The Healing Power of Worship

Photo by David Beale on Unsplash

I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him. -- Psalm 40: 1-3

Long after words had abandoned her, my sweet mother-in-law never stopped worshiping.

Every Sunday she sat beside me in church, holding my hand, quietly keeping time with the hymns that had nourished her faith for decades. Alzheimer's disease stole almost every other faculty, but music had become so deeply embedded in her soul that it remained when so much else had faded.

Watching her worship taught me something: long before scientists discovered music's therapeutic benefits, God had been using it to bring comfort, encouragement, and healing throughout history.

Scientists have found that music can be a highly effective treatment for conditions ranging from anxiety and depression to stroke recovery and memory recall. However, millennia before neuroscience discovered the benefit of music, Scripture gives multiple examples of God using music as an instrument of comfort, encouragement, and healing.

From the time of David, God has used music to bring restoration to the soul. When King Saul was tormented by a spirit, his attendants sent for David to play the harp to soothe his heart and mind. (I Samuel 16:23) Multiple Psalms, most of which were songs, speak of God healing the brokenhearted and binding up wounds. (Psalm 147, 103) We are directed to sing to one another in songs, hymns, and spiritual songs as a means of encouragement to other believers and to honor God. (Ephesians 5:19)

Music is one of the beautiful gifts given to us by our Creator. He created it for our good and His glory. When worship through music, we draw near to the Great Physician, the One who alone has the power to heal our broken hearts and bind up every wound.

However, music is not the only form of worship that can heal our bodies, souls, and minds. Sometimes it is found in holy stillness, listening to the birds sing, the wind whispering through the leaves, or the steady rhythm of waves meeting the shore. Even these moments can quiet our anxious hearts, lower our stress, and draw our attention back to the Creator.

Turning mundane activities and chores into acts of worship by doing them “as unto the Lord” can transform anxious hearts into places of peace, restoration, and healing.

Worshiping through music should usher us into the presence of God and prepare our hearts for what lies ahead. It invites us to be where we need to live every moment.

It is more than music.

It is more than singing on Sunday morning.

Worship, like so many other aspects of our Christian walk, is not what we “do” but is a posture of our hearts.

We can and should worship doing the dirtiest of jobs just as we should worship on the mountain top or in the sanctuary of our churches.

Every moment of every day is a good time to worship.

Don’t wait until the next time you are in church to worship.

Begin now.

Step outside and listen to creation.

Thank Him while you wash the dishes.

Let it become the rhythm of your everyday life.

I intentionally set aside Wednesdays in my prayer journal as "Worship Wednesday." It's my opportunity to pause in the middle of a busy week, reset my perspective, and focus my heart on who God is.