Church Music

Leah and I have been blessed to belong to two churches with terrific music programs.

I can't say enough good things about the job Brandon does with the music/worship ministry at FBC Farmington. To begin with, he is a phenomenal musician who is skilled at playing several instruments. On top of that, he's a really talented songwriter. His skills and talents aside though, the thing that has always impressed me the most about Brandon is his desire for the music to be authentic worship rather than just a performance. Leah and I served together on the worship team, and doing so was one of the highlights of our time in Farmington.

The music at Ninth and O is both similar to and different from what we were used to in Farmington. Both churches provide a blend of hymns and contemporary choruses, but in Farmington the mixture tended more toward choruses, while at Ninth and O it probably leans a little more towards hymns. I really like a lot of the "praise & worship" choruses, but I have started to fall in love with some of the hymns we sing too. Lyrically, the hymns we sing just seem to be richer in content than a lot of the choruses are.

Some of my favorite hymns that we sing at Ninth and O are The Power of the Cross, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing, Be Thou my Vision and Before the Throne of God Above. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing and Be Thou my Vision are classic hymns that have been sung in churches for many years. The Power of the Cross and Before the Throne of God Above are what you might call "modern" hymns.

I've posted about The Power of the Cross before. You can probably search our archives to hear it. The lyrics are jam-packed with the truth of the gospel - that Christ became sin for us and bore the wrath of God we deserved. I love to sing this song because it is such a vivid reminder of the extent of God's grace.

Through Google, I was able to find out that the words to Before the Throne of God above were written by a lady named Charitie Lees Bancroft (1841-1923) and were set to music by a woman named Vikki Cook in 1997. Since then, the song has been performed by artists such as Selah, Sonicflood, Shane and Shane, and Chris Rice.

I just love the lyrics of this great hymn. The second verse is my favorite. I am often guilty of believing Satan's accusations that I am too this or not enough that to be of any use to God. What a wonderful thing it is to be reminded that, as a Christian, my standing before God is not based at all on my own righteousness, but is solely based on what Christ has done for me!