Updated 4/3/22
Music helped shape my life. Is that kind of a weird statement? And I’m not talking about hymns or rock songs or anything like that, but basically Christian children’s music. My parents say that these were the first songs I enjoyed and began singing to. It’s strange, but these songs include simple truths set to simple melodies which make them easy to remember and recall.
When I was little, my dad was the music director at his home church so music was prevalent all around the house. I’ve got pictures of me singing along to the music he was listening to for church with a fake microphone in my hand. J Believe it or not, I was a bit of a ham when I was little…okay, so some of you might believe that, ha ha. My parents would buy children’s musicals and play them in the car. Those were fun to listen to, my favorite was We Like Sheep.
G.T. and the Halo Express was another favorite. G.T. and his “heavenly gang” were always available to help kids remember specific Bible verses when they were faced with certain situations. These musical Bible verses still stick in my head to this day! Here's a clip of a few:
You can actually purchase albums here: https://www.gthaloexpress.com
Psalty the Singing Songbook was another popular selection around the house and this even had videos to go along with it too! Along with Psalty was Colby’s Clubhouse. I loved the Colby Computer videos so much, I named my 2 cats after two of the characters on the video…computer disks Flip and Flop. Both Psalty & Colby had songs that were centered on certain truths that they were discovering during particular video. This Psalty video talked about how God has a plan for our lives:
The full "film" can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBlWHuplK14&t=1231s
Last, but not least, who could forget the Donut Man?!?!?...and how life without Jesus is like a doughnut - 'cause there's a hole in the middle of your heart!
The connections of these songs to God’s Word and truths were connections that helped shaped me into the person I am today. For instance, the “We Like Sheep” musical taught me that Jesus is my shepherd who loves and guides me and all other believers. My favorite G.T. & the Halo Express song was “Matthew 19:14” which was a song quoting the verse verbatim about how Jesus asked for the children to come to Him and not to hinder them; shaping my love for helping to bring children to the presence of Jesus. So many Psalty and Colby songs talked about love for God, Jesus, and others; the first time I ever heard the song “Make Me a Servant” was from the very first Psalty video – shaping my desire to be God’s life-long servant.
The music and lyrics were catered to my age range, allowing me to better comprehend and understand what I was listening to. I believe that music + God’s Word & truths is a very important combination that can help everyone (but especially children) praise God and shape their future (obviously if further nurtured…and I know not every child is privy to that).
Psalm 98:4 says, “Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music.” Psalm 119:11 says, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” I think that when you combine these verses it gives a very strong case for integrating music and God’s Word/truths together.
Today there aren’t as many characters like Psalty or G.T., but kids can still praise God and learn truths through praise songs (sung on their level, of course), VBS songs (which are always fun to sing AND dance to), and more updated children’s musicals (which they can be involved in at a local church). YOU, too, can learn truths through music…listen to Christian radio, Christian artists on i-Tunes, or at your local church’s worship service. If you stop and listen to what is actually being said and reflect on what you are listening to, you will learn some great truths and scriptures about how much God loves and cares for you. Then, when you begin to learn the song...sing it...to God because He LOVES to listen to His children praise and worship Him...no matter what age or vocal ability!
I leave you with one of my more **UPDATED** current favorite truths through music! Although, not a child’s song, this song reminds me that God is my foundation and He won't fail or leave me, no matter what happens.
