Songs That Sing to Me

Various kinds of music can have strong emotional, psychological, and spiritual impact on us. So can lyrics. Christian minister and emeritus university professor Lawrence Webb looks at lyrics to more than forty songs from a variety of genres that "sing" Christian messages to him. He says, "Not all the songs were written from a Christian perspective. Not every composer of the lyrics intended to make a spiritual impact. But that doesn't matter. When I hear each of these songs or call their lyrics to mind, they sing things of God to me. I hope they will also sing to you." In addition to the hymns, songs range from Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" and the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" to "Who Am I?" from "Les Miserables" and Don Quixote's "The Impossible Dream." Country selections include "Almost Persuaded" from the 1960s and "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" from the 1940s. Christmas carols include the traditional "O Holy Night" and "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day," as well as two original texts by the book's author. The book concludes with a meditation on the original Christian text of Robert Lowry's "How Can I Keep from Singing?"