In Response

I just read (watched) my brother Jake's post.  Not because I believe people read this other than him, but in case someone does I believe it important on many levels that you see this which is why I'm posting it on my blog.  PLEASE watch the entire video.  My response to it is below the video.



I can't put into words the good this did my heart.  I have many times felt like quite the oddball because of the way I understand music.  Have you ever felt strongly about something, felt like most people around you would disagree, but you knew deep down that if you could somehow articulate your feelings they would at least understand why you think the way you do?  Benjamin Zander has finally put into words so much of what I feel like I've known for so long, but never been able to make clear to the people around me.  I'm in no way saying anything along the lines of "I've known that all along" but rather "right on brother."


I once heard a speech by a man named Jeremy Begbie.  His presentation was similar, however, he took some of the same metaphors from music and applied them directly to theology.  If you are like me, you drew out much of that from Mr. Zander's speech as well.  He at one point says something like, "imagine how you would walk, talk, and act if you believed that everyone loved classical music they just didn't know it."  He could have said the same thing about Jesus I imagine.  Imagine how we would walk, talk, and act if we believed that everyone would love Jesus if they just understood who He was and what He has done?

I've been asked what kind of music I listen to.  It surprises many that I hardly ever listen to K-love and other Christian music.  I can't do country music either.  Unfortunately I often turn to bashing those forms of music behind closed doors to the closest ones to me.  This often pisses them off and the devil inside me takes a little pleasure out of getting a rise out of them.  Country music, Christian music, and no matter how hard it is to understand, even rap have their place, but when you begin to understand what many call "high" music you may understand why I get more frustrated listening to country than I do classical.

I believe we have a creative God and you can know a little more about him as you know a little more about the creativity he's blessed us with.  We create because we were made in His image.  Our consumer culture likes the quick, easy thing that doesn't take the work of understanding.  We don't like to chew on things any more and take the real time it takes to enjoy our food.  We'd rather quickly eat a burger that was just as quickly made.  I don't mean to belittle popular music, but I found this rather humorous and sort of to the point I'm trying to make.  Basically they in one song, sing a vast array of songs to make the point that we don't really need creativity to gain popularity.  Check it out.



In the end we just want to go home. Chopin understood this. I think we've forgotten that.