This is just a short note for the evening. First off, don’t think I’m ranting. I’m not. I used to listen to rock music way back when I was in my 20’s via a set of headphones. A lot of times it would be at night when all was quite. I got warned the volume was too loud and it would ruin my hearing. Well, it was loud enough for most anyone in the room to make out what I was listening to.

Then I played drums, too. For twenty-five years I played drums in our church worship team. I was in the corner of the room where the sound seem to converge. I had a Peavy column speaker with four ten inch woofers and a horn tweeter laid on its side at a 45 degree angle towards my left ear. After some Sundays I could not hear well till about Tuesday. We played loud and hard. I broke or threw sticks sometimes so that should give you some idea. We had a horn section to my left and a B-3 Hammond cranking up on two Leslie speakers on either side of me as well. Throw in the bassist and a couple of other instruments and you can understand where I’m at in that corner.

Well, fast forward to today. I have moderate hearing loss in my mid-range, both ears and severe loss in the high end range in my left ear. I also have tinnitus that I’ve grown to put out of my thinking most of the time. I now have hearing aides. So. I am well aware of what loud music will do to a person over time.

Now to my point. Our church has a driving music force for a worship team now with a loud sound. The person running the board has to turn down the sound, but we have a floating control board a guy walks around with that turns the sound back up. When I wear my hearing aids I can change the programs in them on four levels by clapping my hand to my ear. It’s the percusive action to my ear that changes the program from the clapping. To say how loud the music is in the service when I walk in and stand for a minute or two there is enough percussion in the air to change my hearing aids program just from the sound being so loud. So I can’t wear my hearing aids in the service. I’ve seen people leave because it was too loud.

There is something all musician’s understand I think. It’s called dynamics. It’s the building of sound to certain levels according to the mood of the music. That is not understood by young inexperienced musicians. I can’t blame them. I was the same way. Why do you think I have to wear hearing aids? So it’s not a rant or condemnation. It’s a simple statement of fact. I still love loud music, but I also understand the nature of God.

So, how does God hear? I’m not going to belabor this, so I will simply say. God is not deaf, nor does He have any level of hearing problem. He can hear in the loud music or in the soft music. People are directed in worship by the level of the music. When we celebrate, then loud music is appropriate. However, when there’s an altar call or worship sets in the dynamics of music should follow to the softer side to settle people’s minds to listen and hear the Spirit speak. We need to be more decerning in God’s desires for the moment.

God can hear in the loud and the soft, but just how does God hear? He hears the heart. Volume has nothing to do with how or what He hears. He hears your heart. What does your heart say?

Luke 6:45 – A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

Once again it’s not how loud, or soft for that matter, that you speak. It’s what your heart speaks. God hears that before it ever gets out of your mouth. Or through the skill of a musician’s hand or voice in music.