How to fight creeping irrelevance

Group, Jul/Aug 2002 by Miller, Steve

Not long ago, I was shocked to discover that musical irrelevance was stalking my ministry-I knew something had to change.

I found the answer in the music strategies missionaries use to unlock the hearts of their target groups. I wrote the book on youth group music-literally.' That's why it came as such a surprise to learn that I'd lost my sense of what was musically relevant to teenagers.

Driving home from church a couple of years ago, I field-tested a song on my teenage son that I thought would well illustrate next week's youth group topic. The song? "Show Me the Way" by Styx, one of the most popular rock bands of the '80s. As I cranked the song to concert level in the car, chills went up my spine-the song powerfully exposes the heart of a disillusioned soul desperate for the truth.

The song ended and I turned to my son, "Well, what did you think?" He responded nonchalantly, "Well, it's okay, but I really prefer rock."

I was aghast. Really prefer rock!?! I screamed inside. Styx defined '80s rock. How could a song that moved me so powerfully do nothing at all for my son? Naturally, I questioned his salvation.

You can chuckle and shake your head at me-that's right, I'm 44 years old and I seem woefully out of touch. But not so fast. I live with five teenagers, and that means I'm immersed in a world of mainstream rock, emo, punk, and alternative metal core. Why could I not hear this Styx song through their ears?

When I was a young youth minister, I listened exclusively to my favorite Christian music, so I missed the subtle shifts in taste happening in the larger culture. Today I miss the edge simply because I appreciate too many musical eras.

In the '60s it took me an entire week of rooming with a Beatles nut at a summer camp to appreciate their music. Since then I've ingested the best of 70s, '80s, and '90s music. My tastes are broad and deep. That's why, when I hear a great song that helps me worship God, I can't distinguish what makes the song powerful to me. I can't hear it through the ears of a teenager whose musical tastes stretch all the way back to. 1996.

Because our exposure to music differs radically from our teenagers', I think we must pursue a more disciplined, prayerful, and biblical approach to choosing the music that fuels our youth group activities and worship. We can't trust our instincts. If we do, we're likely missing the mark-scratching the teenagers of 1995 right where they itch. The overarching question is: How can you keep from losing your edge?

the power of heart music

Ever meet a "missionary ethnomusicologist"? These folks study the music of differing cultures so they can unlock hidden doors to the hearts of their people,

Ethnomusicologists tell us that people of different cultures have both a natural spoken language and a natural musical language (that's the culture's "heart language"). Missionaries go to great pains to understand and use this "heart music" in their outreach to a particular people group.'

When you discover and use the heart music of your young people, the results are dramatic. It can literally transform your worship time from deadness to life. And you'll get your kids talking about biblical issues like never before.3

missionary strategies applied to music

Here's how I think we can adopt a missionary mind-set for the way we incorporate music in our ministries.

1. Distrust your instincts. You likely don't know your teenagers' heart music. Skilled missionaries don't assume they can take their favorite worship CD and successfully use it in another culture. But because our kids often don't seem radically different from us when we were teenagers, we're apt to falsely assume we understand them. This is even more of a pitfall for 22-year-old youth ministers who've been out of high school for four years. If you're in that category, remember that when you were a gth grader, the middle schoolers you now work with were in kindergarten. Sometimes the very music styles that make us cringe are those that open up the portals of heaven to our kids.

2. Get cues from the pop charts, not concrete direction. Missionary ethnomusicologists study deeply the popular music of their target culture. Although that culture may appreciate many forms of music, missionaries look for the music people choose in their most relaxed moments-what they sing in the fields and hum while preparing food.4

To minister like a missionary, find out what CDs your kids purchase, what MP3 tracks they download, what radio stations they listen to, and what songs they hum while shooting baskets.

3. Communicate constantly with your teenagers about their worship music. When I ask teenagers to evaluate a worship time, I often discover that my sense of how things went was dead wrong. I felt the acoustic music went way too long. They loved it. I thought the guest worship leader hit a home run. They didn't like it. Here are some ways to get their honest input.

Do regular anonymous surveys. Ask what songs make worship real for them and which songs do nothing for them.