I let my phone pick some songs to play the other day that were billed as some generic good thing like “personal highlights”. I was expecting something like my most played songs. Instead, I got a really sad song from one of my favorite bands, a relatively obscure song from another of my favorite bands, and a really fun song from a band I do not even have one album of.
The character in the sad song is wasting away their life waiting for Mr. Right. It got me to thinking about how Christians are supposed to be following God and not setting up rigid “hope this works” detailed life plans that do not include Him. The girl in the song is stereotypically waiting on a man to be everything to her and provide her with the American Dream, whatever that is. I have heard that song many times the last thirty some odd years, but rarely thought about the fact it had words that might mean something.
This is the 200th blog since I got this new website, and I was hoping for a nice round number kind of topic to fill it out. None have made themselves evident. I did not win $100 in a scratch off lottery like the Luke Comb’s song. That is a fun song.
Another song I enjoy listening to is Chris Stapleton’s version of Tennessee Whiskey. I have a vague sense that that song is about a woman who displaced alcohol in the writer’s life, but I sure do like the way he has performed the song. Again, my time spent with the song is more about the sound than the story in the words. I wonder if I subconsciously block out the negativity in the songs or if I just simply do not listen.
I used to listen to “classical” music that actually had no words on a routine basis. My favorite pieces are Handel’s Water Music, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, and Beethoven’s 1812 Overture. I do really like the cannons when the music is really loud from “1812” (as I think of it). It is not as much fun as watching the speakers when Mariah Carey is singing whatever song that is I used to take the covers off the speakers to listen to. I was sad when I went to try again and realized the speakers had disintegrated.
After my mom passed, I found I had a new favorite song in “I can only Imagine”. I listened to that a ton as I sought to grieve. I finally bought it today as I had been listening to it on Amazon Prime and they rotated it out somewhere along the way. At some point recently I have recognized that I should stop spending money on somethings and then I can stop saving money on not buying other things.
I think the outcome of today is that I like music and that I need to make sure I do not get so focused on “working” or being “efficient” that I forget to “live” and to be “effective”. I do of course want to continue to gravitate towards music that celebrates Christ and my salvation that He provides, but it is amazing how my spirit can be buoyed by a song I have heard 200 times or more.
This week I told someone that I waited to go into the service at church because the music was always too loud and makes me uncomfortable. My youngest told me I had the music up too loud on the way to church (in the loud car with the windows down) that same day. Maybe next week I should just break out the ear plugs so I can go in and enjoy the music in the service. I saw one little girl with ear protection on, so I might not be the only one. That old round number of 100 db always seems to rattle my brain. I think I’ll go listen one of the 4,955 songs on my computer.