We Are All Different

         

         It's a mystery how we can he so similar and yet so different. MV Music Ministry's Songwriter's Circle is filled with people who have a lot in common. We are all passionate about expressing ourselves through writing music; everyone is similarly skilled in the art of songwriting; we all relish the challenge of writing new music; and we all love Jesus. While we are all so similar, there are still huge aspects of songwriting that we differ in. One way, which we discuss often, is the writing process. Each person in the circle has a different system for harnessing inspiration and creating. We all do the same thing differently.

         At our meeting last Saturday I was caught off guard by a pretty important foundational difference between another songwriter and myself. We were discussing intent in songwriting. The discussion was focused on what each of us intended to accomplish in writing a song. For the other writer songwriting accomplished a goal that he understood very well.

         For him songwriting is a way to express himself. When he is done with a song he can be proud of it, whether he thinks its good or not. He is able to appreciate his own music simply because he made it. His music is very personal and because of it his music seems to come from places deep within himself. It is a refreshing and inspiring thing to observe a man who is unafraid and unashamed about the music that reflects who he is. I'm always amazed when he pulls out a tune and tells everyone he started writing it 10 years ago. He holds onto his songs and talks about them the same way most people talk about their best memories from their past.

        Then there is me. Funtionality is key for me. Anytime I sit down to write a song I have to have in mind who I want it to impact. Not to say that my music is not an expression of who I am. Self expression is at the core of most forms of writing. However, one of my songs may be an excellent expression of who I am or where I'm at, but if I can't imagine an audience for it I'll trash it and move on. Some people think this reflects a shallow nature in me, but I don't think so. My take on songwriting affords one of the deepest human necessities - connection. The first time I played the song "Down in my Soul" on a Sunday morning, Don Hammond rushed up to me after the service with a yellow pad of paper with a list of 8 or 10 things scribbled on it and said, "Tim, these are some things that I feel like I heard God telling me while you were playing your song." That was a "wow" moment for me. God used something from me to connect with Don, and then Don connected with me.

         My songwriter friend and I seem to sit at opposite ends of the spectrum with regards to intent in songwriting. For him, songwriting is personal. He is fulfilled in his music. In writing he is able to express himself and it helps him connect with God. For me, music serves a purpose. It spurns on spiritual growth and encourages human connection. Neither way is more right than the other. The other writer and I both write the way God created us to and it's a good thing.

This raises the question, what has God made you to do, and why do you do it?