Remembering Rich Mullins 15 Years After His Homegoing

My wife, Lori, and Rich Mullins in 1993

I’ve appreciated the art of countless musicians over the course of my life. But few have actually changed my life. Rich Mullins was one of those artists whose craft resonated deep within my soul and impacted the way I view God, myself and the world.

Mullins, a self-described “ragamuffin” who did not exactly fit the mold of his peers within the Contemporary Christian Music industry of the 80’s and 90’s, left this earth and entered into his eternal resting place fifteen years ago today. While on his way to a benefit concert in Kansas, the driver of the Jeep Rich was riding in lost control. Mullins was thrown from his vehicle and was hit by oncoming traffic. He was 41 years old.

I was first exposed to the music of Rich Mullins shortly after I entered into a new relationship with Christ as a college student. Upon listening to much of his music and learning more of his story, there was something about his lyrics and -- to a greater extent, his life – that compelled me to learn more about the man behind the music.

Rich somehow seemed to be okay living with the tension of worshipping a God that is almighty, yet also difficult to understand. The same man who wrote the well-known Christian praise chorus (“Our God is an awesome God/He reigns from heaven above…”) also wrote the following lyrics, “So hold me Jesus/’Cause I’m shakin’ like a leaf/You have been king of my glory/Won’t you be my prince of peace.”

Although he was a well-known musical artist in Christian circles for a good portion of his adult life, Rich did not live the life of a rock star. He intentionally lived on a limited income (taking only what the median income was for the average American) and gave the rest of his earnings to charity. Heavily influenced by his Quaker roots, Rich was particularly committed to issues of peace, social justice and caring for the marginalized of society. His final years saw him taking a break from the Christian music industry as he moved to a Navajo reservation in New Mexico to teach children about music…and about Jesus.

After becoming introduced to the writings of Brennan Manning, I began to listen more intently to the music of Rich Mullins. Brennan Manning’s “The Ragamuffin Gospel” had a profound influence upon me. Rich and his Ragamuffin Band did the same. While dealing with some particularly ugly sin in my life, I realized that I was somehow under the impression that God was nothing more than a distant, angry judge waiting for me to mess up. But Rich help me to understand that it was okay to be imperfect. God still loved me and my imperfections only demonstrated my need for a Savior.

Rich aided me in seeing that during his time on earth, Jesus tended to identify with the broken and forgotten people of his day. Just before his death, Rich was working on a new album which eventually became known as “The Jesus Record.” Containing ten songs about Jesus, Rich demonstrates remarkable vulnerability in describing a Savior that identifies with mankind, while also exhibiting a love that can only come from the one true God. "A Man of No Reputation", one of the songs on the album sung by a member of Rich's band, does not include Rich's vocals because Mullins himself could not sing of his great Savior as described in this song without breaking down in tears. I hope to experience the person of Jesus the way Rich Mullins did.

I’m thankful for the life and music of Rich Mullins. Through Rich, God changed me. He helped me to view God differently and forever affected how I interact with my fellow man. Fifteen years after his death, Rich continues to have an influence on others because he invested his life in that which matters for eternity. I hope the same can be said of my life once I'm gone.

To learn more about the life of Rich Mullins, you can check out James Bryan Smith’s Rich Mullins: A Devotional Biography: An Arrow Pointing to Heaven.

Or you can check out this video, Homeless Man, which tells the story of Rich Mullins.

The Story Behind "More To This Life" by Steven Curtis Chapman

In this video my favorite singer, Steven Curtis Chapman, tells the story of what inspired him to write his song "More To This Life." This is one of my favorite SCC songs and this is a great acoustic version. Enjoy!

When Worship Makes An Idol

Photo Credit: o!d

From Ronnie Martin:

"The sticky, tricky question is this: What happens when the worship leader is the one being worshiped? It’s a valid question when you consider the influential position that many celebrity worship stars are in when their job consists of providing hit songs to churches around the world for mass consumption. When you add in the fact that many church buildings are designed to rival concert hall settings, complete with a dizzying array of sound, screens, lights, fog, and conceptual stage props, it’s easy to understand why a modern worship leader may start relishing his time in the spotlight.

Not surprisingly, the Bible warns us against things like arrogance (Rom. 12:3) and selfish ambition (James 3:16), both of which can result from the many embellishments available to promote worship services in the 21st century. Instead, we are admonished to encourage and build one another up (1 Thes. 5:11) through the message of Christ “dwelling richly among us” (Col. 3:16). Worship is always going to be as good or bad as the person or object it’s worshiping, but the direction of true worship should always start and end with the gospel. While churches continue to battle incessantly over the direction of the sound, style, instruments, clothing, hymns, and volume, the REAL conversation that needs to happen is whether the message of God’s Word is being communicated to the people of God to sing praises to God in spirit and in truth. When we get that right, the details will follow more naturally, because nobody’s going to be that concerned with whether Johnny’s wearing skinny jeans, has a faux hawk, or plays a Telecaster. We’ll always be directionally challenged when we’re not looking directly at Christ."

