Psalm 30:12

“To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.”

This is an excellent verse for all musicians, whether they are church pianists, organists, choir directors, song leaders, orchestra or band members, part of special singing groups, school music students, etc.; whether they participate in the “specials” within their own church or wherever they are given an opportunity to serve. Anywhere you play or sing, you should remember that when you receive glory for your talents and abilities, you must direct those praises to God Himself! “To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee.”

Well meaning people will tell you that you did a good job; they will say that they were blessed by your music. This is fine if you make sure that your glory sings praises to the Lord your God. It doesn’t take long for musicians to develop a pride in their performances. People who really mean well can accidentally turn a humble musician into a prideful artist. It is truly up to the musician, however, to make sure their glory sings praise to the Lord, not to themselves.

This difficulty for a musician is very understandable. Musicians dedicate themselves to countless hours and years practicing, practicing and more practicing. They learn to live in a little musical bubble while working hard to get to whatever level of musicianship they attain. The flesh is just itching to let pride flow. It doesn’t take much for a musician to be pumped up and exalted! They work hard to “be a blessing” to others, they cannot forget that their glory is to sing praises to Him!

Note that the remainder of this verse says, “O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.” It is truly a high honor and privilege to be able to give God the glory for your musical talent. Your playing and/or singing can easily be your worship to God!

Count it a blessing: not many folks have musical talent; not many ever took lessons and stayed with it; not many can sing or play an instrument; not many can read and understand the language of music. Just be sure to use whatever you have to His glory, not your own!