I’ve learned so much about chronic pain and stress and why singing to God helps! No wonder He compassionately tells us, over and over….
That’s merely one of many Scriptures.
He also tells us:
So, how is singing praise to God when we suffer His healing BENEFIT to us? Learning about how our Creator designed our bodies and brains has been awe-inspiring!
God’s designed “natural” painkillers
When neurons carry pain signals throughout the body, our brain only perceives pain when its limbic system (the emotion-producing area or “emotional” brain) becomes involved. Even imagining POTENTIAL pain can worsen the pain.
When our bodies suffer from chronic illness, chronic stress, and chronic pain, neurotransmitters become depleted, like:
- serotonin;
- norepinephrine;
- dopamine;
- glutamate;
- and endorphins.
That endorphin depletion is particularly critical because God designed endorphins to act as natural opioid painkillers or sedatives “by sending a neural signal to reduce pain and provide anxiety relief.”1
What else?
Stress hormones (catecholamines) such as cortisol and adrenalin also increase.
And this is all worsened by:
- our reduced ability to exercise;
- less restful sleep;
- increased muscle tension;
- and reduced heart rate variability (the time between heartbeats) due to shallower and shorter breaths.
The cascade of depletion and activation in our brains often brings depression and anxiety, along with increased pain awareness.
So, what happens when we sing to God as it’s all happening?
Singing to God helps our chronic pain and stress!
Physically, singing automatically and uniquely:
- causes slower breathing with longer exhalations;
- increases a healthier heart rate variability;
- and triggers the calming signals of our vagus nerve, part of the parasympathetic side of our autonomic nervous system.
Hormones and neurotransmitters reactivate, impacting the emotional or limbic part of our brains, particularly the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), an area “susceptible to music’s influence.”2
SO,
- Stress reduces;
- Endorphins release;
and we feel less pain! We’re calmer!
Hallelujah!
God’s design is remarkable! What an amazing benefit He has given us, as with every one of His instructions!
Singing to God of our future, God’s glorious love story for us consummated
Resetting and reactivating our body and brain’s neural functions is even possible by “imagining the possibility of positive future events.”3
As Christians, we know the sure future He’s given to us! We know the end of His glorious love story toward us! We may have chronic pain and stress in this fallen world, but we have complete hope for “positive future events” because we’re
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope (Rom. 15:4 ESV).
God “hope-filled” me last week with Isaiah 40! An entire playlist came forth as He tenderly spoke to my intense nerve pain. I’ll send it to subscriber emails this week, praying He encourages each one and uses it to help them in their stress-full lives. The songs flow from this “praise interruption!”
Singing to God, praising His unchanging character
Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him (Is. 40:10 ESV).
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales
and the hills in a balance?
Who has measured the Spirit of the LORD,
or what man shows him his counsel?
Whom did he consult,
and who made him understand?
Who taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and showed him the way of understanding? (Is. 40:12-14 ESV)
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable (Is. 40:28 ESV).
Singing to our God into our chronic pain and stress, actively resting in His spiritual promises to us as those in Christ Jesus
He will tend
his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather
the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them
in his bosom,
and gently lead
those that are with young (Is. 40:11 ESV).
They who wait for the LORD shall
renew their strength;
they shall
mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall
run and not be weary;
they shall
walk and not faint (Is. 40:31 ESV).
Singing to our Lord with a playlist inspired by Isaiah 40, into our suffering
Let’s sing to our LORD, as HE renews our strength, as HE lifts us up in our pain and stress, as HE gives us His power to endure it. Let’s sing praise to our Lord and Savior as HE enables us to wait and trust Him on the hardest days.
Glory to our Lord alone!
Sister in Christ, He has given us His healing benefits through His repeated instructions to sing praises to Him, the One who is worthy of all our praise!
If you would cherish the benefit of singing aloud in praise to Him along with me, I’m praying it will be His healing gift of grace to you, too.
Sign up here if you’d like the weekly playlist gifts and access to many more in our resource library, from this retired music therapist who is also beholding our God into her suffering. Other resources are also below.
Our YouTube channel with calming hymns and short devotionals
Devotional Bible study prayer journals, available on Amazon. Click for details.
Near to God: A Devotional Bible Study of God’s Character in Our Suffering
Singing the Gospel to Job: Finding Hope in Suffering
Praying God’s Promises Into Suffering
- Korb, A. (2015). The upward spiral: Using neuroscience to reverse the course of depression, one small change at a time. New Harbinger Publications, p. 86. ↩︎
- Loewy, J. (2022). Underlying music mechanisms influencing the neurology of pain: An integrative model. Brain Sciences, 12(10), 1317. ↩︎
- Korb (2015), p. 61. ↩︎
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