Why Should I Trust God If My Life Hurts?

Josh Blakesley, of the Josh Blakesley Band, who is leading the music at the Encounter Steubenville Young Adult Conference with his band, made the choice to switch to playing Christian music in his teens because he believes music should be impactful. “If I was going to play music, that music had to have a purpose. I really wanted the music to be about the purpose—God—so that’s why I decided to stick with Christian music.”

Music As Worship

Blakesley made this decision after playing meaningless shows that left him feeling empty, “I loved music so much, but I was only playing in bars and nightclubs. By the end of the night, I would be just miserable.”

During that time, Blakesley lost a dear friend in a car accident when a drunk driver hit her: “That caused a light bulb moment for me, in terms of the preciousness of life and how quickly things can go, so I decided I had to change how I was living.”

Part of that change was getting more involved in his parish including playing Catholic music with his friends.

For Blakesley, music is more than entertainment, “I think music is a powerful part of our worship. When we use our creativity and the art form itself to give glory to God—that’s worship.”

Blakesley carefully crafts his lyrics to reflect that music is a way to worship God.

He says, “I try very specifically to write the lyrics to be beautiful, moving, and a prayer of sorts to God. If the music is doing its job, then it is complimenting the lyrics and moving the listener’s heart into a place where holiness can be achieved.”

Blakesley has seen the impact that music can have in his work as a young adult coordinator and assistant music director at Our Lady of Prompt Succor Catholic Church in Alexandria, Louisiana. He says, “Allowing teens to experience prayer through music helps them to dive deeper into the heart of God. I see our teens’ expressions change, emotions change, and spiritual awareness change whenever we take time to play music.”

The Value of Music in Hard Times

Blakesley’s song “Even in This” aims to help people overcome pain and believe that God is with us in our pain and trials. Blakesley wrote the song after his community experienced loss.

First, his guitar player lost his first child, Lizzie, who was born with Trisomy 18, a chromosomal disorder that is terminal in 90% of cases. “It was devastating for him and it affected us all in the band because we’re like a family,” says Blakesley.

A short time later, a teen from their parish youth group died in a car accident.

Blakesley says, “I just saw a series of things like that happening and it left me asking the question: ‘Why?’ I’ve seen God's goodness over and over again. How is it still that things like this can happen? How do we deal with those things when they do happen? We try to explain them away sometimes, but how do we heal from it? If you’re the parents who have lost their child, how do you go back to God and say: ‘Here I am again—I’ll talk to you some more'?”

Blakesley responded to this pain by taking it to the writer’s table. He sat down with friends, Sarah Hart and Michael Farren, and wrote a song about it. Blakesley says that "Even in This" was born from the very human perspective of asking the question "Where is God in the deepest darkest place of our lives?" Blakesley says, "He is there in those places. He wants the pain; He wants us to raise our fist and shout at Him—yell and scream if we have to—and tell him what we’re feeling.”

How Music Can Help Singles

Blakesley believes that the emotions behind “Even In This” can also help singles that are struggling with loneliness. He says, “When we’re single, we can get lost in the idea that God doesn’t have someone for us—that the loneliness will just go on. But in fact, God is there, even in the midst of that, and longs to be a close friend to us. He is looking for us, and wants to take us under the shelter of His wing and love us.”

“Grateful” is another song written by Blakesley that relates well to singles that are struggling with their state in life: “Grateful is a song of thanksgiving. I think it’s easy to give thanks to God in the good things, but it’s a lot harder to come to God in thanksgiving when our lives aren’t as we would have them.

"The blessing lies in the moments where we are able to say, ‘Lord this is a difficult time, but I know that you will see me through, and I’m grateful for that.’ Over and over again in my life, I have learned that in the midst of the most difficult storms of life, He sees us through and on the other side there is almost always a more beautiful experience.”

Explore Your Relationship With God

Blakesley will be leading the music at the Encounter Young Adult Conference in St. Charles, Missouri from May 29—May 31.

He explained why he believes conferences like Encounter are important for young adults: “For a young person who wants to continue practicing their faith, I think it is vitally important that you jump into a group of people with the same beliefs, so that you can continue to explore your faith, and so that you have others that will hold you accountable to a life of holiness."

Blakesley says these conferences are important for those who struggle with their faith too. "For the person who has never said, 'I believe in God and I want to try to live a holy life,' it’s vitally important to at least take time to explore God, so that you can discover what you are saying 'no' to. There’s a quote that goes, ‘Deciding not to decide is actually a decision.’ If you’re just saying that you don’t know about God, then you’re deciding not to enter into a relationship with Him. I think Encounter is an opportunity to answer that question definitively.”

For more information and to register for the Encounter Young Adult Conference, click here.