Resonance: Beauty Leading to Goodness and Truth

I don’t claim to have good taste in music. I actually like “Here I Am, Lord” and “Ashes.” I grew up in the 90s and went through what some music critics call the worst era of music in the early 2000s. However, I really hope my taste has improved since then.

What I want to talk about here is those times when you hear a song that completely changes your mood, whether it’s for the better or for the worse. There’s this joke on Blimey Cow about some songs providing a “spiritual high” and yes, that has happened to me sometimes. But it’s not always like that. Back when Taylor Swift came out with her Red album, I enjoyed the songs, but didn’t relate to as many of them as I did with her Speak Now album. However, I found myself relating to those same songs later on when I found stories and situations that resonated with them.

And sometimes, the song you hear isn’t even a song from Christian radio. The artist may not even be religious, let alone nominally Christian, and yet their songs have a way of resonating with you. I think the Jesuit principle of finding God in all things particularly applies here.

Earlier this week, I suffered an anxiety attack. And even though it didn’t last long, I still felt shaken that it happened, given that I hadn’t had one in almost two years. Then, when I was browsing my YouTube feed, I found a song entitled “Relax/Take a Walk With Me”. And while I’m sure that the artist didn’t intend on it, the chorus reminded me of resting with Christ and walking with Him. When I listened to that song, the memory of the anxiety I suffered faded out.

Something similar happened when I got my heart broken as well. As anyone knows, there are phases you go through when you get your heart broken, similar to the five stages of grief. I was going through the “depression” phase, wanting to wallow in my feelings. Then, as I was browsing Facebook, this song appeared in my news feed. Needless to say, the song made me feel a lot better.

It’s always funny how songs can resonate with people and how songs can mean something that the artist may not have intended, but that’s the nature of art itself. Beauty speaks out universally, leading those who recognize it to goodness, and maybe eventually, to truth. When you hear a song that resonates, you find a connection and that wonderful feeling of not being alone. This leads to a change in how you feel and eventually learning from what had happened before.

So what songs resonate with you? Have you ever had the right song come in at the right moment? Please comment and let me know!