Most of you probably don't know who Larry Norman is. He is considered the "father of Christian rock". He passed away Sunday at the age of 60. Larry was a big influence in my life. I didn't know him well, but for a short time we both attended Hollywood Presbyterian Church. In the early 70s I was invited to be the opening act at a concert in Bolder, CO for a group called Agape, with Larry closing out the concert. We traveled from Los Angeles to Bolder in Agape's van, and stayed at someones house for the night. Larry was like no other musician. He had a hit record called "I Love You", with a group called "People", but quit the group the day the album was released. This was during the time that churches were critical of kids that had long hair, were free spirits, hippies, or any thing else that didn't fit the mold of what they considered acceptable. Larry took his ministry to the streets. I saw him perform in parking lots, back alleys, football fields, coffee houses, and concert stages. His life was to reach out to youth and anyone else to give them hope and love through Christ.

His most famous song is probably "I Wish We'd All Been Ready". His most popular was probably "Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music". His most pointed was probably "Why Don't You Look Into Jesus".

He changed many lives through his ministry. Just Google "Larry Norman" for blog responses to his passing, or do a search on YouTube and read the comments.

Please pray for his family as they join us in grieving for their loved one. Here's a link to Larry's Web site and the tunes mentioned above. Thank you Larry for your music and life.

http://www.larrynorman.com/

http://www.johnbaxter.com/LarryNorman/IWishWedAllBeenReady.mp3

http://www.johnbaxter.com/LarryNorman/WhyShouldtheDevilHaveAlltheGoodMusic.mp3

http://www.johnbaxter.com/LarryNorman/WhyDontYouLookIntoJesus.mp3