Daily Word of Grace # 134 (September 18, 2020)
As a kid in the 70’s I grew up with the radio on pretty much all the time. In 1976 Boston released their landmark eponymous debut album, an album that single handedly turned me on to the joy of rock ‘n roll, a joy I have never gotten over, and probably never will. In addition to “More Than a Feeling”, a wistful power ballad about a lost love named Maryann (and one of THE best songs of the decade), this album has a song called “Peace of Mind” in which the late Brad Delp sings, “Now if you’re feeling kinda low about the dues you’ve been paying, future’s coming much too slow. And you want to run but somehow you just keep on staying, can’t decide on which way to go. I understand about indecision but I don’t care if I get behind. People living in competition. All I want is to have my peace of mind.” That longing for peace of mind is something all of us have, some more than others. In his Letter to the Philippians, which he wrote while imprisoned in Rome, Paul addressed this very longing, “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippian 4:6-7). Maybe you never knew that classic rock songs of the 70’s intersected with the Pauline epistles of the New Testament, but indeed, thankfully, they do.
Love and Prayers,
Dave