Eld Lee Kong Sing

The CPBPC Church Choir – A Testimony

Thank God for sustaining and blessing the Choir ministry these many years. The Choir ministry is rather unique because it stems from the music ministry that possesses characteristics that are unique. It is therefore not surprising that over the years, we have often received feedback and queries by congregation members concerning the practices of the choir. It is therefore good to share the rationale behind some of these practices so that congregation members can better understand and pray more effectively for the Choir.

Choir Theme Verse

The Choir has adopted a theme verse of Scripture to help define and remember its primary role. The theme verse provides guidance and direction in decision making relating to how to lead the Choir. Remembering God’s Word helps us to ensure that everything we do is in accordance with His will. While the theme verse helps chart the path for the ministry, it is, however, not the only passage of Scripture that we rely upon for guidance. Thank God for many other passages of Scripture that teach us to understand how we can care for this music ministry in a manner that is pleasing to the Lord and bring blessing to God’s people. The Choir theme verse is Colossians 3:16.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.“ Colossians 3:16

Colossians 3:16 instructs us to ensure that God’s Word dwells with us richly and the way that is taught here in this verse is through psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. “In all wisdom” means that we must finally put all the knowledge of God’s Word into practice through obedience. What this means in application is that the teaching of God’s Word can be done through congregational singing and listening to a choir presentation.

An example of how this verse can be put into practice is found in the days of the hymn writers of old. Many of the hymns we sing today came about by preachers who were gifted not only in preaching but also in writing lyrics and in some cases, gifted in composition of music for hymns as well. Such preachers composed hymns to supplement their messages over the pulpit such that the message and the hymn complemented one another as they ministered God’s Word. Biblical words rendered with beautiful and God honouring music convey God’s Word into the hearts of listeners in a powerful way. Godly songs are a means of grace given to us by God for our edification. Thank God that we have many of such hymns preserved till this day in our Revival Hymns and Choruses.

The primary role of the CPBPC Choir is therefore to teach and admonish listeners through psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to support the preaching of God’s Word, and to facilitate the congregation in the worship of God. With this understanding from Scripture, the Choir ministry must then see how it can put doctrine into practice as effectively as possible and in a way that honours God. How the Choir fulfils its theme verse will, in fact, make up much of the content of this sharing.

Song Selection

The work of the Choir to teach and admonish through psalms, hymns and spiritual songs begins with the selection of songs. Songs comprise two parts; the lyrics and the music. The lyrics is where the task of teaching and admonishment can be performed. The words of a song form the very foundation of the ministry of Choir. The importance of theologically correct words in songs cannot be over-emphasised. Without biblical words, we cannot begin to put Colossians 3:16 into practice.

The part of the song that consists of the music is where the emotive aspect of the song exists. One of the strengths of the ministry of God’s Word through music is the ability to bear God’s Word into the hearts of listeners by causing the listener to feel specific emotions. The combination of biblical lyrics and godly and well-composed music can have a very powerful influence on its listeners.

The first task of the Choir, therefore, lies in correct music selection where both the theology of lyrics and the nature of the music need to be vetted to ensure that they are biblical and godly. Vetting the theology of lyrics is often the easier of the two as it is relatively objective in nature, while determining if the music is suitable is often harder because the emotive nature of music can be more subjective. The Choir has the onerous task of discerning and deciding on music that is godly and suitable for the worship of God. It is a great and heavy responsibility that requires much care and prayer. We continue to covet the prayers of the congregation for God’s enabling to do this task biblically.

Technical Proficiency

With the right songs chosen, the next step is for the Choir to ensure that the conveyance of these songs can effectively fulfil the purpose of teaching and admonishing God’s Word to its listeners. In practice, fulfilling this objective is one of the most difficult aspects of the Choir to manage. To be effective at conveying God’s Word through music requires the Choir to attain a minimum level of technical proficiency as musicians.

Being technically proficient as a Choir is a necessary part in ensuring that God’s Word is effectively conveyed to the congregation. Technical proficiency refers to perfecting the musical techniques necessary in singing a song. If the Choir lacks technical proficiency, a song presentation will serve more to distract its listeners than to help them worship God. In its most basic form, technical proficiency consists of singing correct notes and singing in tune. If the Choir frequently sings wrong notes or sings out of tune, the result would cause listeners to become distracted by the Choir because of the mistakes made. When the Choir sings with mistakes or sings out of tune, the music no longer sounds pleasant. Instead of serving the purpose of inspiring listeners, a song that is badly rendered leaves listeners unsettled and uncomfortable in worship. The objective to teach and admonish listeners therefore cannot be fulfilled.

