Blessings

I have to admit that in the past I've been a bit of a music snob. Particularly when it comes to contemporary Christian music. I've long held a bias against an industry that often works harder to imitate than innovate. I enjoy good songwriting (even in the world of three-chord pop music - there is a clear differentiation between a good "hook" and a lame one) too much to subject myself to unoriginal musicianship and contrived lyrics that often work harder at saying something redeeming than something honest.

Well I don't know if the industry has shifted in the last decade since I was last really following the christian music scene, or if it's just a symptom of me getting older - but when we bought our new van last fall with a free year of satellite radio I started listening to Christian music again. I have to be honest it was more do to the fact that my wife insisted on keeping the station set to "the message" than it was me intentionally giving the industry a second chance. The thing that surprised me was that amidst all the sappy nonsense that still occupies much of the airtime on the station there were some really thoughtful and meaningful songs that drew me in not with contrived Christian messages but with genuine honesty and reflection and some quality musicianship to boot. I have to admit that for better or worse I found myself listening to more and more Christian radio - even to the point that it was cutting into my daily dose of news/talk radio.

Recently I was really moved my one song in particular that I caught on the drive home (my drive home is at best half a song long so I had to sit in the driveway after arriving to let it finish) and it really got me thinking. The song is called "Blessings" and it's the title track of the new Laura Story album. The message of the song was one of understanding that God's best will for our lives doesn't always come in what we would consider "good things". But sometimes the blessings are in the difficult seasons, in the raindrops and tears of life that come when we think that God has abandoned us. Here is a fan-made video on YouTube of the song.



The cool part of this is that I've been able to share with a number of people lately the very same message that this song speaks of as they walk through difficult valleys and have on more than one occasion just pointed them to this song - to allow the music to minister to their soul. It's also been helpful for me to consider the truths in this song as Joanna and I have faced our share of trials this year (and continue to as the ordeal with this pregnancy carries on unabated). And despite some shaky theology (in my opinion) in the last line of the bridge (see if you can figure out what I mean) I am really grateful for the witness of a Christian recording artist and their story through song for helping articulate a truth that I have long believed but been unable to say nearly as eloquently as she has.

I was going to try and finish this post with some witting remark that tied in the "blessing" of this experience - but after typing and deleting it three times I realized that that would be just as contrived as most of the music that I still find on Christian radio so I'm going to end this here. I hope you're as blessed by this song as I have been (ah! I did it anyways!)

Chris