Larry Norman Message Board

I do not know how to process this. A hero in my life has died. Others have gone along the way, like Evel Knievel, Walter Payton, but so far, none have impacted me as much as this one man.

I awoke this morning to read a post response that Larry is now with God. I am sad he has left this planet, but, after all, he was only visiting.

His words hit me hard. His hair was a little longer than mine, and his perspective was gutsier. I was new to my faith when introduced to this guy "who sounds just like John Lennon and Bob Dylan," as one friend described him.

He was no Dylan, and thankfully, no John Lennon. Great musicians and lyricists, sure, and Larry was part of their generation and musical sensibilities, yet very much his own voice.

He sang about, and mostly, God. Within this, he sang we need to be aware of living a life that's true, and to tell others about Jesus. He covered everything from poverty, racism, war, hunger, and love.

• He sang about, and mostly, God. Within this, he sang we need to be aware of living a life that's true, and to tell others about Jesus. He covered everything from poverty, racism, war, hunger, and love.
• He sang songs like "Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?" when churches were feeling insecure about rock music.
• He sang "Sweet Song of Salvation," when nonbelievers were hearing "sex, drugs and rock and roll."
• He was singing "UFO," about Jesus' imminent return when the world worried about alien life.
• He sang, "Why Don't You Look Into Jesus," when a generation of people thought everything else but Jesus was the answer.
• He sang "I Wish We'd All Been Ready," when we needed to be reminded that when Jesus comes back, we should not be surprised when not everyone will be going with Him.
  

In college, at a retreat, I remember singing "Watch What You're Doing" around a campfire with my roommates acapella.

I saw him sing in a little church in Champaign, IL. I still have the ticket and treasure the memory. He stayed several hours talking with a few of us afterward.

I ran into him at Cornerstone (huge Christian music festival here in Illinois), and we grabbed lunch, sitting at a quiet table, somehow unnoticed by the throngs of people. I bought several tapes from him (remember cassettes?), and a copy of his recently released "Home at Last." The album cover, as in vinyl LP, was unprinted, but he drew the entire cover for me.

Just last week, at dinner discussing French missionary work, Pierre, the pastor of a small French congregation, told me how he first heard Larry there, and, despite the decade between us (he's in his young 30s) and the Atlantic Ocean, we shared favorite songs.

I am a better writer for having heard his work, and a better Christian for having considered what he meant.

Anthony Trendl
http://anthonytrendl.blogspot.com