Put a little song in your heart …

Several years ago I made the choice to get to know God better. I wanted to be used of Him, and I wanted to learn how to trust Him.

When I told Him my desires, He answered that prayer by bringing us to a church that preached the biblical truths He wanted me to learn. He brought people into my life that challenged my old way of thinking (in a good way) and helped me peel back some layers that needed to go, introducing me to new levels of closeness with Him that I didn’t know existed.

One summer, approximately six years ago, God started waking me up with a song. Most days it would be a different song and not always my favorites, which helped me realize they were coming from Him and not just because I’d heard them on the radio or sung them in church.

Other times, I would wake up in the middle of the night with a new song (usually the right song to correspond the panic attack that woke me to begin with) and still other times I would have a song on repeat throughout the day while I was working.

At first I wondered about it because it was something new. Then I got to where it happened so often I took it for granted. Then I thought “this must happen to everyone,” but realized later, “no, not everyone walks around with a song on repeat in their brain.”

Since then, I have had periods of time when the songs are absent. Days will go by without a song waking me up or putting me to sleep. Months occur with … nothing. I usually find that during those periods I’m not as in tuned to Him due to letting busyness get in the way, a spiritual truth I’m wrestling with, or exhaustion of some kind. During those times, I miss that personal closeness from my Father.

This past year, God has shown me that praising Him through music (i.e. singing along to the melodies in my brain) are a form of prayer from me to Him. He gave me an assignment in February to praise Him with music, using that method to fight a specific spiritual battle. He even gave me a particular song to use.

For me, praising Him with music is a big part of my worship. I use it as prayer, a way to focus on Him, a way to thank Him, and a way to remember His promises.

What about you? Is music important to you? Have you ever considered using music as a form of prayer to our Heavenly Father? Has God ever woken you up with a song in your heart?

© Cheri Swalwell 2019