How Well Do You Sing? 1 Chronicles 16

Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples. Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonders. Glory in His holy name; Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually. (8-11)

I will be honest; singing is not my strength. I enjoy music and singing, but most people around me do not enjoy my voice. I am typically off-key and struggle with harmony and melodies. While God is probably not nearly as concerned with my lack of talent as I am, He does care about how well I sing. I think He cares about what I sing, why I sing, and to whom I am singing. In this passage, David implores us to sing to the Lord; to sing to Him and speak of all His wonders. When you are in corporate worship on Sunday morning and singing with the rest of your church body, where is your mind? All too often, our thoughts are elsewhere, and we are just going through the religious motions of standing, singing, clapping, and sitting back down. We tend to sing about Him, and sometimes we perform for the pleasure of others, but the real question is, “Are you singing TO HIM?”

I am fascinated by that premise. David is not telling us to simply sing about Him to others but to actually sing to Him. Whether in your prayer closet at home or with your congregation on Sunday, your worship is to be directed TO HIM. This directed worship means that He is your audience of one, and He is the one who is receiving your worship. It doesn’t matter so much about the tune or key of your voice, but it definitely matters about the tune and key of your heart. Are your heart, mind, and soul turned towards God as you sing? Are you fixed on Him and singing in such a way that He is receiving your praise? It often helps me visualize myself in God’s very presence (though I confess I don’t know what He looks like) and imagine Him receiving my song as a prayer of praise to Him for His glory. In reality, that is precisely what should be taking place when I sing praises to Him. “Seek the Lord; seek His face continually,” David says. Every song we sing should be an intentional act of seeking His face and glorifying His holy name.