Common Grace

I've talked here before about a theological term called "common grace" (in reference to burritos) and I'm going to touch on that again. The basic idea of common grace is undeserved gifts from God for the benefit of all humanity (whether or not the person is a follower of Christ). Included within this are a lot of serious theological and philosophical ideas (i.e. any restraint of sin), but also some much more entertaining graces like taste-buds and my topic today, music.

Tim Keller says (paraphrased here, not exact), "When a person plays music and does it well, whether they know it or not, whether they acknowledge it or not, and whether they believe it or not, they evangelize us." They point us to a greater Something, who is really a greater Someone.

A quick look at a typical concert will reveal this reality. Regardless of the genre: hip hop, rock, folk, country, thousands of people come together, lift their hands to the sky (a common Biblical image of worship), close their eyes, sing along. Even if you attend an orchestra, while unlikely to see a frat bro with his girlfriend on his shoulders swaying along and humming the crescendo, you will see people talk about a stirring within them. Inward, internal, even eternal feelings and descriptors abound in discussion of music.

So, without further word, here's some common grace for you all. The following is a gift from God. I really believe that. To my knowledge neither of the two performers know and walk with Jesus, but whether they know it or not, God works in this. Justin Vernon and S. Carey here collaborate and make something really, really special. Also, shout-out to Carey's album "All We Grow", which is my favorite album ever to listen too while praying. This is just great.

Enjoy.