A Joyful Noise

Growing in the joy of the Lord has been our main focus through the music in Buckeye Baptist Church this year. As the Worship Director, I’d like to share my heart for our theme and how I’ve already seen the Lord work in our church this year.

We chose “The Joy of the Lord” as our theme because throughout the book of Psalms there are consistent exhortations for us to make a joyful noise unto the Lord (Psalm 66:1; 81:1; 95:1-2; 98:4; 100:1). These commands in the Psalms are calling us into outward worship. Outward worship should be seen and heard by those around you. I would categorize our music in Buckeye Baptist Church as outward worship–both seen and heard by others. However, in order for our outward worship to be genuine, we must first develop a personal joy within our heart. This personal joy is inward worship. What we learn from these commands to make a “joyful noise,” is that we must have inward worship that flows out of us as outward worship.

What I have had the blessing to witness in our church is an outward worship from our congregation that is rooted in an inward worship of joy. I’ve heard testimonies and seen behaviors in people that can only be attributed to the joy of the Lord in their life. My prayer for our church as we move forward throughout this year is that we would prioritize a deep, personal inward worship of the Lord that will continue to be evident in our outward worship as a body of believers in Christ.