A Devotion for the Imperfect Song

If you grew up in the American church in the 1980s and 90s, you were probably familiar with at least one Rich Mullins song. His songs “Awesome God” and “Step by Step” could be heard on every Christian radio station and sung by praise band and choirs across the world.

Tragically, Mullins died in a car accident in 1997, but his legacy of powerful and prophetic songwriting and performance lives on.

Some of my favorite Rich Mullin’s songs are the far less well-known ones, the ones where you can hear in his voice the struggle of faith, the pains of life laid bare in the notes.

 I’ll admit, sometimes I find it hard to connect with Christian music, with artists whose stories seem too perfect, or lyrics just a little too scrubbed clean. Sure, a song that endlessly repeats praises of God’s mercy and grace are powerful and should be a part of our worship.

But what do you listen to when God’s absence seems far too real, or you’re struggling to love the person next to you?

In Rich Mullin’s music, I find a rawness and realness that connects me to another ragamuffin wanderer, another disciple of Christ who doesn’t always have all the answers.

In his song “Peace,” he sings:

And though I love you, still we're strangers
Prisoners in these lonely hearts
And though our blindness separates us
Still His light shines in the dark

When we come alongside our survivors, we are still yet strangers, still fumbling in the dark, often lacking answers. We may feel disconnected from God, or in a place of questioning. Our lives, our own faith stories don’t have to be (and shouldn’t be) scrubbed clean for us to offer peace to the client in front of us. In fact, I think that our own doubts and disbelief, our own places of pain and struggle, lend legitimacy to our work.

Our stories of imperfection remind those we are working with and for that still, God's light shines in the dark.

God is speaking, still, in the darkness, and in the bright new day alike.

With you on the journey,

Chaplain Amy