We are here to simply run our leg of the race. I feel so passionately that today’s pastors are being crushed by the weight of trying to measure up to the ministries of others. And when I say ministries, I almost mean careers.

We need songs that will give voice to this whole range of life’s experiences (as do the Psalms). We need songs that will speak words of comfort to us, and we need songs that will speak prophetic words of challenge and rebuke. We also need songs that give us language for a relationship with God: songs that say, “I’m sorry,” “Why?” and “I love you," as well as, "You're beautiful."

In his book Deep Work, Cal Newport argues for two core abilities for thriving in today’s world: the ability to both quickly master hard things and to produce at an elite level, in terms of quality and speed.