The elderly gentleman stepped up his pace to catch up with me following the event. I was zipping back and forth through the crowd following the Servant/Leader Appreciation Night event our TAB team co-sponsored recently when I felt his tug on my arm.
Turning around to see who was trying to get my attention, my heart melted as I saw the tears in his eyes. He merely wanted to thank me for making the event possible — mainly because of the music, he told me.
We combined a night of comedy with traditional southern gospel music — and it was the music that did his soul good, the gentleman said between breaths.
“It really lifted my spirit and I needed that,” he told me.
That wasn’t the first time I’ve seen this type of reaction following a time of traditional worship by someone who has an emotional connection to the hymns or southern gospel-type songs.
After all, music provides an emotional experience for all of us.
The more contemporary style of music connects deeply with those coming to Christ and growing in Him today, while the hymns are many times the favorites of our more seasoned believers.
No matter the style, the words, tune and rhythm of particular songs connected to powerful moments in our lives will always draw those emotions back to the surface, even after many years have passed.
So for someone who desperately longs for a touch of the old hymns, it isn’t because they are being difficult. It is because their soul longs for it. And for those more interested in the newer songs, it’s because that’s where their souls are filled.
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