From the best Christmas album ever, Behold the Lamb of God, by Andrew Peterson.  (No, I’m not biased at all.)

“Judge not, that you be not judged. ² For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. – Jesus (according to Matthew 7).

Recently a group I am part of studied these verses and the surrounding context.  It is quite possible that this excerpt from Jesus’ sermon is one of the most oft quoted and oft misquoted of his proverbial sayings.  Contrary to our cultural pressure; it is obvious from the context that Jesus is not making an absolute prohibition against judging others.  It is equally clear that Jesus is calling for judgments that are fair, informed, and free of hypocrisy.

Shortly after this study I came across a new entry into the Museum of Idolatry.  It is a posting of a video… offered without comment, explanation, nor objection.  It carries the simple title: Marriage Dance?. The comments in response to the posting are but three, yet they acutely illustrate Jesus’ concerns about judging.

The posting and comments exemplify the insatiable need felt by many within the Body of Christ to judge others without restraint, without context, without relationship, and without a proper understanding of culture, and from a decided ethnocentric point of view.  In short – they judge by a standard they would never want applied to them.  They judge by a selfish standard of their own creation.

The dance is offered as an “artifact of apostasy”  - an example of “the Great Apostasy that is sweeping through the “Christian” Church.”  The misuse of 2 Thessalonians in this context will not be pursued, what will be asked is why the posting is entitled “Marriage Dance?”  What purpose does the question mark play? What is being questioned; there marriage status, their ability to dance?

The real travesty plays out in the three short comments.  The comments display and incredible lack of cultural insight and abundance of ethnocentrism – of improper judging.

Comment:

I couldn’t watch the whole thing, I turned it off before 2 mins were up. What is this doing in a church service? How is it edifying our Savior? I’m sorry but I would have walked out if I was there in person. The only good thing I have to say, it that at least they were married to each other (I hope). Still, not the thing to be showing in church!

It’s unfortunate this person cannot appreciate the manner in which people who are different from him/her express themselves to God.  Marriage was created by God.  The marriage covenant is one of the grander illustrations of the Trinitarian nature of our God… it also serve as an illustration for the relationship between our Savior and his Church.  Therefore, this dance could edify our Savior because it celebrates marriage.  And just why is this not appropriate for church?  How do you know it was a worship service?  Or is dance always inappropriate within a space used for worship?

Dance has a rich heritage in the African culture and nothing in Scripture prohibits it as an expression of God’s greatness.  The description of the video itself (which I suspect the commenter did not bother to research) gave the reason for the dance – “Married couples minister in dance: Giving thanks and honor to God for the blessing of marriage.”  Apparently thanks can only be given to God in a way that is culturally acceptable to Shar.

In response to this comment came:

You are so right, this is what is wrong with the churches today. It is suppose to be worship of the Most high God, not lifting up of the flesh.

Married couples giving thanks and honor to God for the blessing of marriage through dance is what is wrong with the churches today?  Seriously?  Again, no rationale is given as to why this is wrong, just the declaration that it is.  Though Floyd does add one clear objection – it lifted up the flesh.  This is an interesting (and rather cliché) objection. Since the Most High God created the flesh, created marriage, created the physical and spiritual bond… how is celebrating that “fleshly”  - in the improper sense.  Particularly when done in a tasteful manner.  Nothing in this video was inappropriately suggestive, or erotic.  Makes me wonder how Floyd would respond to… oh… say the Song of Solomon.  Talk about lifting up the flesh!

The final comment agreed:

Even worse than the obviously inappropriate, human-centered dance, is all the womens’ voices I hear cat calling in the background; makes me understand why Paul said women should be silent in the assembly. Boy, was he right.

This one made me laugh.  “Human (or man) – centered” is another cliché that is so over used it has become meaningless.  It’s basically code for “Anything I dislike.”  But Melba also shows a lack of understanding of the audience’s response.  No one was making cat calls.  They simply responded audibly to what they were seeing.

The bottom line is these comments show how easy it is to take our own cultural standards and assume them to be biblical… to impose on others the same cultural (as opposed to biblical) standards we hold… to assume the way we do things is the only biblical was to do things… to judge others who are different as inappropriate, as an examples of apostasy, as sinful – not on biblical standards, but upon personal preferences.

