"The Lord was ready to save me; therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments all the days of our life, in the house of the Lord." (Isaiah 38:20) This is the heartfelt desire and commitment of every saint; and we therefore offer these resources with hopes that they will motivate, equip, and excite you to sing worthy praises to our worthy God in both private and public instances of worship.

Music is so integral to public worship that it is inevitable that a visitor's first impression and final evaluation of a service will be largely based upon what they heard and whether they liked it.

The only problem with this is that many people judge the music ministries of a church based more upon personal preferences of style rather than upon biblically informed convictions.

Furthermore, we lament the fact that churches have felt pressed to define their music ministries as either "Traditional" or "Contemporary" since such simple and lazy categorizations are essentially meaningless.

While our music might seem to fit well into the "Traditional" category, we prefer rather to think of it as:

• Music that lifts our hearts up and away from this world
• Music that communicates the divine nature of public worship
• Music that supports the scriptural and doctrinal lyrics
• Music that meets an established standard of excellence
• Music that is conducive to congregational singing

A Note of Praise While we do not allow 'solos' or 'specials' in the service of public worship, we do acknowledge the spiritual benefits of such and have provided an opportunity for members to bless the congregation musically after our weekly fellowship meal. For more information about this ministry, please contact the coordinator Elder Hermes. Hymn Sing Each Lord's Day, we sing your favorite hymns by request at 1:30 pm. Pastor McShaffrey also hosts occasional informal hymn sings at his home. King's Choir This is an occasional family choir which ministers in the community and nursing homes. If you are interested in joining, please contact the director Elder Baldridge.

The Trinity Hymnal (1961 edition) the main hymnal used in our services of praise and worship. We encourage every family to obtain a personal copy so they can sing God's praise in the public assembly with excellence and understanding. Buy one here. Every Saturday Pastor McShaffrey sends the selected songs for worship via e-mail so that members can prepare for the Lord's Day services. If you would like to receive these notices, please click here. We also recognize that not everyone can read music, so we have provided a link to MIDI files of the entire hymnal on the OPC website, so you can learn by listening.