Four Criteria for Song Choices in Christian Music Ministry

This past Sunday, Mattie, a middle-school student at our church, Buffalo Evangelical Free Church, sang a JJ Heller song (Your Hands), a perfect song choice for her, and, as God intended, a perfect fit with our focus of prayer yesterday:

Song choice is so important for vocalists in ministry. The choice has to reflect at least four key characteristics: the heart of the artist, the artist's experiences and capabilities, and perhaps most importantly, the song choice should originate from the Holy Spirit's prompting.

Sometimes the prompting confirms the song choice "just feels right" for the occasion....Sometimes the prompting is the opposite; something "just doesn't feel right" (beyond the artist's heart, experiences, and capabilities) about the song... In each case, the Holy Spirit has provided us with His direction.

So many times, we make our decisions on our own each day, often leaving out God's input, when He wants to be a part of these decisions. A great first step in the right direction of engaging Him in all our decisions is simply for us to listen to the prompting of His Holy Spirit. If we delay our "pronouncement" of what song we'll sing in church this week, or what direction we might take in any of our "next steps" of daily life, the Holy Spirit, if we heed His direction, will often give us peace about our decision, or provide a sense of "uneasiness" that can help us get clarity about our direction. And, if we follow His prompting each time we listen for His voice, it will become clearer and clearer over time, and we will know we are walking in His plan for us, and not our own.

When we do "walk in His plan and not our own", we will see evidence of His working in our lives...

...and young people, like Mattie, will move God's Church to sense and embrace the very presence of our great God, His Holy Spirit, and His son, Jesus Christ in our midst... as we did at Buffalo Evangelical Free Church this past Sunday after Mattie sang...
 
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3: 5-6