Appendices to address expected objections:

A – I am not accusing anyone of hypocrisy.  I do not know the poster or those who commented.  Nor do I intend to fully defend the Marriage Dance.  In fact, one could have come up with all sorts of biblical/legitimate objections to the theology and practice of a UCC church.

B – I found the dance posted twice on YouTube (here and here).  Each posting gives one line to describe the video.  They are “The Married Couples Dance Ministry of trinity united church of christ in chicago dance to BabyFace” and “Married couples minister in dance: Giving thanks and honor to God for the blessing of marriage.”  Neither video gave the context of the dance.

C – The issue here is not one of race, and certainly not racism.  The issue is judging others without the facts and from a false premise.

Last month, I had the pleasure of attending the release of Joe Banua’s debut EP, “Broken” with about 1200 other folks at my church. Since then, I’ve been listening to it quite a bit in my iPod rotation, and I am constantly moved by the depth and passion of it.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I’ve known Joe for the past five years or so, and have had the pleasure of playing with him on the Sunday-morning worship team for much of that time. He’s an incredibly talented guy (he is able to play most every instrument we use in our worship services – and do so quite well), and his heart for the Lord and serving him with music is incredible. So it was totally incredible when an anonymous donor offered to fund the production of a professional EP for Joe, which he is now able to take with him during the week while he tours (and which has gotten a good bit of local radio play time).

In choosing the songs for the album, Joe first put together some quality acoustic recordings of ten or so of his songs, which he invited his friends & family to vote on, for inclusion in the EP. While there was one I was rooting for that didn’t make it (”Yeshua”), the ones chosen were quite good:

“Bring You Glory” – The first song released to Christian radio stations in the area, Bring You Glory is stylistically similar to Chris Tomlin’s recent worship songs, and is incredibly solid (and catchy). In all honesty, of the songs selected for the EP, Bring You Glory had been one of my least favorite from the acoustic set (as an acoustic song), but its translation to the studio reminds me of the difference between Rich Mullins’ acoustic demo for My Deliverer and its posthumous studio production.

“You Are Holy” – Not to be mistaken w/ Marc Imboden’s song of the same title (and the odd coincidence of knowing Marc, who lives about 15 minutes away), You Are Holy is a sweet interlude that always reminds me of the meditative time spent in our weekly Communion services.

“Broken” – From a songwriting standpoint, Broken is the best song on the album, and probably my favorite (though the last track is neck-and-neck with it). Broken explores Jesus’ love and healing, particularly focused on the broken and downtrodden.

These are the hands that were nailed to the cross,
These are the feet that run to the lost,
These are the arms that wrap around those who are broken.

These are the eyes that see through our sin,
Whatever we’ve done, wherever we’ve been,
These are the lips that speak to the hearts of the broken…

Broken could very well have been produced as more of an acoustic-feel track and been ever stronger than the full studio treatment (similar example: Rich Mullins’ acoustic demos of Elijah were more timeless than the pop-style production of Reed Arvin), but even so it is an incredibly powerful song that truly deserved to be the title track of the album.

“Never Failed Me” – Joe’s exploration of the concept of God’s grace and our response to it, Never Failed Me speaks to God’s unfailing mercy, in a catchy, but laid-back, Southern Rock style.

“Feet of the Nations” – Probably the song that changed the least between the acoustic recording and the studio album, the polish provided in the professional recording takes a great song and makes it incredible. An examination of the common, every-day love of serving our neighbors, Joe brought tears to the eyes of a lot of folks when he first played this song last year in our sermon series on loving one’s neighbor. Interestingly, this song was written in less than a week, but lyrically is amazingly both tight and raw the emotion it brings across.

Dark and lonely, breathing slowly,
He’ll drift and fall asleep.
Wishing only for a hand to hold,
So he can finally leave.

Just another beating heart for him to feel,
Just another comforting voice for him to hear,

I will fall to my knees,
Down at his feet,
For the Lord has first loved me.
As the water flows down,
Oh that beautiful sound,
All the dirt, it is washed away.
And I give up my pride and let it be taken,
So I can wash the feet of the nations…

Broken is an incredibly powerful and moving album which I hope you will enjoy as much as I have. You can give a listen to some of it at his website here, or you can download the whole thing from iTunes.

