Now, if you don't know Sufjan Stevens, you are either not as strange as I am, or you are missing out. Here is my favorite of his songs for your education. It is maybe the saddest (true) story to sing about, but if you listen through to the last couple lines, you will understand why I completely adore this man.
Does your heart hurt now? You've been Sufjan'ed.
Anyway, so this concert was spectacular. Sufjan came out wearing red ugg boots with silver trim, tinseled arm bands, pants with neon tape elongating his legs, a baseball cap under a santa hat, massive sunglasses, and a Christmas cape. His female lead singer wore a tree. A guitarist wore a Superman t-shirt over a chicken costume. The pianist wore a neon pink wig with an angel outfit. And the everything-else intrumentist wore a Santa outfit with a gnome mask.
The setup of the concert was a mix of his new Christmas album(s), some old songs, and sing-a-long classic Christmas songs determined by a massive spinning Wheel of Christmas. Occasionally Sufjan would cross himself, or kneel, or point to the skies when singing about the promised baby King.
Around that point I thought, "This is like heaven." Not metaphorically. I felt like I was genuinely glimpsing eternity. A place where people can be who they are without judgment. Where Jesus is worshiped with joy and excitement rather than the too-often "sacred" solemnness found in church services.
With my new eyes, I noticed how Sufjan forgot the words to one of his most popular songs, but we cheered for him anyway because our love for him was not contingent upon his perfection. I listened to the chorales by Bach that they interspersed throughout the concert. I confessed my sins with a crowd of 400 people as we sang along to 'Chicago', "I've made a lot of mistakes." Sufjan played Liz's favorite song from his new album.
He ended the song by saying, "Remember kids! The love of money is the root of all evil!" That mini-sermon was more effective than many I've listened to. We sang 'O Holy Night' then followed up with 'Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.' I glanced around in shock as nearly the whole audience sang along from memory. Sufjan's lyrics are undeniably Jesus-loving, but he's weird enough that I assumed most of his fans weren't Christians. Maybe they are. Maybe I was in a room with 400 of the weirdest Christians in Dallas. I liked it.
The concert ended with my favorite song from his new album, 'I'm a Christmas Unicorn.' He pulled on a bike helmet with a horn and an angel wing attached, then donned a feathery, ballooned vest/cape. He climbed on the piano, confetti rained down, and we all sang comfort to each other, "I'm a Christmas unicorn. Find the Christmas unicorn. You're a Christmas unicorn, too. It's all right! I love you."
After over two hours of celebrating Christmas, Liz and I left the theater and I thought, "I want church to be more like that. I can't wait to go to heaven and experience something similar." What it was I was feeling, I think, was grace and freedom.
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