For some, worship is the part of the church service when individuals feel closest to God. But why should it end there and be confined to a sanctuary ? In Hebrews, we are commanded to continually praise the Lord through song. In today’s society, it should be very easy for us to always have some Christian music on hand that we can worship with. Whether you have an iPhone, an iPod, a Zune, a MP3 player, a cell phone that plays music, or a portable CD player (do people still use those?), you have the opportunity to listen to Christian music virtually all the time.
It can be hard, however, to start listening to contemporary Christian music if you are not used to it. Maybe you don’t know any of the bands. Perhaps you don’t know the words to the songs. Or maybe you have no clue what kinds of contemporary Christian music are out there and no idea about what you might like.
Fortunately, there are resources readily available that can help you get started. There are websites out (like Ministry and Media and Extreme Youth) there that can help you identify specific Christian artists that have a similar sound to what you usually listen to. For example, if you like the smooth melodies of John Mayer, you should check out Andrew Peterson or Switchfoot. If you like to rock out to Lincoln Park, you should check out Pax 217, EDL, Pillar, or Skillet. A couple of Christian alternatives to the Black Eyed Peas would be 1 Way or Group 1 Crew.
Since we are called to continually praise the Lord, let us soak in music that will glorify him. Music is a great way to worship no matter where we are, and a great tool to remind us of where our focus should be.
"Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name." (Hebrews 13:15 NIV)