Putting together a worshipful and effective musical worship service is not as simple as grabbing some songs from a hymnal/binder/web-page and running with it.  Lyrical content, style, instrumentation, flow and theme are some of the key elements that have to be considered in effectively leading corporate worship.

It is in this vein that I’m thinking about starting a new (likely infrequent) series: “Worship Music in Review”.  (If it flops, #1 might be the only edition.)

For this edition, I’d like to look at a currently popular song from Passion 2010, which is being incorporated into some churches’ worship services, Chris Tomlin’s “Our God”.  Before we go on, watch the embedded video (if you don’t know the song) and read the lyrics.

Click here to view the embedded video.

VERSE 1
Water you turned into wine
Opened the eyes of the blind
There’s no one like you
None like you

VERSE 2
Into the darkness you shine
Out of the ashes we rise
There’s no one like you
None like you

CHORUS
Our God is greater
Our God is stronger
God you are higher than any other
Our God is Healer
Awesome in power
Our God
Our God

REPEAT VERSE 2

CHORUS

BRIDGE
And if our God is for us
Then who could ever stop us
And if our God is with us
Then what could stand against?
Then what could stand against?

CHORUS

CHORUS

BRIDGE

CHORUS

Structure: As modern worship music goes, this is fairly standard in structure (only two verses, a chorus and a bridge) and it has a fairly tight range.  This makes congregational singing easier, since you don’t have as much worry about, in terms of range.  (For contrast, consider “How Great Thou Art?” – where if you start on the wrong pitch for the congregation, most will drop out – or screech – at the end of the chorus.)

Structurally, most of Chris Tomlin’s worship music fits into both “modern” and “blended” structures, since it is structurally similar to so much of what congregants hear on the radio or in other venues outside of worship.

This particular song would likely fit better in the middle of a worship music set (if at the beginning of a corporate worship service) than as an opener, since its introduction and opening verses (and the first chorus) are rather subdued.  Only when it moves to the bridge does the percussion crescendo and a double-time feel kick in.  From this point out, the energy and focus of the song moves between the chorus and the bridge (which I have some issues with, and which I’ll look at here in just a bit), and it can then drop off and allow for an acoustic/A Capella close.

Stylistically, this song could also fit after a sermon/communion/offering meditation, since its start is subdued (which allows for a smooth transition between the left and right brain of the participant) and then builds in emotional import and intensity.

Lyrics: For me, the lyrical content of a song is the one aspect that trumps all others.  If the song does not lyrically make the cut – or is theologically dodgy (think “Above All” or “In the Garden”), chances are I will never use it in a worship setting.  While I generally do not have a problem with most of Chris Tomlin’s music, “Our God” has some high spots and some problematic sections, which are a mixed bag for me.

The verses and the chorus have a positive theme that I’ve found missing in much of church music (including hymns) – the exclusivity and supremacy of God:

Our God is greater
Our God is stronger
God you are higher than any other
Our God is Healer
Awesome in power
Our God
Our God

The one fully Biblical source of pride we have – in the power, majesty and exclusivity of our God in comparison with the false idols of this world – is fully front-and-center in this part of the song.  I’m sure that there are worship directors who would steer clear of this song, just because of the postmodern aversion to absolute truth claims and exclusivity.  That is an impulse that should be avoided.

However, what kills this song for me is the bridge:

And if our God is for us
Then who could ever stop us
And if our God is with us
Then what could stand against?
Then what could stand against?

It is not that this is wrong, theologically.  In fact, it is pulled directly from Romans 8:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?

What is missing for me is twofold: 1) The focus of the bridge is no longer on God, but is on us and our “invincibility” when we are with God; and 2) It is without context (from the rest of the song).

Just as biblical verses can be taken out of context and misapplied, so can these verses be abused within music (perhaps even more so, since music works on a deeper, subconscious level of the mind that reinforces and guides behavior without the need for clear logical connection).  In this case, one of the characteristics of the Western church has been its misappropriation of God as being “on our side” in matters of war, politics and personal conflict.  Without grounding in the context of Paul’s words, the congregation – and its individual congregants – are left to supply their own context, which may or may not be what was intended by Paul’s writing.  How so?  Let’s look at the remainder of Romans 8:

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

From the context of Paul’s writing, it is clear that Paul is not declaring that God will clear away the physical and spiritual forces that oppose and oppress us.  Rather, he is affirming that those forces of opposition and oppression cannot separate us from the love of God.  This song does not provide any context for this key – and very important – distinction.  This is a distinction that we in the western church consistently get wrong (particularly churches with degrees of word-faith or prosperity focus), and that I take pains to avoid when choosing worship music.