To read the complete article entitled "Where Rock Stars Go To Die" by Ted Kluck and Ronnie Martin please click here.

(h/t to Justin Taylor)

Steven Curtis Chapman Wins Artist of the Year

Steven Curtis Chapman, the most prolific winner in the history of the Gospel Music Association (GMA), took home the Artist of the Year award last night at the 40th annual Dove Awards. Throughout his successful career, Chapman has won over fifty Doves. He was also awarded the Songwriter of the Year award this year.

The Artist of the Year trophy comes less than a year after Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth, lost one of their daughters, Maria, in a freak accident at home. The Chapmans have admirably and courageously shared their experiences with the world and have been true representatives of Jesus during a very difficult time of their life. It is nice to see the Contemporary Christian Music industry honor acknowledge their influence in this way.

On another note, it was good to see Tenth Avenue North take home the New Artist of the Year award. The guys in the band are from nearby us here in central Florida and I've had the opportunity to talk with them on several occasions when they've led worship at ministry events that I've been a part of. They are genuine in their faith and talented musicians. It's good to see them get exposure on a national level.

Living Above 'The Fray' of Christian Cliche'

One of the most promising bands to hit the music scene over the past few years is The Fray. Not only does this talented group produce great music, but they are also committed Christians. Along with a number of other bands like Switchfoot and P.O.D., The Fray seeks to have their music exposed to a much broader audience than those that would typically purchase music on "Christian" labels.

While reading up on the band I came across this interview that they did in Christianity Today a couple of years ago. While providing some background on the history of the group, lead singer Isaac Slade offers an interesting take on the band's purpose. Here's a segment of Stan Friedman's article:

"Critics have credited the band's success in part to their catchy hooks and melodies, but the power of Slade's lyrics also has been key to catapulting The Fray into the national limelight. How to Save a Life is filled with songs that tell stories of depth and emotion that go beyond the ever-present angst—and Christian—bands. The band members' lives were largely formed in Denver churches where they helped lead worship, and in the Christian school three of them attended. Slade, 24, and guitarist Joe King, 25, were several years ahead of drummer Ben Wysocki, 21, at Faith Christian Academy. Wysocki and guitarist David Welsh, 21, played in the same worship band.
The band avoided Christian record labels, saying God called them to the secular market instead. "I feel he would be disappointed with us if we limited ourselves," Wysocki says. Slade says he used to "write all Christian lyrics" until he had an epiphany while working a shift at Starbucks: "None of my friends outside the church understood any of my songs; we had a different set of vocabulary," he says. "So I went home and threw away all those songs." He adds, "If I handed somebody a double grande mocha latte and told them, 'Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life,' they might throw it back on me.
"If we grow up in the church, it's easy to think it's our Christian duty to preach to every single person because God is the most important thing. And he is, but I'm a musician first. This is my job. We're not pastors. We're not preachers. We're not even missionaries." Slade likens his job to any other. "If you're a painter, paint, but you don't have to have Jesus in every picture. Paint well, and if you paint well enough, they might ask you why you do that."

Within Christian circles there is often an expectation placed upon musicians to be more upfront and vocal about their faith than we expect from those in other professions. For example, we don't expect lawyers who are Christians to refer to Jesus in every opening argument, but we are often dismayed if a singer who is a Christian doesn't use the name of Jesus in every song. I am not at all saying that singers who are followers of Christians shouldn't refer to God in their songs. I would be disappointed if they didn't.

But what I am concerned is the desire of some of us to place Christians artists in a box and relegate them to the Christian subculture that we've created. There may be some that have a calling from God to minister to and encourage those that are already part of The Church and that is a great thing. However, there are others that have a calling to reach those outside of the Christian faith. In order to do this effectively they need to speak a language that the broader culture will understand and do so in a manner that points them to God.

As in any profession, musicians that are believers in Jesus need to work at their craft with excellence and seek to let their light shine wherever God leads them. Simple things like working hard, showing up on time, completing assignments and being a friend to co-workers are all things that honor God in the workplace. On the other hand, musicians have a platform that many of us don't possess. They have a voice that is heard by millions and opportunities to influence culture. Whether they are explicitly Christian in their lyrical content or they seek to raise questions that will cause people to seek spiritual answers, Christian artists should seek to live as God would want any of us to live. As Jesus said in Matthew 5:

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

No matter if I claim the title of pastor or missionary or singer or plumber, my role as a Christian is to follow God each day and live in a manner that pleases Him. We are to seek ways that honor him and opportunities to make Him known by always being prepared to share the reason for the hope that is within us with gentleness and respect. (I Peter 3:15)