Nicole’s e-Pistle “My Life’s Playlists”

November 4, 2026

Greetings, Friends!

It is Tuesday night, the sun is down, and I am postponing looking at any election results until later this evening. Instead, I am sitting at the dining room table writing this e-Pistle while my daughter works on finishing some of her schoolwork. We’re busy listening to a playlist of coffee-shop style jazz. In fact, I’ve been distracted lately by adding music from my coming-of-age era to playlists on my favorite streaming app. I grew up in the ‘80s and ‘90s and graduated high school in 2000. Mine was an age of grunge, indie, and alternative-rock. Even my favorite Christian band, DC Talk, had an edge to them, with their hit album entitled, “Jesus Freak.”

I came of age in the era of mixed tapes, the ‘80s and ‘90s version of the modern playlist, when we had to record our favorite tunes onto cassette tapes or burn them onto CDs. When I think about the stages of my life and faith, I cannot possibly choose a single genre of music, much less a single album or genre of music. No matter where I am or what I am doing, if certain songs come over the speakers in a store or over the radio, I am transported back in time to another age and another version of myself.

Music can make our spirits soar when we have reasons to celebrate. It can ground us when we feel adrift. It can bring us peace when life gets chaotic. God doesn’t promise that every season of life will be joyful, but God does promise to accompany us through every season. Sometimes we sing because our hearts are full; other times we sing because we need to be reminded that hope remains.

Psalm 40 speaks of God lifting the psalmist out of a difficult place and putting a new song in their mouth, a song of praise. I find that image especially meaningful. The new song doesn’t come because life has suddenly become perfect. It comes because the psalmist has experienced God’s faithfulness in the midst of life’s struggles.

What are the songs that have marked the seasons of your life? What does your heart sing today? May we continue to find our voices in every season, trusting that the God who gives us the gift of music also walks beside us through every verse of life’s unfolding song.

Blessings and Peace,