If this potential error was simply part of a bridge that was clearly not the focus of the song, I might have fewer reservations, but the prominence of it (with the build before the first bridge, and the centering of the bridge in the climax, with the seven-beat musical exclamation point repeatedly tagged after it) is very problematic for me in choosing this one as a regular worship song.

In a way, the song becomes almost schizophrenic – in conflict with itself in determining its message.  Which is sad, since the verse/chorus structure was so promising.

The Verdict:

While I think this song is strong, instrumentally, and has a focus (in the verse and chorus) on God’s exclusivity, which is sorely needed in the church, I do not think I would ever want to use it in a standard worship set.  Rather, if I was going to use it at all in a worship service, it would require someone (a pastor, worship leader) to provide the missing context that would soundly connect the supremacy and exclusivity of God with the power of His love to prevent anyone from separating us from Him.  If this context was provided, though, I think this song could be very powerful in a “special music” setting, to emotionally underscore a teaching message about the power of God’s love in saving us.

Interestingly, another song from the Passion 2010 worship set that also uses the latter section of Romans 8 as its core, is probably a better choice – Healing is In Your Hands.  Even with supplied context around Romans 8, I would probably choose this song over Our God.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I have not seen the film (since I live nowhere close to LA or NYC), but it’s something I’ll probably check out if it makes it to Indianapolis.

Basically, the filmmaker wanted to follow some adherents of Christianity and Islam for 18 months, exploring their views on the End of Days, and how it impacts and/or drives their faith.  During this time, he centered on two key figures – a Christian Missionary and an Irish convert to Islam – and how they sought to engage their opposing religion.  At the end of the 18 months, he arranged a meeting between the two men, the results of which were surprising to him and had an impact on at least one of the subjects of the film.  As a result, the director filmed for two more years.  The end product, which unexpectedly shed a positive light on Christianity, was rejected by a number of distributors, but is now gleaning a number of positive reviews and some Oscar buzz for best documentary.

Click here to view the embedded video.

You can read more about the director and his vision, the Christian missionary closely followed in the film, his book about the experience, and a couple of reviews from the LA showing of the film last week.

And then I was asked to help promote the concert, and to play some of Peterson’s music on the piano in the weeks leading up to the concert. This meant I would have to listen to the CD and put some work into it, which – in turn – sold me enough that Peterson wasn’t the average CCM hack, that I broke down and bought tickets for the family to go to the concert. And while he wasn’t (yet) up to par musically with Rich, he had a great deal of talent and heart, and an authenticity absent from most performers.

The next year, he returned to our church, doing his first Christmas tour for Behold the Lamb of God, the True Tall Tale of the Coming of Christ. After that, my inner skeptic was stilled, and Peterson had pulled me into his artistic vision of the story of Christ – both within Christmas, and in every day life.

Peterson’s music and lyrics are not really comparable, in style or quality, within the Christian music sub-genre (or even outside it, for that matter) with anyone other than the dearly departed Mullins. If there is a key difference between the two, though, it is this – Where Rich had a haunted/pessimistic/cynical streak, seasoned with a wild but weary maturity of bachelorhood, Peterson has a more optimistic thread running through his music, most likely grounded in his family, as a husband and father. Apart from that, much of the instrumentation, flow and production are incredibly reminiscent of Rich’s later work (as he gained freedom from Word Records’ heavy-handed production) – similar, yet different enough to completely stand alone, in it’s own right.

So it really is no surprise that July 27th was circled on my calendar, with an early morning download of Andrew Peterson’s new album, Counting Stars, in the offing. And it has been an entirely pleasing experience – one that I heartily recommend. He covers so much rich ground on the new album – examining faith, the family and living life in a way that leaves a legacy rooted in Christ.

