CASE STUDY: Religion
in Media / Modern World
By:
Amanda Spark
Music
and songs have often been a part of Christianity. Whether it is hymns or praise/worship songs,
music has been people’s way of expressing their love for God. Even in today’s modern world music is still made
for God. Musicians have conformed to the
popular music of our society but at the same time kept glorifying God with
their lyrics. This is a necessary
balance for people, especially teenagers, to continue to praise God while doing
something they enjoy.
The
topic that I have chosen for my case study is a song entitled “Calmer of the
Storm” by a Christian group called “Downhere”. This song is about trusting in
God. It has a metaphor in it about a person
on a ship stuck in a wild storm. God
uses his power to calm the storm and in end take care of the person on the
ship.
The
“storm” is a reflection of a person who is struggling with a hard time in their
life. They need to accept that they are not in control and let go of the
situation and let God take over. ‘There
on the storm I am learning to let go Of the will that
I so long to control There may I be in your arms eternally I thank you, Lord,
you are the calmer of the storm.’ I think
that this is a very common issue in Christians today. Because of human nature,
we want to control the events of our lives and as Christians we need to give
our lives to God and let Him take control.
This is a concept that most people struggle with, because admitting that
you have no power and no control is crippling.
There is a famous story in the Bible called “Jesus Calms the Storm” it
is found in Matthew 8:23-27(as well in Mark 4:37-41, and Luke 8:22-25). The story
goes like this:
23Then
he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24Without
warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the
boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25The disciples went and woke him,
saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to
drown!"
26He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so
afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was
completely calm.
27The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this?
Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
This
story is illustrating the awesome power of God.
In the song, a paragraph goes along with this story. ‘You rebuke the wind and the waves Once again
I find I'm amazed the power of your will Cuz I'm a child of little faith I feel
the wind and forget your grace And you say, "Peace, be still."’ Both
of these indicate that you need to put trust and faith in God, because he will
always be there to help you. “I am a
child of little faith”, and “You of little faith” both tell that faith is extremely
important in having a relationship with God.
I believe that if you do not have faith in God then you do not trust
God, and how can you have a relationship without trust.
This
song is an example of me and some of my friends’ struggle with in our lives. The unknown and the future are things that
make us nervous. For me personally it is
very challenging to accept the fact that I do not have control of my future or
the events that will take place in my life.
I am always trying to find answers and my own ways out of bad
situations, because I sometimes feel like I can’t find God and that He isn’t
actually there. ‘The white wave's high,
it's crashing o'er the deck And I don't know where I
go
Where are you Lord, is my ship going
down? The mast is gone so throw the anchor
Should I jump and try to swim to land?’ It is hard to give you life completely to God and trust that He will take care of you. There is always that thought which is “please do a good job with my life!” But in all honesty, I know that He is going to do a good job and he has huge plans for me! Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
I
also know that God is never going to give me anything that I can’t handle. 1 Corinthians
This
song really illustrates the constant struggle of being a Christian. There is doubt and worry but that is balanced
with trust and faith. It is every
Christians desire to be pleasing to God,
and it is a challenge to have faith that God will be your
strength and take care of you. ‘Teach me, Lord to have faith In what you're ringing me will Change my life and bring you
glory’
Artist:
Downhere
Song:
Calmer Of The Storm
Album:
Downhere
When
everything is wrong
The
day has passed and nothing's done
And
the whole world seems against me
When
I'm rolling in my bed, there's a storm in my head
I'm
afraid of sinking in despair.
CHORUS:
Teach
me, Lord to have faith
In
what you're bringing me will
Change
my life and bring you glory
There
on the storm I am learning to let go
Of
the will that I so long to control
There
may I be in your arms eternally
I
thank you, Lord, you are the calmer of the storm.
You
rebuke the wind and the waves
Once
again I find I'm amazed the power of your will
Cuz
I'm a child of little faith
I
feel the wind and forget your grace
And
you say, "Peace, be still."
There
on the storm I am learning to let go
The
white wave's high, it's crashing o'er the deck
And
I don't know where I go
Where
are you Lord, is my ship going down?
The
mast is gone so throw the anchor
Should
I jump and try to swim to land?
There
on the storm, teach me God to understand
Of
the Will that I just cannot control
There
may I see all you love protecting me
I
thank you Lord, you are the calmer of the storm.
“ Downhere Lyrics.” http://www.christianrocklyrics.com/downhere/calmerofthestorm.php
(19, September 2003)
The Student Bible, N.I.V. Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996