Leonardo da Vinci once posed the question, “Do you know that our soul is composed of harmony?” Music, therefore, is medicine or a healing balm for the soul. As Coach “Red” Auerbach aptly stated, “Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”
Research shows that music can promote physical rehabilitation, manage stress, improve communication, enhance memory, alleviate pain, and help to express feelings. However, as Author Olivea Dewhurst-Maddock reminds us, “Healing relies on an openness to the whole; a willingness to relinquish whatever frustrates or delays — mistaken ideas, negative feelings, poor diet, inadvisable lifestyle — and to accept a wider spectrum of responses with new ideas, experience, and priorities. Healing is communication; and music, in its universal nature, is total communication. In the deepest mysteries of music are the inspirations, the pathways, and the healing which lead to one-ness and unity.”
We live in a society today where such things as depression, anxiety, and suicide are issues of major concern and warrant attention. Paul Cardall, the successful owner of an independent record label, Stone Angel Music, saw an urgent need and believing that the power of music could help, he started the Worth of Souls Project and became the executive producer of the “Worth of Souls: Songs to rescue and restore faith in Jesus Christ” album which was released on Friday, 27 April 2018.
The 13 serene and uplifting songs on the album are the collaborative work of contemporary Christian artists like Trevor Price, Emily Bea, Kenz Hall, Jordan Moyes, Ellee Duke, Charley Jenkins, Sierra Lauren, Jim Daneker, Ashley Hess, and Justin Williams. Music videos for some of the songs have been released, with the latest video, “Tears of the Saints,” performed by Trevor Price being released on Tuesday, 15 May 2018.
According to the Worth of Souls Project, “Worth of Souls is a new album that is designed to help uplift, and treat symptoms of pain, depression, and anxiety through a spiritual connection with God.” Executive producer, Paul Cardall, founded Worth of Souls because he wanted to “reignite that fire [for God] that once burned in us so deeply.”
As a person listens to the words of the songs and allows those words to minister to their soul, he or she will come to realize that the answer to Jeremiah’s profound question, “Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there?” (Jeremiah 8:22) is a resounding, “Yes! There is a balm in Gilead to heal the sin-sick soul. Yes! There is a balm in Gilead to make the weary whole.” The Savior Himself beckons each of us, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29).
