I don’t always have the right words to say. And most times, I feel tied up in knots when I can’t formulate the perfect sentence to make someone else’s situation seem better.

I’m the one who is often overly cautious.Yes, I’m the parent at the playground who hovers closely to my children to make sure nothing horrible happens to them.I’m also the one who carries the arsenal of band-aids in my purse and car in case anything does.

I come prepared for anything…

Except for the difficult situations in life that I leave me speechless.

Do you ever feel that way?

I love to string together words of encouragement to lift someone’s spirit, but there are many circumstances in this life in which words are not enough.

Music, however, can convey messages to the heart that words alone cannot.

In the pages of God’s Word, we can find many accounts of people who set their feelings to song. Some sang with all of their hearts after a victory or upon hearing great news. Still, others experienced the loss of a child, or intense torment and asked for music to be brought in to soothe their mind.

Music is important to God.

We find that before David was king, he served King Saul and would play the harp to make ease the king’s mind and to make the tormenting evil spirit go away. It was visible to the King’s attendants that David was a skilled harp player and that The Lord was with him. (1 Samuel 16:14-23)

David was simple shepherd boy, and God used his gift of music to bring healing and rest to the King who was in desperate need.

Again, we see throughout the Psalms that David wrote many of them “to the tune of…”. Some of these precious passages were intentionally written to be played with music.

One of them specifically is set to the tune, “The Death of a Son.” (Psalm 9) A psalm you’d expect to begin with, “God, I’m in deep grief,” actually begins with, “I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart.” That challenges me friends. Out of one of the darkest times that a parent could walk through, the first words of David’s psalm declares praise to Our God. Help us God to sing Your praise and to tell of Your great love no matter what we face!

Let’s face it; sometimes only songs can capture how we are feeling inside. Sometimes songs can move us in ways that allow us to find healing or relief from the circumstances we find ourselves in.

Music is an incredible outlet for both the musician and their fan. I know this to be true.

I sing a good bit and there are times in the car where I find myself singing at the top of my lungs and weeping because both the lyrics and the music of the song just make sense in my heart. It may not solve the problem at hand, but it does give me the reassurance that God is near and He understands me. It helps me exhale a deep sigh from my brokenness and inhale hope for the day. It’s a feeling we can share with those in our life who are in need the same thing.

Music helps the hearts connect over truths in God’s word that reaffirm he is near to the broken hearted and is with the ones who feel desperate and alone. When our grief turns to overwhelming anguish, we might not have the words to say to a friend. But, sending them a song or singing one over them in prayer can bring comfort and welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit into their deepest despair.

I many not be able to solve every problem for my friends, though I wish I could. I may not be able to understand the deep heartache of devastation that they may be experiencing, or even the loss from grief they are walking through, but my God can.

And though I may not have the words to make sense of their situation or struggle, I find myself sending songs their way.

Just like David served the King by playing songs and hymns for him while he was in distress, we too, can send songs and hymns to those around us.

In Ephesians 5:19 the Apostle Paul says, “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

When we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, we can live an outward expression and extension of God’s perfect and powerful love. The work that is being done inside of us not only benefits our life, but it also is a blessing to others. We may not know all the right things to say, but we do know a song or a psalm that could bless someone today.

As we go about this day, let’s keep Paul’s message in the forefront of our minds: to speak to each other with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.By sending a song to a friend, it may bring light to their darkness, and joy in the midst of sadness, and God can bring hope to them.

While we are listening to our playlists today, or if we hear a song on the radio, let’s keep in mind that it could be a lifeline and blessing to someone else too. Send it with love and encouragement, and tell them to turn up the volume.

peace- Liz