The main thrust of this stanza is that God provides comfort during times of suffering. In this passage, that comfort comes in the form of song. Take a look at this passage for yourself in Psalm 119:53-56:

When you are in the midst of suffering, your first response probably isn’t to sing. But Scripture makes the connection between the two more than once. God’s Word tells us that to sing when we face suffering, while not the logical choice we might turn to, is the choice we should turn to. The reason, perhaps, is that we can be more aware of God’s comfort in the midst of suffering when we sing.

The most prominent example of this perhaps is the account of Paul and Silas in prison, in Acts 16. The two were in Philippi, and had been severely beaten after driving a demon out of a slave girl. Paul and Silas were stripped and beaten, and then thrown into jail. Around midnight, they were singing and praying, drawing comfort from God for themselves, but also for the other prisoners who were listening to them. An earthquake occurred, and the prison doors were opened, leading to the salvation of the jailer before the night was over.

The fact that Paul and Silas were singing in the middle of the night, in the face of extreme suffering, mirrors Psalm 119 closely. The context of this whole stanza is focused on the persecution of the wicked upon the author, and the suffering he experiences as a result. But in verse 55, he remembers the name of the Lord “in the night,” just like Paul and Silas did.

The psalmist turns to song in the face of this suffering, and the focus of his songs are the Word of God. Song has the ability to evoke extreme emotion, whether positive or negative. Singing and music is a very powerful things, and if we make the theme of our music positive, and base it upon the Word of God, the result will be joy and a continual sense of worship. Music is powerful! It has been said that music is one of the only things that stimulates both side of the brain, both the analytical and logical side as well as the creative and emotional side.

With such a powerful tool at our disposal, it seems necessary that we wield it carefully. We would do well to be like the psalmist here, and to make God’s Word the theme of our song, and to make it our practice. Pairing the power of music and song with the power of Scripture provides a strength that can be found nowhere else. We would do well to make it our focus.

A word of caution is necessary however. While there is a lot of music in the mainstream that may seem good, we must be careful with it. I’m not advocating that we never listen to music that isn’t Christian, because there is much that is good and creative and worth listening to. But there is also much that isn’t good, and will rob us of our joy, and of our focus. If music is so powerful, we cannot blindly listen to just anything, or else we will see it affect our hearts. So choose wisely what you listen to, and what you sing.

Make it your practice as well.

Question: What do you listen to you, when it comes to music? How often do you sing? How does that affect your spiritual life and growth? You can leave a comment by clicking here.