Christ Lutheran Church

PASTOR’S BLOG:

Pastor Kuenzel

I have no way of knowing if this is accurate or not, but it surprised me when I heard it.  A friend who is professionally involved in media creation told me that 60% of the impact of a movie comes from the soundtrack.  Wow!  I would have never guessed.

As a pastor, then, I can’t help but think about the impact of the “soundtrack” of our worship services.  We have spoken and sung responses and, of course, worship music.  There has been this large and long discussion in our churches about the kind of music that is better, worse, appropriate or inappropriate to use in worship.  What should be spoken and what should be chanted or sung?

I seems to me that these debates mostly miss the mark.  I believe the real question is:  “Is this music any good?”

Is this beautiful?  Does it have interesting harmonies and a rhythm that creates a tone appropriate for the message? Is there a memorable melody line?  Are the lyrics worthy poetry on their own?  Do the words paint a clear and vivid picture we can take away with us?  Do the lyrics convey good theology?  Do we get a new or fresh insight into Scripture or Scriptural truths?  Can we perhaps get a new perspective on an old story from this song or hymn?

There is no magical type of music, it seems to me, only a few diamonds amongst many stones in every genre of music.