Favorite Songwriter/Album

Thanks to my brother-in-law, I've recently discovered the work of singer/songwriter Andrew Peterson. I've only listened to his most recent album (The Far Country, 2005) so far, but that one album is excellent.


I don't generally make a habit of listening to contemporary Christian music. Most of what I hear on the radio is shallow and trite at best; at worst, there's nothing distinctively Christian about it or it's downright blasphemous. However, once in a while, I come across a Christian musician whose work displays a profound understanding of the gospel, love for the church, and a outlook on the world that is soaked in the understanding that Christ is King. Andrew Peterson is one of these.


The Far Country is mainly about death, dying, and the life to come. Not nice or comfortable topics even for most Christians these days, especially not those whose tastes run to what's "safe for the whole family." But Peterson has put together a compilation of songs that shows he understands this life is not as good as it gets, that something far better awaits those who are in Christ, and, paradoxically, that the anticipation of that life makes this life worth living.


Peterson's vision is no pie-in-the-sky-by-and-by sentimentalism, nor is it the product of a depressed, ascetic otherworldliness that sees everything in the present life in shades of grey. He expects that, "when you lay me down to die," he'll miss his family and the memories of a good life lived in the blessings of God. He knows that parting with friends is "the price that I must pay to sail beyond the arms of the havens grey" (a Tolkien reference that will please fans of the Professor's work). Still, he understands that the good things we enjoy in this life are meant to be a foretaste of the joys of the new heavens and the new earth.


The One who was seated on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." Jesus Christ is Lord of all, and has already begun the rewnewing work of His kingdom, which will have no end. Andrew Peterson is caught up in it, and with The Far Country, he is helping renew a little more of God's Creation.