I’ve been singing church songs as long as I can remember. In my formative years at Faith Lutheran Church in Morris Minnesota, we had three amazing humans that taught kids to sing.  Wayne and Donna Jo Kopitzke, led music for us in Sunday School.  With guitars, mile wide smiles, and a love of God and kids, they taught us to sing out “kids of the kingdom, that’s what we are!”  Then, when we got to third grade we sang for Bob Carlson in a real choir.  With our white turtle necks under red robes we sang sweetly and faithfully “everywhere I go, the Lord is near me.”  

Would it impress you if I told you that I could still sing Kids of the Kingdom, and Everywhere I Go, in their entirety?  Probably not, but you should know that those lyrics, those faith leaders, and that sung theology is a part of who I am.  I believed them when they told me I was a part of a kingdom bigger than just me, and I loved shouting out my name in that song to say I’m a part of that kingdom.  When I sang, I trusted in a God who was with me “everywhere I go,” even “in the coming days of joy and sadness.”  These things I learned when I was so young, are the pieces of faith that I am holding onto most closely today.

I am a part of something bigger than myself.

I am not alone. 
In both joy and sadness,
God is everywhere I go.

May this be good news for you today too.  You are not alone.  Life is beautiful, but it is also hard right now.  In a season of newness and celebrations, we find ourselves experiencing joy and sadness, losses and celebrations, new dreams and ongoing uncertainty.   God is with us.  We are not alone. In a world rocked by change, we are a part of a body of faith that continues to proclaim grace and kindness, we are a part of a body of faith that continues to serve the needs of our neighbor, we are a part of a body of faith that seeks the good for all people.

We are doing so many things so very differently today than we ever could have imagined, but the song of faith has not changed.  Share it with your children, sing it while you work and serve, let the lyrics of faith settle into your bones and fill you with strength and hope.

Let the message about Christ,
in all its richness, fill your lives.
Teach and counsel each other
with all the wisdom he gives.
Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs
to God with thankful hearts.

– Colossians 3:16

Prayer

Gracious God, give me a song in my heart that speaks of your love, your presence, and your strength in my life.  Amen.