Rekindling Faith

Memory has the power to bring to our consciousness things thought to be forgotten.  The other night out the blue came a memory of a song I had not heard in such a long time, one I learned growing up in Sunday night worship, and one I would have thought forgotten forever until I remembered it.  "In Times Like These" was the gospel song.  Maybe you remember George Beverly Shea singing it in one of the Billy Graham Crusades, or maybe you remember it from those informal Sunday night worship services when you sang until you were breathless.   

"In times like these, you need a Savior.  In times like these, you need an anchor.  Be very sure, be very sure, your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock."  I love those old songs of the faith.  I miss those Sunday night services.  As a preacher I always was trying to recapture that faith building experience for those entrusted to me.  While I confess to not being a big fan of contemporary music in worship, the reason has to do with what is being remembered and stored in our spiritual storehouse.  We sang those old songs from "The Cokesbury Hymnal" over and over and over.  They were a part of the building blocks of our faith.   

I wonder what kind of memories are being stored through the music experience of today's church.  Will people thirty or forty years from now remember the lyrics of songs of faith, or will they simply remember the worship team and the excitement generated by the rhythm of the music and stage atmosphere?  I know this is the old fashioned worn out preacher longing for the good old days, but I still wish I could be sure there will be memories being created which have the power to rekindle faith.