"Youth groups destroy children's lives."

I found this quote in Hipster Christianity (Baker Books, 2010, by Brett McCracken). The quote is by David Fitch, who is the founding pastor of Life on the Vine Church in Long Grove, Illinois.

I was so jarred by the quote that I thought I should turn it into a blog post, which would hopefully foster some input from my friends who are pastors, youth pastors, staff ministers, youth group leaders, or youth group participants (or survivors?).

I haven't had a chance yet to read up on the church's website or anything else the pastor in question has written. I have no idea what has led him to hold such a seemingly extreme view, but I do hope that I can gain some insight as to why he feels the way he does.

At this point, I can't imagine that I'll ever agree with him, but I would at least like to try to understand where he's coming from.

I listened to 'Classic Rock' yesterday...

"Classic Rock" in quotes not because I think it's classic, but because it's the kind of music that guys who are serious about rock always seem to really go for.

Side 4 of Rush's "Exit...Stage Left"

Who's Next

Neil Young's "After the Gold Rush" (in which, by the way, I found remnants of some very old pot. So whoever donated it to Goodwill killed too many brain cells to remember where they left their stash.)

Led Zeppelin (the first)

I like The Who well enough, but I've never really developed a taste for the others. I just want to know what the hardcore fans see in these groups. By that, I mean besides "I like 'em because they're f-ing awesome!" I want to know why you think they're awesome. What is it about the music that you like?

Cool thread on gretschpages.com:

http://gretschpages.com/forum/modern-gretsch-guitars/rockabilly-worship-tunes/31353/page1/

Seems I'm not the only one! I post there as Bear85.

Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands

I'm reading this book titled Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands, by Paul David Tripp. Chapter 4 deals with the heart, and how your actions follow directly from your heart. What you're worshiping in your heart (either God or some idol) dictates your actions and the motivations behind those actions.

It has me thinking about worship and tastes in music. If we "like" the music in worship, does it mean we have a heart that's after the same things God is after? If we attempt to introduce into worship the kind of music that we like, rather than traditional worship music, does that mean we're pushing our own idols into God's house? Or does it mean that we're simply using our (for lack of a better word) natural inclinations (a.k.a. tastes) to praise God?

Robert Gordon

My wife and I had the chance to catch Robert Gordon and the Gang They Couldn’t Hang (Glen Matlock of the Sex Pistols, Chris Spedding of Roxy Music, and Slim Jim Phantom of Stray Cats) last weekend at the Oneida Casino in Green Bay. I actually got to see him up close – I tell the story below in a post I originally made to the HoodooVoodoo Lounge discussion board:

“Those of you who are Robert Gordon fans are going to be appalled at this opening, but... I had never heard of the guy before! I know, I know, I'm pretty uninformed! I had no previous reference to compare Gordon's performance to, so I'll take the easy way out on that I enjoyed the show a lot. I do, however, have a story to relate about the break between Gordon's two sets.

He announces he's taking a 10-minute break, and the Gang breaks into a medley thing. I'm remembering snippets of various artists, such as Hendrix and Clapton. It was almost as if they were a local bar band, trying to win over the crowd by giving them something they'd recognize. So while this medley is going on, Gordon comes down into the lounge - not backstage. He orders a drink at the bar. People approach him, shake his hand, have a word, return to their table. Once his drink arrives, he turns around to find a place to sit down. My wife and I had a table to ourselves. He walks over and asks if he can sit down! I said, "Of course, please do."

Then he pulls out a black zippered case, about the size of a large wallet, takes out a pair of glasses that looked very 1955, and a cigarette, and asks, "Do you mind if I smoke?" I said, "No, not at all, go right ahead!"

So anyway, he lights up while the Gang is playing away – by now they were into their own hits - and he leans over and says, "Not bad for a bunch of old guys, huh?"

I replied, "I thought you were gonna say 'Not bad for a bunch of kids'!" He laughed, and we went back to listening. (Not very snappy dialogue, I know, but it's kind of hard to chat when the music's going.)

At this point I'm fully aware of the fact that I'm living a classic fan moment, but I can't really appreciate it because unfortunately, I haven’t been a fan of the guy for the last thirty years! Maybe he sat by us because he has 'fan-dar' - the ability to detect someone who won't spazz out when they meet him

He finished his cig and went back by the sound board to talk to Phil, the guy who books the talent at the casino. The crowd gets a little rowdy - one guy yelled, "Where the hell's Robert Gordon?" So now he's probably about 20 minutes into his 10 minute break, and he comes back into the lounge area...and sits down next to me for another cigarette!

Then Cellphone Camera Guy shows up. At first I wasn't sure what the guy asked Gordon; it was kind of loud in there. I noticed Gordon nod kind of curtly, then the guy asks someone to take the picture. Does she know how to work the camera? Of course not, she's a total stranger! So it took awhile. I don't think Gordon was too thrilled, but he was at least polite to the guy. After the guy left, Gordon finished the second cigarette, and he went back up on stage.

And that was my brush with greatness. It was a great show, and now I have a new artist to follow. It is too bad this little encounter couldn't have happened to an already-fan instead of me! But I believe that everything, even little stuff like this, happens for a reason. Maybe someday I'll find out what the reason was!”

It’s been running through the back of my mind all week. I really appreciate that Gordon is still out there making music for his fans. He seemed like he was enjoying himself, except maybe for the extended snapshot episode.

The Casino used a publicity photo that looked something like this –

And here’s what he looks like today –

I’m guessing most days, Robert Gordon could walk down the street and nobody would bother him. In a room full of people who came just to see him, it stands to reason that he’d have a tough time getting a drink without somebody approaching him.

I wonder what it’s like to live the life he’s living.

What This Thing Is All About

The first message board I got seriously hooked on is now defunct; it used to be located at briansetzer.com, but there’s no longer a board there. One of the people who posted there, burner1, told about seeing Carl Perkins at a book promo event years ago. Burner1 said, “He had a way of talking that made it seem perfectly understandable that a rock’n’roller could have a strong faith in God.” (Confession: that was a paraphrase. I don’t have access to the original post anymore.)

The inspiration for this blog is drawn from that post. I’ve always loved 50’s-style rock’n’roll, in its many forms – Buddy Holly, doo-wop, the R&B influenced rock of Little Richard and Chuck Berry, even the teen idol stuff of Frankie Avalon and Bobby Rydell. The music that I’ve really developed an appreciation for in recent years, though, is the style known as rockabilly, the way they played it back at Sun Records in Memphis.

I’m also a Christian. By that, I mean simply that I believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again on the third day, so that we might be reconciled to God. Through Jesus, my sins are forgiven.

I think for many people, the Christian faith seems incompatible with music like rockabilly. I’m hoping to use this forum to share my thoughts on my faith and my favorite music. I also hope to have you join in a discussion, via your comments, on just how compatible or incompatible they are.