Praise and Worship Songs
Praise and worship songs are not limited only to adults. Do you know that children, no matter how young they are, are able to enjoy praise and worship songs, not just musically, but also for their content? If you grew up with Sunday school as part of your weekly routine, you probably still remember many of the songs you learned from your Sunday school teacher. For example, the song “Jesus Loves Me” continues to be one that is easily remembered by anyone who has heard it even only once.
Many parents have resorted to children’s praise songs to entertain their active little ones, since many videos of these songs contain actions that children love to dance to. For example, the Jesus is My Superhero DVD from Hillsong Kids contains many fun songs that not only get kids up and moving, they also contain rich lyrics that establish a child in His love and power for his life.
What makes praise and worship songs different from regular songs?
- They extol the beauty of God. Praise and worship songs are different from mainstream songs in this first respect: these songs are full of praises for God. Instead of focusing on man’s weakness and failures, these songs turn our eyes away from ourselves and to the beautiful God, who is perfect, holy, and unlike any other. This refreshes our souls from the filth of the world and all the bad news that we encounter on a daily basis, bringing us back to Him who is Beauty.
- They praise the wonders of His works. What kind of works are these? Praise and worship songs sing about the wonders of His creation, but more importantly, they meditate on the finished work of the cross. These songs focus on the amazing heart that drove Him to the cross to die for humankind, stirring our hearts back in love to Him. In other words, these songs sing about His amazing grace extended to us in Christ Jesus. Not only do children benefit from listening to these kinds of songs, establishing them in His love, even parents can benefit from spending time in His presence basking in His love and grace. This is what fuels biblical parenting, which is basically parenting with grace, which can come about with a progressive revelation of His undeserved, unmerited favor.
- They declare the new identity of believers as a result of the work of the cross. Not only do praise and worship songs sing about His beauty and His work, they also declare and relish in our new identities in Christ. For example, songs like Breathe, found in Worship Together Here I Am to Worship for Kidsdeclare the believer to be thirsting for God and only satisfied in Him. This is part of our new identity, wherein we belong to Him and our hearts beat for Him alone.
- They have a definite effect on the human heart. Even if faith is something that cannot be directly proven by science, studies have shown that people who have faith tend to have more hope in the face of dire circumstances. This holds true for both adults and children, giving the person strength to face up to challenges and even helping to lead us in the right decisions in the midst of troubles. For example, a child who knows praise and worship songs will be confident in God even in sickness or in sadness, as opposed to one who suddenly feels all lost and alone because he has never heard about the One who cares for him. In addition to hope, praise and worship songs remind us of the peace we have in Him, allowing us to be calm even in the midst of tumultuous situations, giving us the courage to go on even if everything else seems to go wrong.
These main ways that praise and worship songs differ from the rest of the music in the world are the main reasons why people, both adults and kids, report feeling refreshed from spending time singing to Him! If you are facing up to any circumstance right now that you feel is not fair or is weighing you down, why don’t you go pick out a praise and worship CD and just bask in His love?