I’m a music kinda guy. I guess it’s due to growing up in a very musical church and family. Early on I was introduced to all kinds of different styles and genres of music. Add to that singing in choirs, ensembles and playing in the band and what you have is a recipe for musical disaster. I enjoy getting lost into a great song or album as much as I love getting lost in a good book or story. Joy and I can watch a movie and I’ll be the one noticing the soundtrack – how it adds to the story and how it’s emotionally drawing the viewer deeper into the narrative. Music stirs me, it enlivens me, it challenges me, it quiets me and it get’s me all pumped up and ready to go.
That being said, as much as I love good music, I really despise bad music. Most people love the first couple weeks of American Idol, or the other dozen music competitions, when the train wrecks are featured. Not this guy! I try to avoid those episodes. When I hear some of those auditions, I’m not just embarrassed for them, I’m in pain having to go through it. I have an almost violent reaction to the “noise” that is being forced upon me. I can hear the notes and the awful technique and it just drives me nutty.
As much as that bothers me, and boy does it, this irritation takes a back seat to my real pet-peeve. Have you ever gotten a album and sat down to listen and thought something like “what in the world am I listening too?” You can hear the music and it sounds well done – well harmonized, well sung, well orchestrated and even has a good beat to pump your head to – but there’s just something off? I recently downloaded an album from iTunes because I really liked the performers previous work (his name will be kept hidden because I don’t want this to turn into a smear campaign). I previewed the album and I really liked the sound, a couple songs were iffy, but I thought that’s cool. Then I started listening and it was like going to a really expensive restaurant and being served cotton candy. Sappy and expected lyrics just kind of oozed out of the thing. I forced myself to listen to the whole thing, all the while thinking “this is awful.” I finished and was frustrated, and promised to not listen again. In a rare moment of grace, I decided to listen again – so far, same result.
The biggest problem with the album is that I expected more from this artist. I didn’t want sweet words that really didn’t move me or bring me anywhere. I wanted something that mattered. I wanted meat to really chew on and worship with, not cotton candy. This want of mine got me thinking about other aspects of life where I often settle for the lesser than rather than what’s really good. How often to I miss opportunities to really engage something but instead take the easiest way out?
My Senior Pastor has taught me a lot in 3 years, but one of the greatest things is his constant challenge to think theologically about things. Now that may sound a little overwhelming and super-spiritual, but stick with me. What he’s really guiding us to do is to think about the things we do in the light of what we say we believe in. In other words, if we say Jesus is Lord then how is that being lived out in my worship, work, life, relationships, etc.? When I listened to the album I realized that this artist hadn’t really thought theologically through the whole thing – it was a hodgepodge of melodies and cutesy words. As I reflected on that, I realized that I very often say my theology, or my beliefs about God and God’s interaction with me, are sure and set and something I’m committed to, but my praxis, or my actions, are not quite in the same place. That’s a sobering thought – my actions don’t match up with my words – my beliefs, or at least the words I give to my beliefs, aren’t necessarily lived out in the same way.
I think we have a real problem in the American Church – a pandemic of Christians who don’t think theologically about what we’re doing. We have answers – in fact we pride ourselves on being right, a lot, but we don’t see real life change – real impact in our communities and world. Each week, Christians pray “let your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven” but to be honest if that kingdom makes me uncomfortable, I’ll bail. Our issue, as the church in the world, isn’t that we are irrelevant or that “it’s been tried and found wanting, but that it’s been found difficult and not tried.” We too often don’t want to live out the theology that we say we believe in – it’s just too hard.
So why do it? It’s a fair question, one that I think is answered each and every week by countless “christians”. A lot answer the question by not doing anything with their said beliefs. It’s easier to keep it in my head and consent. In doing so, in not thinking theologically or living the faith we say we believe, we not only settle for yucky music, but we miss the masterpiece at the same time. As much as awful music pains me, good music changes me and changes my surroundings. We get to be these works of art – we get to be the melodies and the lyrics that change people, or at least offer the Jesus change we put our hope in.
I pray that today, you’ll think theologically and you’ll let yourself be the melody that changes our world. It’s a big order, but it’s one we’ve been praying for 2000 years – “Let Your Kingdom Come, here as it is in the heavens”. May you be the tune of Jesus today and may we all Live our theology in such a way that no one would want to turn the music off.
