More Than Merely “Music To Drive By”

MORE THAN MERELY
Music To Drive By

The moment I turned on the car’s ignition switch I knew something was wrong. The car’s radio speakers were pulsating with music that was not the norm for them. The radio station setting had been changed. It was not on any of my favorite presets. Instead, this station reflected the music choice of my son, who had borrowed my car the day before. His choice of “music to drive by” was definitely different than mine.

“Music to drive by” is pretty much the norm today. A “music-less car” is hard to find. We are fairly well bombarded by music at home, at the office, in the shopping mall – and in our churches. This constant presence of music in our lives allows it to become commonplace, as opposed to something special. Perhaps we’re not even listening. It’s just there, like any other permanent fixture to which we’ve become accustomed.

Contemporary Christian music has become a multi-million dollar business. Annual sales of recordings and materials exceed $700 million. This music, as well as more traditional religious music, can easily become commonplace in the life of today’s Christian. Radio, television, compact discs, digital video discs, PowerPoint, video clips, multi-channel mix boards, singing Christmas trees, live concerts, seasonal productions, and Dove awards are all part of today’s Christian music. Perhaps such popularity has even caused Christian music to become what A.W. Tozer called a “religious external” – something that exists outside our personal spiritual awareness and application. In his book on worship, The Pursuit of God, he writes, “If we would find God amid all the religious externals, we must first determine to find Him, and then proceed in the way of simplicity.”

Music’s Ability
Christian music has the ability to point to the true meaning of life, and to aid in the development of a spiritual lifestyle. To more fully benefit from Christian music, we need to be more consciously aware of its presence and its spiritual growth potential. This will allow music to move beyond the mere commonplace to a God-honoring, God-revealing, Christian character-building vehicle.

Christian radio probably provides the most convenient source of Christian music. Setting a clock radio on a Christian station for an automatic wake-up each morning provides an inspiring start to our day. Perhaps another radio will provide similar Christ-honoring music of praise and worship at breakfast. The trip between home and work can be uplifting as we meditate on the words of encouragement, praise, worship, and biblical instruction, as played by Christian artists over our car radio. A tape or CD player in our car provides additional personalized opportunities.

Concerts and church worship services also provide rich opportunities for personal application and enjoyment of the riches of live Christ-centered music. Our church’s hymnbook provides an excellent tool for expressing God-directed worship and praise, and is an aid to personal spiritual growth. In addition to its use in public worship services, a hymnbook can also be a valuable asset in our homes.

A personal hymnbook may be purchased at many Christian bookstores. Some churches maintain a supply of hymnbooks that may be purchased for personal use. Our own hymnbook can provide an excellent resource for private devotions, as we either read the words and/or sing the music. A good, well-edited hymnbook is filled with a large amount of Christian life subjects, and one with a Scripture index can also provide an excellent commentary on Bible passages we may be studying. John Wesley, 18th century English evangelist, once said a good hymnbook is “a little book of practical divinity.” Dr. Harold Best, emeritus dean and professor of music at Wheaton College Conservatory of Music, described hymnbooks as “treasure troves of theology, prayer, Scripture, song, hymnic information, stylistic variety, and liturgical opportunity” (Exploring Worship – Six Views, Paul E. Engle, ed., Zondervan, ’04).

There are some excellent, recently published books that facilitate appreciation and use of traditional hymns in our personal spiritual life. Some examples are: How Sweet the Sound, by George Beverly Shea, Betty Free Swanberg, and Jeff McKenzie (Tyndale House, ’04); Stories Behind the Hymns That Inspired America, by Ace Collins and Clint Hanson (Zondervan, ’03); An Annotated Anthology of Hymns, by J.R. Watson and Timothy-Dudley Smith (Oxford Univ. Press, ’03); Amazing Grace, by Kenneth W. Osbeck (Kregel, ’02); and Spiritual Moments With the Great Hymns, by Evelyn Bence (Zondervan, ’97).

The grand assortment of 21st century high-tech devices, concerts, worship services, and publications enable today’s Christian to have ready access to a seemingly limitless supply of Christian music expression. When the music takes the form of praise, we can make this praise a personal expression. When the music speaks of the wonders of God, we can reflect on the majesty of God and His creation. At other moments the music may be asking soul-searching questions related to our Christian walk. Perhaps we can give personal response to the questions being presented. On other occasions the music will contain biblical teaching that we can apply to our spiritual development.

Personal Identity
The most important thing taking place today in all the production, performance, promotion, and availability of Christian music is personal involvement or personal identity. This personal involvement and identity may be as simple as listening to the music and applying its message.

Perhaps we can use the variety of Christian music to help us better communicate with God and grow stronger spiritually. The music will then not only provide a pleasurable background to our activities, but will also enable us to more completely “grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to ... be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Eph. 3:18-19 NIV). We may then find personal spiritual meaning in what might otherwise be nothing more than a commonplace religious external, or the ever-present “music to drive by.”

By Roger W. Hicks