If you’d like a look-see (or listen-see), Andy’s got a Free Concert tonight through Facebook – so you can listen/watch before you buy. Additionally, the video I posted for last Friday’s Open Thread (embedded below) is from the new album, and was first brought to my attention in an article written a couple weeks ago by my sister, along with a post written by Peterson, himself.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I was nineteen, you were twenty-one
The year we got engaged
Everyone said we were much too young
But we did it anyway

We bought our rings for forty each
From a pawn shop down the road
We made our vows and took the leap
Now fifteen years ago

We went dancing in the minefields
We went sailing in the storm
And it was harder than we dreamed
But I believe that’s what the promise is for

“I do” are the two most famous last words
The beginning of the end
But to lose your life for another I’ve heard
Is a good place to begin

‘Cause the only way to find your life
Is to lay your own life down
And I believe it’s an easy price
For the life that we have found

And we’re dancing in the minefields
We’re sailing in the storms
This is harder than we dreamed
But I believe that’s what the promise is for

So when I lose my way, find me
When I loose love’s chains, bind me
At the end of all my faith, till the end of all my days
When I forget my name, remind me

‘Cause we bear the light of the Son of Man
So there’s nothing left to fear
So I’ll walk with you in the shadowlands
Till the shadows disappear

‘Cause he promised not to leave us
And his promises are true
So in the face of all this chaos, baby,
I can dance with you

Click here to view the embedded video.

Context, Context

Before any further discussion on the video, I think it’s important to have a little bit of context around it:

1. The video was produced by the media staff at North Point Community Church in Atlanta, GA (where Andy Stanley is the senior pastor).
2. The Sunday morning worship style being lampooned is the style used by NPCC.  They are making fun of themselves (not somebody else), while making a point.
3. The video was specifically produced for last week’s Drive Conference, which North Point sponsors for church leaders and creative teams.

Kudos

First off, I’d like to applaud NPCC for 1) being able to laugh at themselves; 2) for being aware of the dangers of church-as-entertainment; and 3) for making this video available, since it has a message that should be heard, but also because it could be misused by their armchair critics who can roll out their favorite whipping boys w/ this video and use it as a misguided indictment on style, rather than a message that could have been produced for any “worship style” used by American churches.

Style vs. Substance

I think that quite often, the critics within the church – across the spectrum of styles – like to play off of a style-versus-substance meme, creating a competition where none need exist.  As I noted above, this video could have been produced to skewer ANY Sunday morning worship style – be it hymns-hymnals-and-pews, Contempervent (I love that term), high church, or incense-and-icons.  One can have substance in any “style”, but when it becomes a show or a rote pattern – tradition for the sake of tradition – it has strayed from the path.

I believe that all forms of artistice creativity can be used for the glory of God in worship: painting, music, dance, drama, sculpture, writing.

One danger is making it the focus of worship rather than a method of worship.  This is just as true of well-done interpretive dance as it is of skillful oratory.

Another danger is making it a distraction from worship rather than an enabler of worship, which is why if something cannot reach a certain level of artistic quality, it might be best not to insert it within corporate worship settings.

Sidebar on Giving

Next, one of the tangential points they bring up is around tithing.  I’ve always found it interesting that the basic message you hear in the church is “what you give is between you and God”, but you know that your giving is being tracked – by law – by the church, for the purposes of tax reporting.  So, the question becomes – what is being done with the tracked giving data?

I know some churches who make it common knowledge that the church treasurer shares NONE of the individual giving data with the leaders of the church.  That way, there is no danger of “playing favorites”, based upon someone’s giving history.  On the flip side, though, it also has a lesser degree of community accountability.

At the other end of the spectrum, I know of churches (and a larger number of non-Christian religious groups) who ask for your pay-stubs and/or W-2’s, in order to make sure that each family is giving its 10%.  To me, this degree of accountability seems to go against the “free-will” nature of giving, and the heart of giving, itself.

Most of the churches I’m familiar with, though, have no spoken policy on who – leadership-wise – knows the details of individual giving, and how those details are used.  In some ways, this ambiguity can be good, but can also be cynically viewed (as elicited in the video).

I found this wonderful story about a spontaneous worship by a homeless man while a church was shooting a video. It was so uplifting and amazing how the homeless man is already saved and worshiping and realizes his purpose and place in life despite how many of us might complain about it.

In Carlos’ article, he describes a recent situation, where he was recording part of an EPK for an album he was recording, when a homeless man came up and sat down with him…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thanks for the tip, Aaron!

