What I'm Reading

I'm currently reading a pretty interesting book. It's about Rich Mullins - a recording artist and song writer - that was killed in a car accident back in September 1997. I met Rich at a Campus Christian Fellowship retreat when I was in college and thought he was a complete weirdo. He looked like he slept in his clothes (though he was a nationally known artist that had just come off a world tour!?) and was, in general, extremely quirky. This was a guy that wrote songs for some of the biggest names in Christian music (people like Amy Grant, etc.) and won a number of Dove Awards for Song of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, Album of the Year - you name it. To say that he was unassuming would be an understatement.

I remember at the time thinking that this guy did not seem like a star (he was billed as being the headline act of this national retreat we were at). Now that I'm reading this book, I'm understanding why. Rich simply gave everything he had away. All the money he made from album sales, touring, appearances, whatever went to his church. They, in turn, paid him a salary that was enough to eat on and pay for a roof over his head. The rest was divided between his church and charities. This guy was the real deal. When he died, he was living in a hogan on an Indian reservation in New Mexico where he worked for free teaching music to Indian children. This book documents his experiences, his views on religion, his views on the meaning of life and is really interesting. If you're looking for something to challenge your views and outlook in many areas, this could be the book for you.