Me playing drums at a show

Music has been something that has stuck with me since I was a kid. It seems like I always have a song stuck in my head! I remember being in class, at baseball practice, walking to school, or eating and always thinking about a song. Eventually, I actually started learning how to play guitar, drums, and then bass. That eventually turned into writing songs. Now I’m here: in two bands trying desperately to express myself through yelling and slamming on strings and skins.

Whether I am feeling happy, sad, angry, motivated, or creative, I usually have a corresponding song playing in my head. Sometimes it’s punk, indie, rap, worship, or even metal. But what does music really mean to me?

To me, music is how I express how I am feeling or what I am thinking. It’s interesting because sometimes I don’t even have to sing words to do that: more often than not, I express how I’m feeling through the guitars or drums, or my writing. Sometimes it seems like the words just help me to further explain myself. Music is also how I relate to others. The only reason different genres and scenes exist is because people have related to that specific type of music in one way or another. Personally, I tend to relate to crazier music like punk rock. I often have a lot of energy built up in me and punk has been a really good outlet for that through the lyrical content, and the musical style.

As a Christian, music has an even deeper meaning to me. It is how I show my gratitude to Jesus. He has gifted me with the ability to understand music in a way that I could not have understood it otherwise. So, I always try my best to play to the best and use my creativity to glorify Him. Also, I do think that music has the power to touch people deeply and that is because God has allowed it to. Something that I have come to learn as a follower of Christ is the simple fact that I am human and share similar experiences with other humans­­. So, I think music is a great way for us to show the world that Christians are normal people, who experience struggle, heartbreak, and everything in between. The only difference is that we have the grace of Jesus to lean on!