Oh about 20 years ago I was driving a church bus full of youth from Toronto back to Rochester, NY. Somewhere around Batavia, NY on the thruway I told the kids to hush up and listen. I pulled out the mixed tape I made for the trip (church vans did not have cd players back then) and turned the volume up.
Playlist? I cant remember the contents, but I do remember one song that made an impact, What Is Truth by Johnny Cash.
At first the youth giggled at the selection but as the song played on the van went silent. At the end of the song they asked me to play it again and after that one more time. One bit of truth from my life touched one bit of truth in their life. It was a beautiful moment. For the record they did not have the same reaction to One Piece at a Time...can't have everything.
Probably once a week, if you would sneak or just get buzzed in, into the sanctuary at Judson Memorial Baptist Church you would hear me hum the tune of What Is Truth. So when I was asked to submit a piece to The Christian Citizen on truth in the age of fake news I jumped at the chance. Immediately I thought about re-writing What Is Truth. I thought Curtis Ramsey-Lucas would say, "that's is an idea for sure Travis. Maybe you ought to sit this one out." But no he said have at it. I thoughtI could rewrite the song with my eyes shut in 15 minutes... Friends, I have already asked a friend of mine to kick me in the shin if I ever volunteer for a like project in the future.
The lesson in all of this: don't ever let it be said the editors and publishers at American Baptist Home Mission Societies are not full of grace because they actually accepted my song.
have a looksee here: it is embedded in a fantastic article by John Burns, pastor of University Baptist Church in College Park, MD
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