“Our God Is with Us” by Steven Curtis Chapman (1995)
In recent years, contemporary Christian music has drifted away from songs that carry a message. The genre once included prophetic voices, storytellers, and theological poets. It featured artists who wrote songs to challenge the church, to teach doctrine, to expose hypocrisy, and to call believers to deeper discipleship. Today, much of that has been replaced by an almost singular focus on “worship music,” songs built for congregational singing, for private devotion, and for the emotional experience of the individual believer. Worship songs are good gifts, but the shift has come with a cost. As Christian music has narrowed its focus, it has helped nurture a thinner, more individualistic Christianity in the culture that is often long on feeling but short on formation. The irony is hard to miss: the more we have emphasized “worship,” the more the music has centered on the self. Fewer songs speak to the church as a community. Fewer songs challenge us to live as a people shaped by a larger...
