Disclaimer: this is not about Taylor Swift herself. I am very glad that she abstains from using swear words, and I'm thankful for her commitment to purity. I'm sure she has many other admirable qualities. I also realize that we are all sinners, and I am not judging her. I know that I have been just as bad of a sinner as she has been. I am simply reviewing her music because I am faced with the decision to listen or not to listen. Because I have made the choice to not listen to her music, and because it appears to be an unusual choice among Christians, I believe it is good to share why I have chosen not to listen to her music. I am not knocking free speech or imposing a restriction upon anyone except myself. I believe in free speech. Talor Swift is free to sing what she wants. You and I are free to listen or not to listen to what she sings. Just as she is free to express her opinion about her crushes, boyfriends, and ex-boyfriends, I am free to express my opinion about her songs. As a Christian, I will refrain from judging her life and motives and stick to the content of her songs.
Thank you for reading the disclaimer and understanding my viewpoint. Now, why I don't listen to Taylor Swift:
1. I don't listen because every moment is a chance to glorify God. When you listen to Taylor Swift, are you praying continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17)? Maybe so. Maybe not. If the answer is no, then every moment spent listening to Taylor Swift is indeed a moment spent ignoring your Savior. Because of this, I listen to praise songs a lot. If I have a chance to listen to a song with lyrics, I would rather spend that moment with Jesus than with anyone else.
2. I don't listen because the Bible instructs us to not awaken love early (Song of Solomon 2:7, 3:5, 8:4). Listening to songs about crushes and boyfriends could tempt me to sin in my thoughts toward someone else's future husband, taking some of my affection away from Jesus and my own future husband (if God has one in store for me). Of course, if that isn't a problem for you, great! Nevertheless, I know that many of us could dream on and on about boys who we think "look like angels," who we'd love to "kiss in the rain" as in Taylor Swift's song "Hey Stephen." Her song "Picture to Burn" could tempt us to entertain thoughts that, though they are natural, are not honoring to Jesus. Focusing on Jesus and refusing other idols can be a battle. Listening to these songs won't make the battle any easier. Yes, I know that there is much worse music out there, but there is also better music that can help us focus on Jesus.
For these two reasons, I have decided to abstain from Taylor Swift's music. Because I try to use every moment to God's glory, I don't usually listen to music that might distract me from that. Because I don't want to lead myself down the wrong road in life, I keep away from songs that could make me think less-than-godly thoughts. Sadly, Taylor Swift's music is not something I have decided to add to my iPod. Though I am overwhelmingly glad that she sings better songs than the rest of the secular world, Christians aren't called to simply be better than the world. We're called to strive toward the goal of perfection in Jesus. Though none of us will reach it in this life, He still wants us to do our best.
Taylor Swift's calling is between her and God. Maybe He is calling her to sing secular songs and be a modest, virgin role model for non-Christian girls. I don't know. It's not my life. What I do know is what God is calling me to, right now.
Thank you for reading my opinion. I will be praying for God to work in your heart and give you discernment, no matter what you decide regarding the music you listen to. I am not saying that truth is relative, because truth is absolute. I believe that, if you are a Christian, listening to Taylor Swift isn't beneficial. However, we have free will, and you are free to come to a different conclusion. Please feel free to use the comment area below to discuss this issue further, no matter if you agree or disagree. And, as always, God bless you!
You make a wonderful point! This will really help me with the music outside of Christian music that I liston to.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad it helped :)
ReplyDeleteTruth is that if we listen to Taylor Swift or not we we still want to kiss certain boys in the rain. Because that's how God made us and i don't think if you kiss someone you are stealing them from their future wife. It's called life. I like the point you make in that every moment should be spent in prayer. What about when you're doing school and eating, we aren't saints and truth is that at times when listening to music other than Christ Tomlin and MercyMe do I find God occupying my mind. That's just my opinion, and i'm glad that you have yours
ReplyDeleteLucy,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your well-thought out comment :)
You make an excellent point - we girls are wired for romance. Haha, that's how Taylor Swift became successful: not because she invented romance, but because she articulates romantic sentiments in her gorgeous singing voice! However, as Christians we must draw the line between "natural" and "sinful," being careful to avoid sin; in fact, many times "natural"="sinful." As I discussed in this post, I believe the Bible is clear on the issue of the commonly sinful nature of crushing. In general, I also agree with Joshua Harris's book _I Kissed Dating Goodbye_: the first kiss is a special gift for your wedding day.
As for your comment, "we aren't saints," I firmly believe that God calls us to the very highest standard of conduct regardless of our sinful nature. I hope you agree; I highly recommend the Rebelution blog post "35 Reasons Not to Sin" (http://www.therebelution.com/blog/2009/08/35-reasons-not-to-sin/) as a reference point. True, we all will sin, but we should rely on Jesus for the strength and wisdom to avoid sin.
God bless!
Ruth