Nobody likes rejection, but there's always a right way to go about it.
When Grammy Award-winning Christian singer Amy Grant released her new album called "Tennessee Christmas" on Oct. 21, LifeWay Christian Resources decided that it was not "Christian enough for Christian retail to support," her manager Jennifer Cooke wrote for The Washington Post.
The album contains well-loved holiday tunes such as "Baby, It's Cold Outside," "O Come All Ye Faithful," and "Joy to the World."
In questioning LifeWay Christian Resources' decision, Cooke slammed the politics involved in the Christian music business.
"It was perplexing to me as a Christian to realize that to be promoted on the radio and in retail, each song really needed to be able to be neatly wrapped up in a 'Jesus is the answer' bow," she said. "Of course, I believe Jesus is the answer, but I also find Him to be engaged in the midst of our humanity and that there is also something beautiful and holy to be explored in our humanness."
For her part, Grant wrote on her Facebook page that she is grateful to have Cooke in her life because her manager helped her "look at the bigger picture of faith and love differently...time and time again."
Grant said people all think and act differently, so how they communicate every experience is unique to everyone. Even with those differences, Christians should always ask themselves, "How will I show love today?"
Despite the snub made by LifeWay, Grant was able to graciously write this message to her fans: "We respectfully accept Lifeway's decision that my new Christmas album didn't meet their criteria. Let's all move on from that decision without arguing about it. But let's not stop asking the questions about what it means to live in faith and reflect love to the world around us."
