Men in Ties Singing Hymns

It has not been cool to wear a tie in church for a long time. Personally, I have always hated ties and only wear one at Easter and job interviews. The only people who seem to wear ties anymore are Mormons and a few of the older men in the back rows. They have this funny idea that dressing up for church shows respect for God and his church. Mmmmm...

Hymns are out too of course. Since the 80's, choruses and new praise songs are in. Virtually every modern evangelical church does them, and many got rid of the old hymnals entirely, relying now on powerpoint and video. The argument is: we must appeal to the young, the next generation. All well and good, I suppose. The problem is : it's not working.

According to folks like George Barna and Josh McDowell, the hip approach to "do church" has resulted in something like 75% of youth turning from God by the time they are 18. Divorce, partying, profanity, cheating, sex-for-fun-all are worse than ever. In short, the rock and roll generation is farther from God than ever, in spite of Chris Tomlin, U2, and wearing shorts to church. Modern youth ministry has simply failed our kids, inspite of Jars of Clay concerts and podcasts. The umpteenth edition of the new youth Bible just doesn't matter.

We have lost the war for the hearts and minds of the next generation.

You know, the coat-and-tie generation (hereafter referred to as the CT's) won a world war against unimaginable evil and tyranny. The hymn singers ended slavery and fought for civil rights (Martin Luther King , minister and tie-wearer led the way. Heck, even Jesse Jackson wore a tie.) It wasn't the long haired hip Jesus movement who opened crisis pregnancy centers, it was the CT generation. And, it was they who published and produced the new hip Bibles and CD's of the modern Jesus movement.

My point is this: the CT generation did a tremendous amount of good for the cause of Christ. Clutching their KJV bibles with boring black covers, they opened mission fields like China and India. With amazing courage, they spread the gospel all over the earth.

So let's not be too quick to turn our backs on all that has gone before, thinking our new, cool worship styles and latest hip Bibles will do the trick while we light the candles and listen to our I-pods

Maybe instead, we ought to sing a few hymns.

Or even wear a tie.

What Child is This?

I love Christmas.

The lights, the music, the “spirit of Christmas” everyone talks about-it is just a feeling of warmth and joy unparalleled the rest of the year. All my life I have loved it, even when I was an atheist in my high school and college years. I looked forward to going out and finding gifts, decorating the tree, even singing the carols about the birth of Jesus. It was an American tradition, our tradition. The fondest memories I will ever have of my family are those of music playing all the time, the fire in the fireplace (even though it was Southern California), the tree glimmering in the living room, dad getting everything ready before we came running out Christmas morning. Pretty traditional, nothing very unique-yet a deep well of memories I go to every year.

The first year as a Christian stands out too. I sat in a candlelight service Christmas Eve that year at my brother’s church, tears streaming down my face ….For the first time I celebrated the birth of Jesus really believing it happened! The candles flickered as we sang and I soaked it all in….I was living the Scrooge story, a new man, ready to make my life count for something eternal!

Twenty-eight Christmases later, my precious mom and dad are gone. I will not hear their voices, hear the music, feel the warmth of the fire again….. A year ago on Christmas Eve, tears streamed down my face again, but for sorrow….sorrow that I will never share another Christmas with them. As I sat in church a few weeks ago, I began to think of it all again. The pain of losing them, the joy that is now missing during this season….but then, while we sang “What Child is This”, my daughter’s warm little hand slipped into mine. I smiled as we sang, thinking how God is using this child to bless me here, now. Indeed, the joy my own children give me during Christmas, and I hope I give them, brings the light back. The tangible helps me remember the intangible… that it all happens because of the Child…from whom all light comes…and who my mom and dad now worship and enjoy in person…


I still love Christmas.