Keith Green's impact lives on

It’s difficult to believe it’s been 25 years.

I was working the wire desk at the Johnson City Press-Chronicle when I saw a brief story move from The Associated Press that told of a Christian songwriter being killed in a plane crash with two of his children. His name was Keith Green.

“How sad.” I thought to myself. I wasn’t even a Christian at the time, but I had a little baby boy at home and could not even imagine the loss.

I had no idea how his music would impact my life in years to come.

In April 1985, I became a Christian. About a year later, my next-door neighbor, Dick Pace, introduced me to Keith Green’s music. The songwriter’s honest, hard-hitting words to the Church spoke to me. I often say that Green’s life and lyrics taught me about discipleship, while the words and life of Rich Mullins, who died in accident about 10 years ago, taught me about grace.

Here are some of the ways that Green’s music has touched my life, and even continues to do so:

• It was while listening to “Here Am I, Send Me,” one morning that I first surrendered to God’s call on my life to vocational ministry. I had known for some time that God was calling me in some fashion and, quite honestly, it was driving me nuts. We were living in Jackson Hills and I was alone in the bedroom, listening to the song, and found myself sobbing, and it was like, “OK, God. I give up. Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it.”
  
  
• Green’s “Asleep in the Light” continues to indict me at times when I find myself “playing church,” rather than serving the least, the last and the lost.
  
  
• The song “Grace By Which I Stand” reminds me not to rely on emotions when it comes to my relationship to God:
  “Lord, the feelings are not the same,
  I guess I’m older, I guess I’ve changed.
  And how I wish it had been explained, that as you’re growing you must remember,
  That nothing lasts, except the grace of God, by which I stand, in Jesus.
  I know that I would surely fall away, except for grace, by which I’m saved.”
  

My family and close friends are aware of what Green’s music has meant to my Christian journey. My children gave me “The Ministry Years” collection of his music in 1989, and his biography, “No Compromise,” penned by wife Melody Green, truly impacted my understanding of what it means to be a discipleship of Jesus Christ.

Sure, he was a bit legalistic, but in an age where the Church is filled with practitioners of what German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer might refer to as “cheap grace,” hard words from musical prophets such as Green can help bring about some balance.

I was reminded of all of this last week when my daughter, Elizabeth, was helping put together the Family & Faith section front at The Daily Times last week and she said, "There's a story here about Keith Green."

I quickly moved to look over her shoulder. It was a story about some unreleased recordings that his widow Melody has that are going to be digitally recovered and released.

I look forward to that because much of Keith's music has been repackaged and resold as the contemporary Christian music machine in Nashville continues to gather gold.

I wonder what Keith would say about all of that.

I think I have a good idea.

Grace and peace ...