When I was just a boy growing up in Midland, Texas, our First Baptist Church was starting a revival. After the evening service, my truck-driving dad offered his opinion of the singer as we drove home: “That old guy can’t sing very well, but he can get more singing out of a crowd than anyone I ever saw.”
The old guy was B. B. McKinney; and without my judging his singing ability, I would agree that Dad nailed it on his ability to get a crowd to sing. Though B. B. McKinney was one of a kind, we need one like him in every church to get the best singing out of the crowd.
Oh, I know Baylus Benjamin McKinney was the author of the words and music of 149 gospel hymns and songs. I know he composed the music for another 114 texts by other authors. I know he arranged more than 100 works. But his “Wherever He Leads I’ll Go” has led me to go where angels fear to tread and fools enter in: namely, into the worship wars of music. However, I enter the subject area on behalf of the Prince of Peace and with positive motivations.
A word about the worship wars of music
When I held a garage sale to move on much of my religious books to church staff members and libraries, I studied the yellow pages before I sent out personal invites to area churches. The yellow pages revealed that most churches were up-front about advertising that their music was (1) traditional, (2) contemporary, or (3) blended —besides other differences. Most of the churches claimed to be conservative, so style of music stood out more than the theology did. I wasn’t biased, so I sent all of them the same letter of invitation and moved on a lot of unused books to be a better steward of them.
Given that context, you might think I’m ready to wade into the worship wars of music and take a side.
Wrong. I’m sensitive to the reality of what one pastor of a large church said about its young minister of music’s efforts to lead our church in worship through music. In essence, the pastor said, “We’ve got four generations under one roof; and our minister of music tries his best to bring all of us to the throne of grace in one blended service —despite the fact that some kick and scream all the way.” We’ve got enough critics.
So let’s accept William J. Reynolds’ statement, “Southern Baptists have always been a singing people with great diversity in our music” (from Baptist History and Heritage). Then let’s agree that our congregational singing isn’t nearly as good as it ought to be and could be. This categorical statement is rare in my writing, but it’s true. As someone said, “You don’t have to be sick to get better.” That fact applies to the need for revival in congregational singing.
A word of context about this author and music
I’m not a musician or the son of one, but I love music of all kinds — well, almost all kinds. When I was waiting in a customs line in a New Zealand airport, I turned around and noticed the guy behind me had a smile as a big as a laugh on his face.
So I asked, “What’s so funny?” He replied in his UK accent, “Usually, you don’t hear people whistling classical music in a customs line.” Since my whistling is like Muzak to me, I asked him what I had whistled. He replied, “Beethoven’s ‘Hymn to Joy.’ ” But I also whistle Neil Diamond and Willie Nelson stuff and wore out my CD on “Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou?”
I took five years of mother-forced-piano lessons, but I can’t play Chopsticks. Nevertheless, I am a music participator. I can carry a tune and even let it out. My first unpaid church position came when I led congregational music after I had an arm-waving course under Euell Porter at Baylor. The little chapel didn’t have anyone but the pastor to announce hymn numbers; and he had never heard of a preparatory beat. So I volunteered for the job.
Now, I’m basically a preacher type; but I always participate in the worship music — even if I have to whistle it when I suffer bouts of laryngitis. Someone said, “There’s nothing worse than a singing preacher but a preaching singer.” I understand the role of each worship team member; but I also understand that the Bible supports every-member participation in psalms that praise God.
A word about the need for revival in congregational singing
Yogi Berra said, “You can observe a lot by watching.” That’s my main reason for feeling we need a revival in congregational singing. I’ve traveled over a lot of the world and been on both sides of the pulpit in a lifetime of church services. Although there are some strong, singing churches, I’ve observed a serious decline in congregational singing as a whole.
When we’re asked to stand and sing, I make it a point to look all around the church and see whose lips are moving and whose aren’t. For all the world, it looks to me like we’ve got a bunch of standing zombies who both don’t get it and aren’t a part of it in congregational singing. Admittedly, there are exceptions who sing, pat a foot, and sway a bit sometimes. I have observed recently that something is missing big-time in most of the congregational singing. We’ve become too much spectator-oriented of performance-based music rather than participating with heart and soul along with those who lead.
A word about what’s next
In seminary mission classes, former Tennessean Cal Guy began each class with a pumped fist and a mighty lead in singing, “Oh, Zion Haste!” And if we didn’t share his mighty leadership with our own voices, he stopped and made us start over. The world is lost, but praise God, there is a Savior! We’ve got much to sing about, and I want to say more about the singing next time.
— Copyright 2008 by Johnnie C. Godwin. E-mail: johnniegodwin@comcast.net
