Are You Reflecting or Directing?
Look upon me and be merciful to me,
As Your custom is toward those who love Your name.
Direct my steps by Your word,
And let no iniquity have dominion over me.
Redeem me from the oppression of man,
That I may keep Your precepts.
Psalm 119:132-134
Let me admit this right up front—I’m a child of the ‘60’s. Although I grew up in Waco, Texas, our family spent most summers in Boulder, Colorado where my Dad taught summer classes at Colorado University. Talk about a clash of cultures!
You see, in the 60’s, Boulder was a bastion of the radical change of social values championed by the hippy generation. To say the least, Waco was not. My values were rooted and grounded in hard work and “toe the line” Southern Baptist theology (although at the time I wasn’t even sure what theology actually meant).
The intersection of those Waco values with the message of the hippy generation wasn’t just limited to my summers in Boulder, however. That intersection occurred virtually every day as I listened to the music of my 60’s generation on my transistor radio. Yes, Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, the Mamas and the Papas, the Stones, Beatles, and the Grateful Dead made the radio charts even in Waco, Texas.
In the 70’s, my life was impacted by many songs of the Jesus Movement as well as early CCM songs that may be quite familiar to you even today. Andrae Crouch, Keith Green, Larry Norman, Love Song, The Imperials, and Evie delivered lyrics that shared a set of values that were quite different from the music of my teenage years.
So, you tell me: Did those songs my generation heard so often in the 60’s “direct” our values or “reflect” the values of our society? In other words, did those songs open up a whole new way of thinking for us, or did they simply articulate deeply entrenched attitudes and desires? You can ask the same question about Christian songs as well.
After decades of pondering that question, I can assure you of this—the answer is “both.”
As you write and sing, as you play and perform, keep that truth in mind. The lyrics you choose to sing will impact everyone who chooses to listen. Make a firm decision today to abide (live, remain, and dwell) in Jesus (John 15). Then do all you can to deliver to your audience songs that will direct them to God’s Word—to His precepts, to real Truth. We already have enough of the world’s opinions and values floating through the digital universe.