New Songs

“Sing to the LORD a new song.”

Psalm 96:1

I prefer to sing old songs – my favorite ones that are a part of who I am.  The ones that hold memories of good times and relationships with people who mean so much to me.   Even now, as I write this I’m listening to the familiar Maslanka 9, reminding me of people and experiences so close to my heart.  The old songs give me a sense of everything God placed in my life to prepare me to be right here right now.

And perhaps it is human nature to gravitate towards the songs we know how to sing.  The ones that make us feel content, at home.  The ones we know all the words to and can’t possible mess up.  But what happens to our hearts when we don’t worship the Lord in new ways?  What happens when we only sing the songs we know make our hearts content?  When those songs become stale, boring, meaningless? 

This past week YAGM Malaysia was on retreat in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.  For church on Sunday morning we went to Queenstown Lutheran Church.  We walked in during a quiet organ prelude, and as the service continued, we sang familiar hymns and traditional liturgy with an organist.  It was almost as if I was back at my home church, or sitting in the band at Boe Chapel while the brass added fanfare to “This is the Feast.”  In the states, growing up, the liturgy was boring, making the churches services too long.  It was a collection of old songs I was proud to sing from memory at a young age. 

However, in Singapore the liturgy was a new song.  A breath of fresh air in the huge variety of Malaysian worship experiences.  Because here in Malaysia, there is no such thing as a typical worship service.  Most Sundays in Tuaran, it’s just Jireh Home and another family or two at the little church building where the Bahasa Melayu congregation worships.  Our kids lead the songs and psalm reading at the beginning of the service and a pastor preaches.   Far from typical, this past Sunday, we went to a 45^th anniversary celebration of the Anglican Church Tuaran, featuring dancers with tambourines and flags at the front of the crowded sanctuary while we sang.  The BCCM, our partner church in Sabah, 130^th anniversary celebration was another example of diverse worship.  All of the YAGMs went before our retreat and the ceremony featured speeches, many different song/dance presentations and a large section of traditional dancing to modern praise music.  Sing to the Lord a new song. 

So I am here, literally learning new songs in new languages (or making up what I think the words are – I’m particularly good at Chinese songs….).  And I wonder if I am actually singing a new song, or just mimicking my friends around me?  Are my new songs full of worship or an attempt at survival in an unknown church culture?

 My life here is completely different.  As I figure out who I am here, who God has made me to be in this place, I am working to sing a new song with my life.  A song based on old melodies and familiar harmonies with completely different musicians.  It’s a song of community, relationships, love and exploring life together.  A song of complete praise and thanks to the God who connects us all.