Changing Directions and Pressing On!

In New Mexico, we had a wonderful time teaching how to study the Bible and we even got to sing a new song, based on Psalm 2. We were blessed, as usual, by the church family there in La Luz. Something happened while we were there that really emphasized the importance of the family of God in the life of His people.

We had been planning on going to Michigan for the Summer (to work on a book and record that is based on 12 Messianic Psalms), and on the way we were also planning on stopping off for a few Sundays in Illinois. Sadly (at the time) two Sundays opened up in our schedule and I could not find a church to fill those Sundays. God seemed to be preventing our going there, so we decided to stay a few more days in New Mexico and then go straight to Michigan.

One half hour from leaving to go to Michigan, we got a call that Martha's mother had suddenly suffered a heart attack and died. We needed to go to South Carolina, and we didn't have to cancel any services! Not only that, if we had gotten the word much later (or if we had gone up sooner), we would not have had enough money to get to South Carolina.

As we were leaving, the church family there in La Luz simply loved on us and sent us away with the comfort and joy of knowing that there is yet another group of God's people praying for us and the ministry that He has given us. We have been so incredibly blessed, and then God provided just enough to get to Greenville, and we are so blessed by His provision!

Now we are in South Carolina, and we appreciate your prayers for our family and for all that we need to accomplish in the coming months. We are praying for some opportunities to minister while we are here. While we are not sure how long God wants us to stay in Greenville, we are praying for God's provision to get us back up to Michigan.

Even so, while we are here, I am working on a book project (with my good friend, Dr. Bob Snyder). We are busy translating and commenting on 12 Messianic Psalms so that we can write a study guide / resource for people to use in studying these precious gems of Scripture. Along with this written work, we are busy writing songs based upon those Psalms. In this way we are hoping to bridge the gap between understanding the message of the Psalms and how we should emotionally respond to them.

It is hard to explain how exciting it is to work on the project, and we are so excited about what God is doing. We would appreciate your prayers as we continue work on that project!

The Glory of God and Musical Communication

I would like to offer a few preliminary thoughts that are foundational to the discussion regarding music and worship. In the very first place, we need to establish that music is not, itself, worship (though many seem to think so). Worship is properly the ultimate aim of everything. It is even the whole point of God’s revelation itself. Therefore, our every expression should be reflective of the person of God, particularly as He has chosen to reveal Himself in the person of Christ. My whole philosophy of music flows from this idea, both philosophically and practically.

Almost everyone who has spent any time in any church knows 1Corinthians 10:31, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” How many people have actually considered what that means? The “glory of God” is a summary statement for “all that God is.” Another way to say this is to say that the “glory of God” is the sum total of His character and attributes.

Once we accept this, we need to ask, “What does it mean to 'do everything' to the glory of God?” Many people assume that this simply means we give God the credit, and while in a tangential way this is somewhat true, it isn’t the point of the statement. In order to fully understand, it is helpful to bring another verse into the picture at this point: Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

When I first recognized this connection, it revolutionized my whole concept of worship! Sin is failing to meet up with the standard set by the attributes and character of God (this would exclude the attributes of God’s greatness - the omni’s, etc…), and this means that God Himself is the standard. So we could also assert that all sin is ultimately a failure to properly worship God.

However, this doesn’t entirely answer the question, though it does bring us one step closer. Sin is also a failure to love, since every command by God, and especially the law of Christ, is expressed by the twin commands to love God and my neighbor as myself. Even God, Himself, is described by the statement, “God is love.”

So, to live to the glory of God is to live a life contrary to a life of sin. It is to live so that every heart response and every corresponding action in our lives is actually a reflection of the glory of God. This is, of course, impossible without the Holy Spirit’s work of regeneration (Remember the fruit of the spirit? They are all either an attribute of God or the effect of an attribute of God), and though music isn't, itself, worship. These principles certainly relate to music as a form of communication.

So a Christian can evaluate the value of any given piece of music by comparing the communication of that music with the character and attributes of God. We should be able to ask whether it reflects the love of God, the mercy of God, the justice of God, the anger of God, the righteousness of God…and so on. However, just as with the spoken word, the communicative content of the music is largely dependent upon context to accurately evaluate the meaning. This means that music must be understood in context of the musician, the venue, the occasion, and the audience.