I also got to wondering what everyone else listens to in the way of music for this season in which we celebrate Christ’s birth (even though his actual birth date was more likely in September).  In that spirit, I’m sharing some of my favorite songs/albums in the hopes you’ll share yours with me (including links to check them out, if available).

Click here to view the embedded video.

Albums:

1. Andrew Peterson: Behold the Lamb of God:  By far, this is my favorite Christmas album, and it’s the only one that is exempt from the “Only between Thanksgiving and Dec. 25″ rule (above).  BtLoG, itself, aside from a couple of instrumental pieces, is not traditional Christmas music, but is all set around the story of the coming of Jesus – from the birth of Moses, through the kings of Israel and the writings of Isaiah, and into the events told in the Gospels.  In many ways, the music is one continuous 45-minute work that builds and tells a story, building on the emotion and yearning of the people involved.  Andrew (and a number of Nashville musicians) travel each December, performing this piece, along with some of their own music.  If they’re stopping near you, I’d highly recommend them!  [If you're interested, you can also listen to the entire thing - legally - here.]
2. The Chieftains: The Bells of Dublin: This is still a sentimental favorite of mine, as it was probably my first real foray into Irish music.  Again, this is an album that flows almost as a single, integrated work.  It has a number of traditional carols (both in English and Gaelic), along with a few new songs.  As is often the case with the Chieftains, they have a number of guest singers/performers.  My two favorites on the album are Burgess Meredith (yes, you read that correctly) narrating Don Oiche Ud I Mbeithil, and The Rebel Jesus with Van Morrison.  Probably the only out-of-place song on the album is The St. Stephen’s Day Murders (with guest composer/vocalist Elvis Costello) – about unpleasant family gatherings – but it makes me laugh every time I hear it, so all is forgiven!
3. George Winston: December:  Even if you don’t know who George Winston is, chances are you’ve heard multiple songs from this album on TV, in movies or in stores during Christmas-time.  This was probably one of the first Christmas CD’s I ever owned.  It is all piano (no vocals), and it incredibly intricate (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve failed trying to pick out some of these songs on the piano).  While December (the month) always seems to be hectic at work and at home, when I play December, everything slows down – which is just perfect.  (PS: This is probably not ODM approved, as it kicked off Windham Hill records, which is the major publisher of “New Age” music – before “New Age” meant something bad.  In reality, it is just simple folk music with a pastoral feel to it.)
4. Michael W. Smith: Christmas and Amy Grant: A Christmas Album: While I realize that MWS and Amy Grant have a gazillion Christmas albums, it seems, their first ones are still my favorites (though they probably date me).  Of all my Christmas albums, these two are so intertwined with where I was in life during the late eighties, that it’s hard to separate the music from the memories.  As a student at Milligan College in East Tennessee, Grant’s Tennessee Christmas, in particular, still takes me back to one of my favorite places on earth at my favorite time of year.  What’s more to like than that?
5. Amy Grant, Art Garfunkel, Jimmy Webb: The Animals’ Christmas: Another one of my first Christmas CD purchases, The Animals’ Christmas (which is now out of print and only available for MP3 purchase) has a number of big name musicians providing a single-themed suite of music, all centered around animals experiencing the first Christmas.  I like this as a Christmas Eve album, both for the themes and the varied styles – particularly the children’s choir.  [One note - I am a Garfunkel fan, and Zan is not.  If you're in Zan's camp, you probably won't like the album.]

Songs (not in the above albums):

Click here to view the embedded video.

