Area-wide Singing…

Recently a friend of mine shared with me this newspaper article from McNairy County Independent Appeal newspaper in west Tennessee.  The article announces a Sunday morning singing in Finger, Tennessee, just south of Henderson, Tennessee.  The date of this article is August 15, 1913.  Step back in time and read how a small, rural community viewed opportunities to fellowship and worship together…

“Notice:  We will sing at Lain’s School House all day the third Sunday in August, 1913.  Bring all your song books, and especially your old ones, as we will sing more old songs than new ones.  These new songs are cheap stuff anyhow at meetings like these.
An organ will be there, and a trained organist playing it. (this was the Christian church)
We rather see boxes than bottles, baskets than bruises, peace than pistols, worship than war, joy than jugs, beef than beer, knowledge than ‘knuckles’, water than wine, a song feast than a series of  fistfights, a manifestation of a spiritual out pour than the laying on of hands of a civil law officer, pies than pipes, mutton than murmuring, rounding of voices in song than the result of vices, good behavior and orderly conduct than bad manners and wretched confusion, there that day.  We will begin at 10 a.m.

Remember the date, please, and come prepared to sing and not to talk politics, argue scripture, swap horses, raise the tick quarantine, trade knives, tell big fish tales, opine what the price of cotton will be by Christmas, prophesy for dry weather, inquire into the whereabouts of Dick, Tom and Harry’s missing watermelons, recite Paul’s charge to Timothy, tinker with the tariff, announce the exact age of a mule by looking into said mule’s mouth, or explain what the Good Book meant when it said: ‘One woe is past: and, behold there come two woes more hereafter.’

Several good leaders promised to come.
Let’s have a first class singing.
A stock of new yarns will be disposed of at reduced prices that day.” (the author of this news paper article Hodges, operated a store)

Harvey Hodges

It’s interesting to read from years gone by the simplicity of daily life and the planning that went toward getting the community together to sing.  In 1913 our country was a much different place than you and I live in today.  Life styles were simple and the concern for what was important took precedence.  If we were to step back in time and live a day in the early 1900’s, most of us won’t survive more than a few weeks.  Without air conditioning, running water and indoor plumbing there would be little to ‘sing about’.  Why did folks in this time period dedicate a full day to singing praises to God?  Did they know something we don’t know?

Simply put…we have become too busy to slow down and praise God in song.  We are more interested in finding the newest ipad app rather of finding peace in praising God.  Our schedules are so full of self that we forget each other.  Of course even those in the 1913 had to be reminded to put aside selfish ideas and opinions and focus on the task at hand.  It would be interesting to find out how many came to the Lain’s School House on that Sunday morning in August.  Then again, if we called for folks to join us THIS coming Sunday…how many do you think would come?

“Come, let us all unite to sing, God is love.  Let heaven and earth their praises bring, God is love.  Let every soul from sin awake, each in his heart sweet music make, and sing with us for Jesus’ sake, for God is love.”  Written in 1849 (54 years before this ‘Tennessee singing’) and published in Millard & Badger’s Hymns, this song reminds us of the importance of coming together and singing.  Join us on Sunday!