Music To My Ears

My youngest son and I were on our way home from school yesterday when he asked me, "Why do you listen to this stuff daddy?" I was listening to Classical music (Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, etc...), and I often do in the Fall and Winter to help set the mood for the seasons. I told him that it relaxes me and he just said that it drives him crazy. He is seven, and I'm sure that someday he'll learn how to appreciate it.
This got me to thinking about a conversation that I had with one of my friends while we were at the gym. We were both sharing our dislike for a local rock station, in which I won't mention the name of but it does involve a frog. I quit listening to this station when I recognized the mood that the crap it was pouring into my ears was putting me in. Most of the songs I consider to be depressing and full of hate and really disgraceful to women. It was like porn to my ears and I didn't want it filtering through me anymore. I'm pretty sure that this was about the same time that I started walking with Christ and I am quite certain that He was making me aware of it as well.
I was listening to more and more Country at the time and would switch on and off to a couple of the Christian stations. I love Country music and the message it sends. A lot of my favorite artists sing about "life" and it really relates to me. Alan Jackson's music is a good example of this. I know, I know, most people think that Country musicians only sing about how their dog died, or how their wife left them, or how their pick-up truck quit running, but that's really not the common message anymore. It's real life with real emotions, and some of it is even God focused.
Christian music has really come a long way since my teenager years. Back then it seemed like it was either one extreme or the other, from goofy big haired bands wearing skin tight striped clothes to an over churchy gospel sound that never really clicked with me. Today, Christian music has a sound for almost any venue. From hard rocking to alternative, or from more traditional to rap, it's all there, and it's all unique but straight from the heart to God. My top three favorites include, Jars Of Clay, Mercy Me and Casting Crowns, and all three of these bands can be heard on secular stations as well. They have done a great job of becoming more mainstream and getting the Word out. My radio stations are all preset to Christian stations and I try to keep a radio on where ever I am. This helps me to stay God focused throughout the day and it also helps to keep me in a good mood as well.
I'm not saying that all classic rock and other stuff that is getting air time is trash. I dig out some of my old favorites and rock out to them every now and then, but I have to keep a limit on it. I also think that a lot of the stuff that I mentioned earlier is what a lot of these musicians are struggling with, and this is their way of crying out to God. Even gangster rappers recognize their need for God, and they share their story of life in their own ways. I believe that God hears melodies no matter what the sound is.

Peace!