If you know me somewhat, you should probably know that I am a fairly musical person. I not only enjoy listening to a lot of music, but I can also play a few instruments (if we have been acquainted at some point and somehow you did not come to know this, I apologize most sincerely for not sharing this with you, and we should probably grab coffee or something). That being said, I am pretty open to various types of music. I enjoy some more than others, and definitely am not a fan of yet still others.
Two genres of music that I have really enjoyed listening to in recent years are symphonic metal and melodic metalcore. I only listen to a few bands that fit within these genres, but I thoroughly enjoy the music put out by those bands. Just to quickly summarize, symphonic metal typically features an operatic female voice and combines orchestral-style music with harder rock/metal styles. Melodic metalcore also includes elements of obvious hard rock/metal styles (awesome electric guitars, double-bass drumming, etc.) as well as 'melodic' elements of keyboards, synthesizers, and sometimes orchestra-like sounds/instruments. It also features clean vocals (normal singing, if you will) and unclean vocals (probably known to most of you as 'screaming' or 'growling'). Perhaps that last bit causes you to question the validity of the genre actually being 'music.' That's alright. I can see your argument, but I hope that we can agree to disagree on that issue. I like it, and that's all that matters.
Recently, I have been listening to an album from a melodic metalcore band called We Came As Romans (WCAR). I first started listening to them during my freshmen year of college, and have since really come to enjoy their style. The band is all about loving other people. On their website, guitarist Joshua Moore says, "Love doesn't have an argument; everyone wants to love and be loved. We
decided if we were going to be a band, we needed to have meaning behind
it. And I don't think there is any greater meaning than to keep on
spreading the idea and concept of love." That hit home with me, and has given me a new appreciation for their lyrics. Their latest album, Understanding What We've Grown to Be, deals largely with life's struggles and the many challenges we face. As I was listening through the album on the way to work in recent weeks, the second song, Everything as Planned, struck a chord within me that I just could not leave untouched.
Feel free to read through the full lyrics for this song, but, generally speaking, Everything as Planned talks about how we try to plan out our lives but find that, often, life does not go how we originally intended. It speaks of laying awake at night wondering how things would have went if they went according to plan. The song also speaks of how the songwriter learned that without properly taking care of himself, he could never truly take care of anyone else.
The writer of this song conveys that he has "built and rebuilt" the bed that he lays in at night, but always ends up "restless in the same place." I saw this as representing life in the way that sometimes, we try to do things one way, but then things happen another way, and we feel lost and confused because things have not gone our way. We find ourselves in a place of not knowing which way to go.
I am not completely sure of the direction that WCAR was trying to take with this song, but the lyrics hit me in such a way that simply has to ring true for many people. We try to live our lives out according to some plan. But, so many times, we have no control over what happens. We lose a job, lose a loved one, create an awkward relationship...the list goes on. As a result, we sometimes return back to square one and attempt to rebuild, but we end up "restless in the same place" time after time because we truly do not have ultimate control. That is why full surrender to the Lord is so important. As humans, our plans will fail at some point. Guaranteed. That is why surrendering and trusting fully in the Lord to guide you through the ups and downs of life is so crucial.
Additionally, during the course of our lives we may feel the need to help and care for others along the way. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this, but if we are not nurturing ourselves in such a way that brings us closer to the Lord and keeps us healthy, spiritually and physically, we will never be able to truly care for the other people in our lives in the most effective way possible.
If we lay in bed at night and simply mope about how everything would be if it would just go as we planned, we are in for a miserable and draining life. Get closer with the Lord: read your Bible, get on your knees and pray, worship him through song...whatever it takes. He will lead you through anything and will never leave nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). He also knows everything about your life (Psalm 139:16). Let the plan to Him, and live as He wants you to live. You will have no need to vacillate in a pit of worry, and you will be able to be a better blessing to others.
