I visited a friend’s congregation recently and heard a message that has stayed on my mind. It was part of a sermon series called “God and my iPod” and the pastor was talking about how sometimes a song will get stuck in one’s mind. He suggested that maybe the Holy Spirit is trying to tell you something through that song, even if it’s secular music that has no mention of God or faith or anything spiritual. Or maybe the song is speaking to something in you that you haven’t yet realized—a longing or fear or hope that is buried deep in your heart.
So now as I listen to my favorite playlists, I’m trying to be aware of why those songs have such appeal to me, of how God might be trying to reach me through them. I’m also listening with new ears—is there something in this song that expresses some deeper thought or desire or yearning in my heart? If I had to select a 10-song soundtrack for my life, what would it include?
This message is taken from a blog post, “Meeting God in music,” written by Kate Elliott, that appeared on the Women of the ELCA blog on February 20, 2012.