Daily Devotional, Oct 6, 2023
The magic of music
"Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song." Psalm 95:1-2
The United States’ first research University, Johns Hopkins University has come up with a finding that listening to music is akin to giving your brain a work-out. They added that listening to it is also a good way to reduce anxiety and lower blood pressure. They also discovered that it has a positive impact on memory enhancement, sleep quality, as well as mental alertness.
Our morning rush at home is like almost every household’s morning rush where the OFFICER IN CHARGE, A.K.A the mother (me!) may have to nag at times to see to it that no one gets late for school and that every child has everything that he needs for the day. The background sound of nagging, rushing children, and petty squabbles is an unpleasant backdrop to an already hectic time of the day. And so, after reading the above study I decided to experiment and blast my praise music playlist in the morning to help everyone to get into a good mood.
My playlist was a mix of children’s and adult worship songs we sing in church and so the kids can at least relate to most of the selection. I decided to start playing the music the same time they have to wake up. In the first three days of doing this, the older kids are a bit agitated as they still want to sleep. But my youngest started to hum already as he got himself into the breakfast table. I was encouraged.
The following day, my middle child started singing along. I was truly happy. At the end of the week, my crankiest (but otherwise helpful) eldest child suddenly brought out her guitar after class and strummed my favorite song in the playlist. She asked me to sing along and I almost cried. I praise God for wonderful mornings!
As for myself, I found it therapeutic and it reduced my stress of having to get everyone out on time. The blaring music became a constant reminder to me that I should not nag my children, lest the background vibe of our home will get destroyed by my either high-pitched or serious Jaclyn Jose voice rushing all of them. It was a reminder that despite the hectic start of the day, we had an opportunity to worship the Lord by singing songs of praise and being more patient and loving to each other just as he instructed us (“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32).
We may still rush ourselves in the morning, we may still forget a thing or two, or get out just in time, but we are more than thankful because the blasting praise music in our home is a reminder that our Lord and Savior is with us in our abode, like a loving heavenly father looking out to His children.
Thank you for reading through our devotional today. I invite you to ponder on Isaiah 42:10-13, Ephesians 5:19, and Psalm 105:1-4 to dig deeper on today’s topic.
Reflection Question: Are your mornings chaotic? What can make it more peaceful?
Conversation with the Lord: Heavenly Father we praise and thank you for allowing us to worship you anywhere we are. We will forever praise and bless you with wonderful song that tell of your amazing grace! Amen.