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A former pastor, Todd directs the spiritual life at Lutheran South Academy in Houston, Texas. He grew up in a musical family and loved 1980s rockers. He and his wife, Kellie, have three children, including Nathan, an eighth-grader who leads the middle school praise band. Todd wrote An 8-Track Parent in an Mp3 World (available for sale on Amazon.com) as an outgrowth of many discussions with Nathan. The book, published last December, includes notes Nathan contributed.

My 13-year-old son Nathan is a natural musician. So I knew his exposure to non-Christian music eventually would prompt the question. It came over the phone last year. He was vacationing with my parents in San Francisco when they ventured into the Virgin Records mega store. As I picked up the phone, I could hear the thumping of Gwen Stefani in the background.

"Dad?" Nathan said.

"Yeah, Nate. What's up?"

"Grandma and I are in the music store, and I have to ask you a question," he said.

"Let me guess," I said, expecting him to ask my preference between two cool Christian music bands, Audio Adrenaline and Reliant K. "You want to know if you can get a CD."

"Yes!" he said. "Which is better? Van Halen or Def Leppard?"

In that moment, I realized I needed to come to grips with my response as a parent to Nathan's desires and interests in certain kinds of music. So right then, two thousand miles apart, Nathan and I came up with our basic ground rule.

Adapted from An 8-Track Parent in an Mp3 World (Kregel, 2010) by permission. All rights reserved by the copyright holder and/or the publisher.

Copyright © 2009 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
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Prayer for the Week

Thank you for your gift of music to calm anxieties, lift spirits, and express feelings. May it be used for your glory and not to the Enemy's advantage.

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