Short shelf life. . .

I am not much of a fan of expiration dates.  Yes, a jar of mayonnaise that was 20 years past the best by date is not worth salvaging but neither do I think that the ketchup that expired last year is necessarily bad for me.  There are some things, however, that expire because we no longer want them.  My dad used to say that most folks get tired of their carpeting or drapes long before they wear out.  We do get tired of things and some things it is a good thing that we have outgrown them.  Who among us wants to return to the polyester leisure suit era?  In that case, the proverbial lime green or pink leisure suit did not wear out and is probably surviving just fine in the landfill but who wants them?

Worship songs don’t last as long as they used to. The average lifespan of a widely sung worship song is about a third of what it was 30 years ago, according to a study published in the January edition of the magazine Worship Leader.  Whereas once the songs of contemporary Christian music lasted a decade or even longer, now they seem to have a shelf life of about 3-4 years before giving way to newer songs.  It is certainly part of the dog eat dog nature of a competitive world not only seeking to have songs sung but earning money from the copyrighted material.  It is one more sign that when the focus is on what is new, it must always be new.  Curiously, the appetite seems to be coming as much from the hearers of this music as the songwriters and singers (thinking here that much of CCM is for the spectator more than for the congregation to sing).  According to the article, people are pressing their worship leaders with questions, "Have you heard this?  Do you know that?"  Some say it is because contemporary Christian music is no longer distributed by conference but by media -- Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, iTunes, Pandora, and YouTube. Some of these, perhaps even a majority of Christians using contemporary Christian music will themselves stream a new song weeks before they hear it in church.  It is not only this kind of music but the worship that uses such music that is very time sensitive and tied to consumption patterns.  The pastors and worship leaders of these churches are not introducing the latest and greatest worship song of the week but the people are insisting that they need them.  And with this is the unmistakable conclusion that yesterday's praise chorus or worship song is stale and boring sooner rather than later.

I write this after having led a Bible study on the topic of hymns, what they say, why we sing them, and how they witness the faith to the singer and those in the world.  Our journey went from Biblical canticles through the practice of Psalm singing to the early chants become hymns and finally to the Reformation and the Lutheran chorale.   None of these are contemporary though they might have been at some point but all of them have become the staples and familiar sets of God's people gathered around the means of grace to sing His praise.  They have endured not simply because they are singable or people are asked to sing them but because of what they sing.  The faith in words wedded to a text become a powerful means of teaching and expressing the hope that is in us.  In this way the Church has connected with those who went before, echoing in their words the contemporary song of praise that never goes in or out of style.  Also in this way, they add their voices to the voices of those who sang long ago and they prepare the voices of the the future to join in the timeless, never ending song of praise that is the hallmark of the faith and the faithful.

Good hymns never go out of style.  They may fall out of usage  -- especially after itching ears and voices seek after new songs to replace them but their message is not dated nor is their purview limited to a moment.  That is the mark of great hymnody -- when we sing what those who went before us sing and this happens all the way back to the earliest of days.  The good hymns of the moment become the priceless treasures added to the body of hymns received as the judgment of the Church is rendered by singing them more and not less.  It does not surprise me that a hymn like Abide with Me continues to be sung while the praise choruses of CCM fall out of style and become boring after a few years.  That says as much about us as it does the hymn or chorus itself.  Telling the story of Jesus is not dated and, if done well and matched well to a tune that fits the text, it becomes timeless!