For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.
- Doctrine and Covenants, section 25, verse 12
Yesterday, near the end of Sacrament meeting, I started to consider skipping the rest of the church block and heading home. I was enticed by the thought of all that I could accomplish in the two hours between Sacrament and dinner: scrapbook, organize my photo book, take a nap, snack on something other than the M&Ms in my pocket. I had about made up my mind to do it...
...And then we sang the closing hymn.
We sang America the Beautiful, hymn #338 in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Hymn Book. I love the song, and I liked that we happened to be singing it more than a week after Independence Day. I love singing songs out of season. It makes me feel like we feel strongly about the songs and the sentiments rather than being obligated to choose them once or twice a year as appropriate.
During the fourth verse, the organ stopped playing. I kept waiting for it to pick up again and finish out the song, but it didn't. The entire congregation sang the last verse A cappella. I don't know if I've ever experienced that before during a regular hymn -- the choir does it all the time, one might say excessively. My ward has over 650 members, and an already powerful song was made even more powerful as we all listened to each other, to the words, and to the spirit. I thought about how grateful I am to live in a country where I can worship Heavenly Father in a way that feels right to me. I thought about how grateful I am that I have musical talent and have worked hard to learn all of the parts (I sang bass an octave higher during the A capella verse). Mostly, I felt grateful for the Holy Spirit that is always most potent for me when I sing the hymns.
When the hymn was over, I no longer wished to head home early.
The assigned topic in Sunday School was the entire book of Psalms from the Old Testament. There are 150 of them, so the teacher didn't try to cover them all. To start, he had someone read out loud some of the most popular. He pointed out that the Psalms were hymns for the people that lived during that time. Then, the teacher broke from tradition and asked that several of the class members volunteer to share their favorite hymn, tell us why it's their favorite, and lead the class in singing a verse. It was wonderful! We had no trouble filling the time; I enjoyed the variation and the reasons behind each choice:
- Be Still My Soul, hymn #124
- How Firm a Foundation, hymn #85, verse 7
- The Morning Breaks, hymn #1
- Jesus, Lover of My Soul, hymn #102, verse 2
- The Battle Hymn of the Republic, hymn #60, verse 2
- Lord, I Would Follow Thee, hymn #220, verse 3
- As Now We Take the Sacrament, hymn #169, verse 3
I was a little surprised when I found out that the Relief Society lesson was about marriage and family -- turns out I am about four lessons behind in my reading schedule. Our sweet teacher was nervous to teach because sometimes we older singles and divorcées become defensive at the topic...and also because she is engaged and was afraid we might tune her out. Fortunately, she decided to approach the topic as "What can we do to get ready?", "What are our hang-ups?", and "What blessings are we looking forward to?" She commented that she and her fiancé continue to work through their issues from their single lives and the constant rejection they experienced before they met each other. She also talked about working in a bookstore and pointing newly divorced women to The Infinite Atonement when they asked for a self-help book because the Savior gave us the best method for healing and finding joy in our circumstances. It was a positive, hope-filled lesson. I'm glad I didn't miss it. (As a bonus: for once we sang every verse in the opening and closing hymns.)
I left church yesterday feeling very grateful that through the music in Sacrament meeting and Sunday School I was encouraged to stay for -- and I was receptive to -- the lesson on marriage. I needed the validation from the spirit and my peers that my loneliness and heartbreak doesn't make me weird, and that Jesus Christ is the best person to help me through it. I need and want to make more room for him.
My Sunday School teacher ended his lesson with Psalm 116, verse 12:
What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?Heavenly Father definitely communicates to me through music. I know He loves me and is mindful of me. I may begin starting my scripture study with a hymn. I may only read the words, or I might sing, but I believe the hymns will invite the spirit and put me in the right mindset as I pursue a stronger relationship with my Heavenly Father and with Jesus Christ.
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