10 Reasons Even Committed Church Attenders Are Attending Church Less Often

Well, of course, like music ministers and worship leaders around the world, Easter is on my mind today. That's because, as I write this, Resurrection Sunday is just four days away. It is truly a magnificent celebration for any Christ-follower, not to mention those of us who are church musicians.

 

I have such fond memories of Easter Sundays from my childhood. Beautiful spring weather (although, in Missouri, this was definitely not guaranteed); dyeing, hiding, and hunting eggs; gorging on chocolate-marshmallow bunnies; and--lest you think I had no spiritual awareness as a child-church.

 

I loved the songs we sang on Easter Sunday morning and, particularly, "Low In The Grave He Lay" composed by a Baptist pastor named Robert Lowry in the late 19th century. You know, the one that goes: "Up from the grave He arose, with a mighty triumph o'er His foes!" That hymn, with its sad, slow verses contrasted against the big, dramatic flourish of the chorus, really got my blood pumping. I think it's because all those farmers and good ole' country folks standing all around me really got into the dynamics of it. They could barely be heard on the low parts that spoke about the death of Christ; but then, suddenly, at the chorus, they would belt out the familiar refrain with gusto, as if they were going to start marching up and down the aisles at any minute. I can still hear those sincere, untrained, beautiful voices. That hymn is one of my favorite musical memories from my early childhood.

 

As a bigger kid, I remember the excitement in the air the day our little country church started using the "new" Baptist hymnal, the 1975 edition! It contained the Bill and Gloria Gaither-penned song, "Because He Lives," which our congregation began singing pretty much every single Sunday. (I'm not kidding.) It became our new Easter favorite, but it wasn't until many years later that I would read the Gaithers' testimony of how that song came to be. Bill and Gloria were going through some difficult times, and found out that they were expecting their third child. Gloria tells of turning on the evening news, already anxious about the pregnancy, and seeing footage of race wars and an escalating drug epidemic. Nearly paralyzed by fear, she began to pray, voicing to God her worries for the future of her children. Within minutes, God flooded her spirit with pervasive calmness, and she wrote the lyrics: "This child can face uncertain days because He lives ...because He lives I can face tomorrow...all fear is gone."

 

A few years ago, a current songwriter of some of our most popular modern worship tunes, wanted to breathe new life into this Gaither hymn that had meant so much to him through the years. Matt Maher approached the Gaithers and asked for permission to use some of their lyrics. They were, of course, thrilled that the words the Lord had given Gloria so many years ago would reach a new generation of believers who need the same reminder, and readily consented. And so, a new "Because He Lives" was born. The old and new come together beautifully in a chorus that proclaims, "Amen, Amen! I'm alive, I'm alive because He lives. Amen, Amen! Let my song join the one that never ends: Because He lives, I can face tomorrow; Because He lives, every fear is gone. I know he holds my life, my future in His hands."

 

And this is how worship music changes through the years. But the works of Robert Lowry, Bill and Gloria Gaither, and Matt Maher have this in common: a deep devotion to our glorious, risen Lord and a desire to make Him known. Because HE lives, His anthems will continue to be composed with passion and sung with gusto. I look forward to hearing and singing the songs still to come!

 

Because He lives,

Kevin