Worship Wednesdays: Singing And Shouting In Church (How Matt Redman’s “Sing And Shout” Changes Our View On Worship!)

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If you have read my previous Worship Wednesday blog about Matt Redman’s smash hit song “10 000 Reasons”, then you know how much I have grown to love and respect Matt’s songs and his deep and honest lyrics. While I will not delve deep into how I came to appreciate Matt’s worship anthems more (that has only occurred over the past few months), what I will say is that another of my favourite worship songs of late has been the powerful and captivating upbeat worship anthem “Sing And Shout”, also by Matt Redman, and that is what I will be briefly be highlighting in this week’s post.

“Sing and Shout” is a song that we sing at church quite often, though the appreciation of the song by the congregation at times isn’t shown in lively and jovial expressions. As this is a lively and upbeat celebratory praise worship anthem, led by captivating electric guitar and rousing hand claps, it’s natural to move, sway, and dance to the contagious and infectious joyous tempo, especially during the parts where we sing out the slew of ‘woah’s’ in between the verses, chorus and the bridge. Even though at church some people are impacted by the song and show it in their outward expressions of worship, and some people choose to sit and reflect, I think the best way to rock out to this song is to just close your eyes, and dance as if there is no one else in the room. Letting go of all inhibitions, and declaring that we will sing and shout the praises of God, is probably what Matt had in mind when he wrote that song, and I commend him for creating a track that has been so well received by critics and listeners alike, as the song makes its way into the Sunday set lists all around the world!

Matt’s vibrant, eclectic, buoyant and toe-tapping worship anthem reminds us that of God’s love because of the great things He has done for us, and is an outlet of thankfulness and gratitude of all that He has done. Matt has also given us plenty to ponder and brilliant worship songs to sing to and give God glory and honour! With plenty of instruments, the song is another overt reminder that Matt is such a great song-writer and worship leader, with the track leading us corporately into worship with our Maker, and it’s such a blessing to be in the presence of God as we shout God’s praises without care for how it looks like when we worship.

Usually during worship, some of us are conscious of how our expression of worship looks to others. We wonder ‘will people laugh if I jump up and down and dance’ and we think there’s something wrong with us if the person next to us bawls their eyes out and we don’t feel a thing. Which of us is right in their expression. Though in our heads we know that all expressions of worshipping our God are valid, depending on your circumstance, how the song touches you, and the movement of the Holy Spirit, sometimes it takes a while to let that fact sink into our hearts. While this song brings with it the freedom that we can dance and sing in God’s presence without judgement, it’s nice to be reminded again and again that worshipping to God in our own way is ok. And that is why I love to hear this song so much at church, as it challenges our way of thinking, and hopefully will open us up a bit in terms of being vulnerable and true to ourselves.

Declaring that we can sing and shout and that God’s grace and the cross causes us to proclaim in freedom of His goodness; I will now leave you with my favourite part of the song lyrically- the bridge, which poses rhetorical question after question, as we ponder God’s love for us and what it means for our worship! And also, enjoy the live music video of the song as well! I guarantee it, you’ll be more of a fan of Matt Redman’s after this song just like I was!

What could be better than the grace
that washes all our shame away?
What could be better than
Your great Love?
What could be better than the grace
that leads us home and makes a way?
What could be better than
Your great Love?

Which worship song means the most to you, or challenges you in your thinking of how you worship God? Let us know in the comments! Til next ttime!

 

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