If I am honest, the amount of times I was told I can’t carry a tune in a bucket is quite, well… numerous. I love to sing though and singing has brought me an incredible amount of joy over the years, whether it brought anyone within hearing distance any joy is another story. This used to make me sing softer, to try to not be heard, but I am thankful I have been a member of many choirs where not everyone sang perfectly and I was encouraged to sing anyhow. My memories are filled with songs, sometimes arising in unexpected places, in some grocery aisle knowing every lyric to a song I haven’t heard in 20 years still impresses me. How music invades us and settles in to be remembered and treasured is a great joy and mystery. Many of my memories of worship are wrapped in music, songs that brought my heart to aim right, instruments played that lifted me out of myself and into His presence. 

  Now I sing a lot more at home, as Raphael loves to listen to music and to try to sing. He treasures music and songs with such genuine joy. While he is limited by his physical ability to control his voice, his desire to sing is not lacking. The delight he expresses when he manages to work and pull out a sound similar to a part of a song is unparalleled. We sing together daily, and he has yet to complain about my lacking skills. He just longs to join in the song. 

  Islam has no music. There are no songs to sing, no instruments to play, no lyrics buried within the Muslim memories of worship. They are called to prayer, by a Muezzin, a chant of compelling to come to prayer. They come, cleanse themselves, arrange themselves into lines and pray rote prayers while practicing the same movements. There is order, acceptance of all in their spot and everyone knows their spot. No one is out of place. They come as though a military inspection is performed by Allah and they hope to not be called out of order. In some ways this can be very appealing, knowing exactly what is expected, where to be and what to do. There are some branches of Islam that use chanting to reach ecstatic states, like the whirling dervishes, who chant and sway and whirl to bring about an altered state of consciousness. Muslims listen to the Quran chanted as a substitute for music. While Muslims do listen to secular music, it is not encouraged by the strict standards of Islam and none of the music is considered worship. 

  In contrast, the Psalmist left us music and lyrics to be treasured for thousands of years. The Scripture is full of encouragement to sing, dance and play music in worship. Music is a gift from the Father to us, not only to enjoy but to connect us in our unique abilities and unite us in joy. While formatted worship brings us stability and comfort, singing allows us to bring our own expression of Him in us to our worship, like a signature of our own at the bottom of the contract. The contract is formatted, right places, and protection but the signature is my own expression of joining that is uniquely mine. That is my voice lifted in song. 

  Is it any wonder that Muslims all find the Psalms intriguing? Our hearts long for self expression. The format and structure of Islam feels in so many ways safe to the Muslim, but the inner longing for release of their own expression remains unanswered. Pray with us to see them joining the amazing choir of followers of Christ! Pray with us to hear their voices lifted in song of worship! (And while your tune bucket may have holes like mine, sing out anyway! Don’t miss out on the joy!)

Angela Abraham