"music takes us where words cannot"

A year ago, this month I planned to share 12 months worth of my favorite artists.

RECAP—

January: NEEDTOBREATHE

February: Boyce Avenue

March: Penny and Sparrow

April: Jimmy Needham

May: He Is We

June: Ray LaMontagne

July: Hanson

August: John Mayer

September: Shane & Shane

October: Ron Pope

November: Noah Gundersen

December: Third Day

 

It has been a joy rediscovering these musicians and the many reasons I love them. Music is like love and life—it always grows. So when considering who I should talk about in December, I decided to choose a band that I have grown up with.

When I was young I must have lived in a dream land. I remember crying for no reason when a song would play. It was something in the first note, the pain of the artist’s voice, the underlying peace of speaking something so genuine aloud. I blame my mother—whose gentle heart always feels everything. But there is nothing unique about this. I am not the only one to be deeply moved by music at a young age. I would not want to be. It is something in our fibers. I think God must have smiled and wept when He created music. Because when He did He wove a little bit of heaven into our ordinary world. I like Thomas Charlyle, am convinced,

“Music is well said to be the speech of angels; in fact, nothing among the utterances allowed to man is felt to be so divine.”

So December. My first concert  ever was to see Third Day. I was so in love—I cried because we had to leave early. It was a school night. I always told myself after that I would never leave a concert early again. I do not know what I thought I was missing, but I hated to miss. After I grew up and started to listen to everything I rarely listened to worship music. However, Third Day was the exception. They grew with me: Always genuine, always quick to the heart, and always talented.

Before CDs took over, we had Third Day's album, Offerings on tape. We never changed it. I do not know how we did not get sick of it. I guess the truth never gets old. Though Offerings is a good 13 years old now—I have never heard an album like it. Few people can say they have walked with someone almost everywhere in their life. Even fewer albums can boast such a thing, but Offerings has been my soundtrack.

 

 

If I learned anything through this process is that music has the ability to speak when nothing else can. It goes into corners we do not allow people to enter. It looks at us in a way we never expected to be seen. It allows us, in a world full of lies and deception to say something absolutely brilliant. It allows us to say it differently every time. It encourages us to celebrate. It reminds us how fragile we are. It allows us to feel what we feel without judgment.

Most of all music reminds me of why the third day was so important. Because after it came life—New Life. That is a reason to sing.

“To You, O Lord, I lift my soul/
In You, O God, I place my trust
And do not let me, yeah, be put to shame, yeah
Nor let my enemies triumph over me
My hope is You/Show me Your way
Guide me in truth/ In all my days, yeah
My hope is You”
“My Hope is You”, Third Day