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With all the articles and quotes and even one or two books out there about the music in the church today, why write yet another blog post?
I don't know, really. I'm not trying to enter the battle that's raging over christian music today being worldly, unartistic, mediocre, or whether we should just do what we feel is right as musicians and let God do the rest. I don't really want to add another target out there for folks to attack, or to attack a target someone else has already put out. There are many times I want to though, because I do feel very strongly about this. But I'm going to do something uncharacteristic for me. I'm going to simply share my personal journey through this issue in a calm, collected manner and then let you, the reader, come to your own conclusion of whether or not a certain sound can be classified as godly or ungodly. And so, for your enjoyment, My Life Story In Music...
Well, to begin, I was raised with music everywhere. In the house, in church, in stores, in the car, and, yes, sometimes even in the bathroom as a toddler while taking my bath (those Barney tapes were played to death). Other than the previously mentioned Barney tapes, the earliest genre I can remember hearing is Country. That's right. I grew up listening to some of the classic Country greats. At 6 years old I could've won a contest entitled "Voice Samples: Randy Travis or Alan Jackson". I knew the typical sounds of the guitars, fiddles, and dobros. So naturally, I wanted to play acoustic guitar. My parents also wanted me to play piano, but as a kid listening to Country, the desire just wasn't there. (I mean, what the heck do you use a piano for in Country music??)
There came a point though when my dad got rid of all the country CDs in the house. It was actually a good thing since at the time I was aspiring to be a Country artist (what else would I be?) and I just can't see myself up there now with Taylor Swift singing about his friends talking to my friends talking to him talking to me talking to my imaginary friend Phil who owns a nasty ol' pickup truck he never lets me drive... *ahem* Anyway, so what did came after that phase then?
The uptight Christian music phase.
I do not look back at this time with fondness or pride for my upstanding morals and boundaries. In fact, quite the opposite. It was a time of constantly praising one band or artist for their fantastic artistry of fitting the name God or Jesus into all 12 or 13 tracks of their album, or for managing to keep their guitar shredding down to a tasteful minimum. And it was also a time of excessive artist bashing. Don't mention God in one of your songs? "Ungodly!" Used the ambiguous You instead of actually saying Jesus? "Ungodly!" Created a funny music video that has nothing to do with spirituality? "Ungodly!" Mention the words "boyfriend" or "girlfriend" in a song or liner notes? "Ungodly!" Write a love song to your wife? "Ungodly!"
Seriously. These were all thoughts of mine. I was always told that living in righteousness was true freedom, but I felt no freedom at all. In fact, looking back, I felt like I was in bondage. A bondage of pride at how I alone seemed to be able to tell the godly bands from the "Ungodly!" ones. I alone was the one going to be the Christian artist who got everything right, because I alone knew what exactly was right. God, oddly enough, didn't even fit into the picture. To be truthful, I wasn't even a Jesus follower at the time. I was simply a skinny 12 year old pharisee.
As you can imagine, God had a LOT to work on in me.
Somehow a few years back, my parents' thoughts on the Christian music scene began to change slowly as mine... well mine went through a major overhaul. Naturally, the first thing God needed to change in me was my heart. I'm very thankful for the christian artist God used to show me that I was nothing more than a religious pain-in-the-neck with a filthy soul who had no desire for the REAL things of God. I finally began searching things out on my own in God's word. Yes, I began to FINALLY take God's word instead of my own, instead of my parents', and instead of my pastor's. I met the real Jesus (not the felt white man with the drooping solemn face I stuck on the felt board every Sunday School lesson) and He began to change me from the inside out.
So where does music fit in? Well, throughout all the difficult, trying, and just plain depressing circumstances I've been through during my relationship with Jesus, He decided to break down my legalistic laws and use the most interesting genres. Genres ranging from Punk Pop bands like Stellar Kart, to Hip Hop/Urban artists like Group 1 Crew, to hard rock groups like Fireflight. Songs from these artists in particular have spoken truth and comfort into my life and have challenged me in ways I had never been from other artists (who I am NOT saying are used any less by God).
So there you have it. My life story in music. As short as I could make it. You are now free to draw your own conclusions.
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