1. U2: Christmas (Baby Please Come Home): A song from the Very Special Christmas album (the only really good album in the series, produced to support the Special Olympics), this is U2 like you’ve probably not heard them before, covering the 1960’s tune by Darlene Love (who – interesting side-note – played Danny Glover’s wife in the Lethal Weapon series).  This song is a “first week of December” song – loud, boisterous and soulful.  Listening to The Edge, Larry Mullen and Adam Clayton as back-up “ronettes” just makes it all the more fun… (see above)
2. Bebo Norman: The Rebel Jesus: Bebo covers the Jackson Browne classic (IMO) better than Van’s original (which is on my #2 album, above) as Christmas music.  This is a song I’ve discussed in a full-length article, last year.   This one is on my favorite list precisely because both the message and the music are so stellar (and spot on).  As for Bebo vs. Browne?  Bebo’s version has a bit of a smooth edge to it (and is slightly more enunciated) – which fits more with Christmas music – and Browne’s is more edgy (which fits the other 11 months of the year).
3. Casting Crowns: While You Were Sleeping: Another song I posted here last year, this song by Casting Crowns sets up a wonderful parallelism of the cluelessness of Bethlehem in 4 AD and the cluenessness of western civilization 2009 AD.  While I have a slight issue with the pre-mil view possibly portrayed in the final verse, it isn’t overburdening (and the political sentiments – in a Christmas song – are spot-on).  Great music, great lyrics – great song. (listen)
4. Eden’s Bridge: Christmas is With Us Again: This song by the Irish Christian group, Eden’s Bridge, is a hauntingly beautiful song that intertwines the meaning of Christmas, the family, along with a blatant streak of anti-materialism.  While EB sounds a bit too much like Enya at times, Christmas is With Us Again lays on varied (and broader) instrumentation, and the message is key, so the vocals are not as interlaced as the more famous Irish singer.
5. Rich Mullins: You Gotta Get Up (Christmas Song): I can’t have a “best” list w/o including Rich somewhere in the mix.  In this particular case, You Gotta Get Up makes me laugh for multiple reasons.  One of the times Rich was staying with us, right after he’d sold Praise to the Lord to Amy Grant, he talked about how he’d been asked to write a song for her Christmas album.  It was a song called Save Me (which did end up on his first album), that had pretty much nothing to do with Christmas – except that he had bells playing in the background.  Naturally, it was rejected by the producers (since they were looking for explicitly Christmas music), and I somwhere in there, Rich was ticked about it (more, I think that they were dictating the theme of a song for him to write, than their rejection of the song he’d written).   Years later, when he put You Gotta Get Up on Liturgy, Legacy and a Ragamuffin Band, I asked him if this was his mea culpa for Save Me.  He just laughed, and I’m still not sure if that was confirmation or denial – or purposely both.  Even so – this song makes me laugh – and cry, just a little bit – especially at the thought that someone would put the line “Save me from Soviet propagandists, Lord, save me from Washington, please save me” in a song intended for Christmas… (listen ‘gotta get up’) (listen ’save me’)

There you go, as far as mine are concerned.  What are your favorites, and why (as my HS English teacher always told me, the “whys” are always more interesting than the “whats”…)

Somehow, in times like that, I think about Moses.  Not the Moses, leading the children of Israel.  The Moses leading a bunch of sheep in the desert, coming across a burning bush and discovering the presence of God – in direct communication with Him.  In his talk with God, Moses sounds so tentative and reluctant to carry our his mission, coming up with all sorts of excuses to stay out in the wilderness.  And I wonder – was it all reluctance to do what he was asked, or was it partially a reluctance to leave the direct presence and communion with God, there with that burning bush?

And I think about John – the “disciple Jesus loved”.  John, a kid who was probably only 15 or 16 when Jesus was crucified.  John, whose Gospel did not just seek to recount the events of Jesus’ life, but whose Gospel stands apart from the other three – an attempt to theologically explain Jesus through a lens of intense devotion and love.  John – the only disciple to die of old age.  How he must have longed for his short time on earth with Jesus to have never ended.

Yet Moses and John both carried out their God-given missions, and from what we can tell, lived their lives fully “in the moment” with those around them, and not just as a temporary waiting station before spending an eternity in an ocean whose drops they had tasted first-hand, and then described to the world.

Last week, I heard the story behind the How He Loves Us, and it added just a little bit more to it for me.

John Mark McMillan tells the story of his friend, Steven, a youth pastor who came one morning to a prayer meeting with him (JMM was one of his students), and he prayed “Lord, if it would shake the youth of this nation, I would give my life for that.  I would give my life today if it would help you reach these youth.”

That night, Steven was killed in a car accident.

JMM took a tune that he had been working on, and finished the lyrics and music, based on conversations he’d had with Steven about the love of God, and with a desire to be part of God’s answer to Steven’s prayer.  How He Loves Us is that song.

Here is the DCB version:

Click here to view the embedded video.

He is jealous for me,
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realise just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all

Yeah, He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves.

We are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
And Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…

That He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all

Yeah, He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves…

Oh, how He loves us…