The Song That Never Ends

               ​One of the many fond memories that I have of my college years were the times when my roommates and I got to hang out together. We had quite the enjoyable brotherhood. All of us were believers, we all enjoyed playing and watching sports, and valued a good laugh. One of our weekly activities had to do with music. On Sunday nights, we would usually all be at our apartment eating junk food and watching Sunday Night Football together before the new week came upon us. Either during halftime of the game or at the conclusion of the evening, we would all focus in on our first group project that would set the tone for the days ahead…it was time to select the Song of the Week. The Song of the Week was something we implemented early in our relationship where we would settle on one particular song that we would treat with special honor. It would be expected that this song would be played constantly and consistently throughout the week. Over and over again this song would be on repeat and we would jam out to it. By the week’s end, we knew the ins and outs of this musical masterpiece. It was stuck in our heads. Sometimes, I still find myself hopping and bopping to a song from weeks’ past.
            What is your Song of the Week? Has there been a tune that has been constantly popping up in your head that causes you to break out in song at random times throughout the day? If I had to pick one for this week, it would probably be Way Maker. We have been singing this the past several weeks in church and I have grown quite fond of it. One of the powerful aspects of music and song is the reality that our brains can tend to gravitate toward remembering lyrics set to a beat and rhythm. When we constantly hear something or are constantly singing something in our heads or out loud, we are cementing that image or words within our memories for quicker and longer-lasting recall. Maybe you can think of other examples of things you remember from long ago through some phonetic device?
            This week, we wrap up our series on Pentecost with a quick look at the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Church in Colossae. Paul is seeking to help guide their understanding and growth in the Lord by repeating to them some of the essentials of the Christian faith. It is in this repetition and invitation to remember that their continual development and growth can take place. For Paul, these brothers and sisters in Christ are constantly on his mind. He writes that he constantly prays for them and he continually asks God to continue to grow in them a love and knowledge of Him as their Savior. In a world that can throw a lot at us as believers, we too are invited to rest in the reminders that Paul is deliver to them. We are invited to be reassured of our standing with God. We are invited to have His song of grace on repeat in our lives as we go about our day-to-day activities. This is a song that is not just meant to last for a week, but for a lifetime. The song of the Gospel is truly the song that never ends.