Devotionals

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Some thoughts following responses to recent E-Cheers:

A. Many of you wrote expressing a similar marriage situation to that of
Betty and me. We are truly blest, especially in these days of assembly
line divorce. It seems that some couples today are individually selfish
and aren’t willing to work at it. It’s a throw-away world that seems to
include spouses. What distresses me is the increasing number of
divorces within the Christian community. That seems to indicate a lack
of spousal commitment that originates with a decrease in commitment
to Jesus Christ and His standards. It’s a trckle-down effect.

B. A number of you wrote decrying the use of overheads because the
music is not included. There is a reason. The license that each church
has to buy annually allows for words only -- no music. If your church
uses overheads for words, check and make sure that they are paying the
license fee. If you copy pages from a hymnal or chorus book for
overhead use, including the music, you are really in hot water. Don’t
do it!! It’s risky because the fines can be very heavy.

I was raised in a church tradition of encouraging “part” singing. Many
of you love to sing harmony. Since hymnals are tragically being phased
out in some churches, part singing will also be largely phased out in
those churches That’s a sad and nearly irretrievable loss. However,
there will hopefully always be a remnant of those who can fake it and
sing harmony “by ear.”

What disturbs me most about the current trend is that some of the
music directors (not all) are not a bit sensitive to the needs of middle
and senior members to the point of using only new music. That’s not
very intelligent. A number of respondents expressed that complaint.
Some feel like they have had their church pulled out from under them.

There are many directors who are doing a wonderful job of blending the
music. But there are some who are obstinant and unyielding. If your
local library burned down, would you replace it with one that only
included books written in the last five years? Of course not! That
would be totally stupid. Do you get my point? If your church has a
music director whose concept is “my way or no way,” look for another
one. A good music director is one who is sensitive to the needs of the
whole congregation and has a balanced approach.

John 10:13 (nlt), “The hired hand runs away because he is merely hired
and has no real concern for the sheep.” Make sure that isn’t a
description of your music director.

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