A good choir is one that becomes “invisible” which means the choir is heard but not seen. In other words, such a choir is able to help listeners forget about the singers even if they may be standing before them, and to put their complete attention upon the song. Ironic as it may seem, the better the choir, the less attention it will bring upon itself and the more attention it will bring to the words of the song. The words become so well-articulated and the music so beautifully rendered that listeners are transported to a state of meditative worship of God and reflection of their hearts. This is attained when the Choir achieves a high level of technical competence. The conviction in the hearts of the choristers is assumed to be present so that God can fulfil the spiritual objective of the Choir which is to bless the hearts of every worshipper in true worship. Hence, the objective of being technically proficient is for the Choir to ultimately direct the attention of listeners to the lyrics of the song and finally towards God Himself.

This is the reason why the Choir places a strong emphasis on spending many hours practising songs in preparation for presentations. The more technically competent the Choir is, the more it is able to convey the lyrics of songs to worshippers effectively with as little distraction as possible. The more the Choir is able to faithfully bring out the nuances written in the music, the more listeners will pay attention to its words and the more they will be edified and facilitated in the worship of God.

Although technical proficiency is very important to the Choir it is never pursued as a means unto itself whereby the spiritual context and purpose is forgotten. This understanding is important because it prevents the Choir from getting too carried away with pursuing technical excellence to the point that it may become an idol. Instead, seeking technical excellence must ultimately honour and glorify God for the purpose of the edification of the saints within and outside of the Choir. (1 Corinthians 14:12). Ultimately it must be the work of the Holy Spirit that will take the ministry of the Choir and turn it into a spiritual blessing.

Requirements of the Chorister

The question of why there should be requirements imposed upon individuals who wish to serve in the Choir has cropped up from time to time. The Choir believes that there are biblical reasons for doing so and the Exco has implemented these requirements in obedience to God’s Word.

The first requirement is that all choristers must profess salvation in Christ. The Choir is a ministry of God’s Word through songs. Every chorister is expected to play an active spiritual role which they do when they practise and finally sing at presentations. This is not possible if they are not children of God. This is unlike other fellowship groups or ministries where some play a more passive role. Every chorister is a minister of God’s Word in song. Therefore, just as it is unbiblical for us to allow an unbeliever to preach from the pulpit, similarly, an unbeliever should not be allowed to sing in the Choir. He will not pray and is not able to lean on God but self when he sings. This will hurt the ministry.

The second requirement is that choristers must be able to commit to the frequency of attendance and practices. The reason is to ensure that all choristers undergo adequate practice and training to attain sufficient technical proficiency before each presentation. Choristers who are musically weaker will need every opportunity to learn and perfect songs. Those who are stronger will also need to practise because with it they can only become better, and they can also help the weaker ones along, both ultimately glorifying the Lord even more.

Finally, aspiring choristers must possess the gift of choral singing. We believe that the ability to sing in a choir is a spiritual gift and like all gifts, it is not necessarily given to all. We often encounter contention when it comes to this requirement because there are those who believe that anyone has the ability to sing. While that may be true of most, it should be recognised that singing in the Choir ministry requires specific singing abilities that not all individuals may possess. The way in which the Choir Exco ascertains if an individual possesses the gift is by means of an audition. The primary purpose of the audition is to determine if the individual can hold a tune confidently. Why confidently? It is because the aspiring chorister will need to eventually sing in parts while being immersed in the midst of other choristers singing parts different from his own to form harmony in the music. Once it has been determined that the individual is able to confidently sing in tune, he is considered to have passed the audition. The chorister is not required to be able to read music notes. A second part of the audition is to determine which singing part the individual belongs to; soprano, alto, tenor or bass. This is dependent on the nature of the voice that God has given the individual. The audition panel currently consists of two to three trained musicians and representatives of the Choir Exco. The panel’s role is to ensure that the assessment is done objectively and as accurately as possible. Accuracy of the audition is very important because mistakes made during auditions by the testers can hurt both the individual and the ministry. After an individual has passed the audition, the Chairman of the Choir will sit with the individual and explain the obligations and requirements of the Choir to him to ensure that he fully understands the requirements of the ministry before agreeing to join the Choir. This is a calling like all ministries in the church of Christ.

All said, it must be mentioned that auditions are conducted erring on the side of generosity rather than caution. Our desire has always been to make available the opportunity to God’s children to serve the Lord in the Choir. The Choir is the Lord’s and for His flock. If there should be any uncertainty in an assessment, for example in the case where an individual falls within the borderline, a probation mechanism exists to allow such individuals to join the Choir first and undergo a review down the road. Our prayer is that this individual will pass the probation. Turning away anyone from the ministry is the hardest task for the Choir Exco.

Increase in Numbers

We thank God for adding more choristers to the Choir, especially in recent years. The Choir Exco does not believe we should “advertise”; nor do we believe that we should actively go about persuading individuals to join. We need only make information regarding this area of service known. If God calls individuals to join the ministry, He will lay upon their hearts the burden to serve in the Choir and they will come to us for an audition.

