November: Household Soundtrack
usic has a unique power. It can alter our moods, our interactions, and our ways of seeing the world. When words are put to song, we remember them. Music has a way of forming us. We find the practice of making music throughout scripture, often as praise, and often in the context of spiritual formation. This month’s scripture passage comes at the end of the familiar “clothe yourselves with love” passage. Singing songs is part of how we become whole spiritual people. This month’s practice is all about being intentional - what will be the soundtrack of your household’s life together?
Read It Colossians 3:16-17
16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Pray It
God, thank you for the gift of music. Thank you for the artists who create this music, and for the songs you place in each of us. Amen.
God, thank you for the gift of music. Thank you for the artists who create this music, and for the songs you place in each of us. Amen.
Do It
- Remember: What are the songs from your early childhood that are still part of you? You may need something to jog your memory. How did those form you - or malform you?
- Reflect: How do you want your household to be formed? What words about God, humans and creation do you want your children to hear and embrace?
- Build Your Soundtrack: Using your preferred way of listening to music, begin to build your playlist. Our family uses Spotify, but maybe you prefer another streaming platform - or a good, old-fashioned CD collection! We found that CDs were actually great when our children were young. We curated what was available, but they had agency in choosing from them, and loved setting the CD to play all by themselves.
- Start with what you know. What are some songs that accomplish what you discerned in your reflections?
- Use keyword searches and crowdsource in your church or online communities to come up with some more songs.
- Here are some of our favorite artists on our family playlist: Bryan Moyer Suderman, John McCutcheon, African Children’s Choir, The Staple Singers, Audrey Assad, Nefesh Mountain, The Okee Dokee Brothers, Elizabeth Mitchell, and Girl Named Tom (here’s our Spotify playlist link if you want to take a listen!).
- These songs don’t all have to be overtly Christian or spiritual. For example, we love Jesse Winchester’s “You Can’t Stand Up Alone.”
- Start with what you know. What are some songs that accomplish what you discerned in your reflections?
- Listen! As you do life together, play your music in the background and see how it shapes all of you.
Explore it: A Note from Tami
Do you become weary of repeating the same songs over and over and over!? One thing I learned early on as a preschool teacher and as a mother is that repetition may be tiring to us, but it is valuable for children. Routine and familiarity foster security and comfort. One of my daughters had a favorite booklet of children’s songs that I sang through every night as I rocked her when she was a toddler. She "sang along" even before she could talk clearly. She also noticed whenever I, in my haste to be finished, skipped a song. AND She still can sing those songs in sequence!
There are many resources - articles, CD's, music books, playlists, etc. available on line. Following are just a couple of articles you may find interesting and helpful.
CHILDREN AND MUSIC: BENEFITS OF MUSIC IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Written by: Bright Horizons Education Team, April 15, 2021
3 Musical Ways to Influence a Child’s Emotions Psychology Today
Sometimes ads for various things show up on links. We are not promoting these items. However, we’ve chosen to include these websites and blogs simply because finding sites without any links is difficult and the sites we select do have valuable content. Feel free to ignore the ads!
Do you become weary of repeating the same songs over and over and over!? One thing I learned early on as a preschool teacher and as a mother is that repetition may be tiring to us, but it is valuable for children. Routine and familiarity foster security and comfort. One of my daughters had a favorite booklet of children’s songs that I sang through every night as I rocked her when she was a toddler. She "sang along" even before she could talk clearly. She also noticed whenever I, in my haste to be finished, skipped a song. AND She still can sing those songs in sequence!
There are many resources - articles, CD's, music books, playlists, etc. available on line. Following are just a couple of articles you may find interesting and helpful.
CHILDREN AND MUSIC: BENEFITS OF MUSIC IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Written by: Bright Horizons Education Team, April 15, 2021
3 Musical Ways to Influence a Child’s Emotions Psychology Today
Sometimes ads for various things show up on links. We are not promoting these items. However, we’ve chosen to include these websites and blogs simply because finding sites without any links is difficult and the sites we select do have valuable content. Feel free to ignore the ads!
