Meditation on the Word allows us to slow down and ponder each word and phrase. It allows us to question how each of them flows into the other. Sometimes I do a thought experiment and ponder the opposite meaning of a word or phrase to gain greater insight. For example, instead of, “The Lord is my shepherd…” I will consider how I’m honestly relating to God in the moment and choose a different descriptor. Years ago I was meditating on that phrase and I came up with, “The Lord is my taskmaster…” Ouch. That led to some honest reflection.

Little words often get overlooked but if we change them, they turn out to be very important. Consider Psalm 96:1-2:

Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth!

Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.

The preposition to is repeated three times. Three times there is a command to sing to the Lord. What if we replaced that with another preposition? Would it change the meaning?

Sing about the Lord.

Sing for the Lord.

I’m not saying these other prepositions don’t express a truth about how we are to praise the Lord. But they do change the meaning. Singing about someone isn’t necessarily personal. It doesn’t require them to be present. Singing for someone can describe a performance. But what about singing to someone?

Because my background includes some professional musical training, any time I am playing my instrument or singing I can fall into the trap of performing for someone. Last night I was at a Christmas event and we were singing carols and worship songs. I found myself worrying about how I sounded to other people and if the harmonies I was singing were correct. But by the end of the night I didn’t care as much and allowed myself to just sing to the Lord. Isn’t he my primary audience?

Zephaniah 3:16-17 is a favorite passage when speaking of singing and God. It says, “On that day [the Day of God’s arrival in the consummation] it shall be said to Jerusalem: ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.”

Let those words and what they communicate about our God dwell richly in your soul. Marinate your heart in them. Our God, the Holy One of Israel, has redeemed us and that redemption is something he sings about! He so delights in his people (see also Psalm 149:4 and Isaiah 62:4-5) that he cannot help but break out in loud praise.

So as you make your through another holiday season and take time to sing carols and hymns and spiritual songs, remember that you are singing to someone. He hears them. He delights in them. And he is singing over you.