This is how if often sounds to me when we sing it. All the phrases are separate from the others. I understand. This is how we've learned to sing it so that everyone is singing together, and everyone can breathe frequently enough to sing, especially that first peace.
       Today's passage is about singing joyfully and playing skillfully in praise to God. I know some people can sing joyfully, but when it comes to skill with either voice or instrument, well, they can't carry a tune in a dump truck (forget about the bucket.) God has granted to each person a variety of talents and skills. On skill I think we tend to neglect when it comes to hymns is to pay attention to details, or, put more correctly, to read the words or to hear them with understanding. The way we sing it (above) is very different from what is there, which would go something like this: Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright round yon virgin mother and child, holy infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace. Sleep in heavenly peace. There are only two people mentioned in this verse. "Virgin" is an adjective here, not a noun. The child is the holy Infant who is so tender and mild. "Round" is a poetic version of "around." It does not refer to Mary and her "baby bump" or her weight. That one took me an embarrassing amount of time to figure out what I was singing there.
         If we think about what we are singing in praise to God, our praise will be more skillful even if we can't hit the high notes.


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