For example, the words, "I love you" are a wonderful expression that can mean entirely different things if those words are spoken by a 4 year old to their stuffed animal, a 16 year old to his girlfriend, a wife to her newlywed husband, or an elderly husband to his dying wife. Who is speaking to whom is important, if we are going to understand the communication, and the same is true for music. Both the musician and the audience must be considered.

In addition, we can take the same words and understand them in completely different ways, depending on the venue. If it is spoken in a hospital it might communicate hope or even finality. If it is spoken in a carnival, it could be understood as a joke, or if it was spoken at home, it might communicate a close family bond.

However, not only is it important to consider the musician, the audience, and the venue, we also must consider the occasion. For example, our three words could be part of a skit at summer camp, or they could be spoken by a teenager upon receiving a new car, or they could be spoken at the end of a wedding (or funeral). In every instance, the communication is different - sometimes drastically.

Yet, we also have to consider tone of voice. If I yell angrily at my wife, “I LOVE YOU!!!” she is not likely to get the message clearly, because the emotion doesn’t match the words. Worse, she might understand exactly the opposite. The tone of voice can make these words communicate hatred, friendship, exasperation, or even genuine love. Tone can enhance or even reverse the meaning of the words.

Music works exactly the same way as language, with the added benefit (liability) that it is designed to make the emotion of our communication more evident. Think of singing as "speaking, with the volume turned up on the emotion."

This is why we cannot evaluate music by looking at its disjunctive parts, like rhythm, harmony, and melody. The communication must be viewed as a whole, considering all relevant contextual information as well as the communicative content. This is also one reason why I am opposed to the notion that there is intrinsic morality in music (independent of context).

On the other hand, I am equally opposed to those who would suggest that music is amoral and irrelevant to the communication, which would be like saying tone of voice has nothing to do with my telling my wife, "I love you." We can see and readily accept this in the realm of language, but music seems to be emotionally and practically polarizing. We really need to cut through the convoluted confusion of the "worship wars" and just get back to the point that music communicates.

Then we can move forward by observing that the communication must be Biblical (or from a Biblical perspective); it must be emotionally consistent with the verbal content (loving music goes to loving words); and it must be appropriate to the venue, occasion, and audience. Those three principles would save us all a whole lot of grief, and allow us to evaluate whether that communication properly communicates the character and attributes of God.

Needs Update

It has been a while since we have updated you on our needs so that our praying readers can know specifically how to pray for us. We have been blessed to see God's provision over this year, and we are eagerly anticipating what He will do over the coming months. With that said, we greatly appreciate your prayers to God on our behalf, especially regarding these specific needs:

Financial Needs
It costs us about 75 cents, on average, for every mile we travel, and other vehicle costs amount to about 150 dollars a month. We and our five children (now one teenager) eat about 100 dollars a week worth of food. Our communications costs are around 160 dollars a month. Health insurance would cost around 1000 dollars a month, and other miscellaneous expenses bring the total we need per month to something around 3000 dollars per month.

Right now, we are entirely dependent upon one-time gifts and donations, but we are praying that God would allow us to raise monthly support to pay for our regular bills. To this point, I have been painting on the side to pay for these things, but that drastically limits my effectiveness with both Veritas School of Theology and Sermons in Song.

One-time Expenses
We just found out that we need a new rubber roof for the RV. This will cost between 2500 and 5000 dollars, and really needs to be done as soon as possible (pin holes and cracks). We may try a paint-on solution to get us by, but reviews of that approach indicate that it should be thought of as a temporary measure.

Some of you may remember that last year both my guitars broke. Though we have managed to get them to the point that they are working adequately, we are looking for a new guitar that will replace both of the broken ones. We had some money donated for it, and that has put us about 1/4 of the way there. So we are praying that God would supply a professional guitar or allow us to purchase one soon (For those of you who like guitars, you can email or call me to get specifics).

Personal Needs
Traveling has been good for our family, but there are also a unique set of challenges that come along with this sort of life. I appreciate your prayers for us as we continue to grow together as a family-team.

School materials for the kids is also a significant expense (about 1000 dollars per child, per year), and we would appreciate your prayers regarding God's supply in this matter.

As always, we are blessed to be able to serve the Lord with both Veritas and Sermons in Song, and we are grateful for those of you who continue to pray for these endeavors.

Your servant,
Tom Pryde