The Brevity of Life...and Music

I don’t approach this topic lightly. In fact I think we need to constantly live with the end in sight, the end of this life that is. How will we finish the race? Are we being used for the glory of God in spreading the gospel?

The reason I bring this up is because there are three songs that remind me of where I’ve been, where I am and where I’m going in this pilgrimage of life and faith. It might sound strange, but whenever the things of this world start to hinder my focus on Jesus Christ I try to do a few things.

(1) Fast & Pray in repentance expressing my dependence and neediness to God
(2) Read the Word
(3) Express my feelings with my wife and seek her prayer support
(4) Seek out the prayers of my family and the body of Christ
(5) I listen to a few songs that remind me of God’s grace in my life

These songs have truly been precious to me throughout the years and they remind me of the grace He has shown me in the past, and the remind me of the brevity of the current, and they give me an anticipation for what’s ahead.

(1) Spiritual (from Pat Metheny and Charlie Haden’s Beyond the Missouri Sky album)

(2) Letter From Home (from Pat Matheny Group’s Letter From Home album)

(3) Litania [Part One] (From Thomasz Stanko’s From The Green Hill album)

For some reason these tracks help me reflect on past, present and future in an amazing way. The gift of music from God is truly amazing. God’s grace is amazing! I remember listening to Letter From Home at a Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia meeting my junior year in college at Drake thinking, “Soon these meetings will come to an end, I may never see some of these guys again, some will keep in touch, some won’t, some will move, some will stay, some will die and some will continue living.” Music that humbles you like this is truly worth having around.

I was just listening to Spiritual and I was thinking about how good God has been, how much I love Lindsey, how much I love my family, and how much I love everyone in our ABF. It might seem weird that I would say this, but I really do love you all.

Do you guys have music you listen to…to get contemplative…or to rest…to cheer you up when you’re sad…to humble you…to remind you of the brevity of life…to remind you of God’s grace toward you? Let me know! Let’s get a good list going!

In Christ
Noah

[Also, I'm excited to add develop some favorite hymns...over lunch Lindsey and I picked up three free hymnals from Westminster Presbyterian Church in town:) And before you make assumptions...Yes, they gave them to us, we didn't just walk in and take them!]