We view the increase in numbers as a blessing from the Lord in so far as the sound of the Choir becomes more powerful and immersive and hence more effective in reaching out to the hearts of the congregation. It ultimately means that we are able to serve the Lord better. We also thank God that as more join the Choir, the blessing of service and Christian fellowship is also made available to more. However, a bigger Choir does mean more technical challenges and greater accountability of souls. Just to name an example in terms of technical challenge is the fact that a new voice added results in changes in the blend and dynamics of the overall sound of the entire choir. As a result, the conductor needs to rework the sound blend which can take weeks if not months to create the balance once again. Added numbers literally translate to more challenges. This is not forgetting the added accountability of the chorister’s spiritual well-being.

Unique Profile of Choristers

As there is no age limit to choristers, there exists a wide spectrum of choristers with ages ranging from the YF to Golden Years age groups. Another characteristic of the Choir is the fact that a good number of choristers have been serving together for 10, 20 and even 30 years. This explains why some have commented that choristers appear to be a closely knit group. The unique profile of choristers is both endearing as well as challenging. The old and young serve the Lord together such that if older choristers are able to maintain a godly testimony, there is much the young can learn from them. If there is unity in the Lord, the diversity found in the Choir can become a manifold blessing.

Singing with Conviction

One of the most important requirements of the Choir ministry is the need for choristers to sing with conviction. The significance of doing so cannot be over-emphasised. Singing with conviction means to understand the meaning of the lyrics and be ready to apply them in practical obedience. In other words, choristers must not only be hearers, or singers, of the Word but must also be doers of it.

The lyrics of songs consist of themes such as faith, courage, sacrifice, commitment in service and righteousness just to name a few. The role of the chorister is to exhort the congregation with the words of the songs as he sings. It is not merely singing a song but rather it is to reach out to the congregation with biblical lyrics, encouraging listeners to obey and trust in the Lord more. If a chorister does not sing with conviction, what does it mean? As we have shown earlier, the choir ministry is like that of the pulpit ministry in that both are a ministry of God’s Word. The chorister who sings without conviction leading to obediance can be compared to the preacher who preaches but he has no intention of obeying. It would make such a preacher a hypocrite. The chorister who does not sing with conviction has failed in his role as a chorister.

Serving in the Choir, therefore, comes with a very heavy spiritual responsibility that goes beyond merely being committed to practices or being technically proficient. The chorister must be ready to minister to others with God’s Word in song. When understood in this light, the chorister bears a grave duty which God will hold choristers to. Therefore, individuals aspiring to serve in the Choir should not do so unadvisedly, lightly nor carelessly. Instead, they must recognise their role as ministers of God’s Word and they must not only sing but also do. (James 2:12).

How God Has Helped the Choir

We can strive and work hard, but without the Lord’s help, the Choir will not grow spiritually. The following are some of the ways God has delivered and blessed the Choir.

Many times, despite our best efforts, the Choir could not “perfect” a song prior to presentation. Under such circumstances we simply put our trust in the Lord and proceeded with the presentation nonetheless. We praise God because the Choir was enabled to present the song better than it did during practices. God’s grace and mercies sustained the Choir.

Despite the need for regular attendance, some choristers continue to find it a challenge to be regular. Irregular attendance creates a constant flux in the musical quality which normally means that the Choir will have difficulty progressing. However, despite this fact, we have observed that the technical proficiency of the Choir continues to improve and presentations continue to impact listeners for good. We can only attribute this to the hand of God. With God, nothing is impossible.

In our efforts to help choristers sing with conviction, we continue to teach choristers the meaning of lyrics and instruct them out of God’s Word. But whether they will finally sing with conviction in their hearts is beyond the control of man. And yet, we often receive feedback from listeners that the Choir sings with much conviction. It is the work of the Holy Spirit. We give God all the glory.

Most choristers have not received formal training in music. We are however blessed with the provision of able and trained musicians in our midst to help the Choir. Such choristers are able to play instruments and take up the role of training others when learning songs. Just as the Choir progresses, we also observed that God helps these musicians to progress in their skills. God’s blessing upon the musicians in turn blesses the Choir. We praise God for His bountiful blessings.

Conclusion

I hope that this sharing has served to help members of the church better understand the workings of the Choir and to pray better for its needs. We covet the prayers of the body of Christ. In particular, please pray that the Lord will continue to sustain the older choristers to persevere in service and that the younger choristers will be ready to faithfully continue the work when the time comes. Please pray for the leadership of the Choir that it may always be faithful and humble, seeking the Lord’s wisdom and guidance in all its ways and ever ready to make corrections where necessary. Finally, please pray that God will be merciful to continue to use the Choir to be a blessing to many within and without CPBPC.