Ragamuffin Reflections: 7 Things I’ve Learned from Rich Mullins

Few people have impacted the way I think about life and faith more than Rich Mullins. Ever since I was a little girl listening to his songs while riding in the car with my dad, something—actually many things—about the way Rich lived and thought and wrote and spoke and sang captured me. His impact continues to this day as I continue to draw wisdom and inspiration from the legacy he left behind.

In light of the upcoming anniversary of Rich’s entrance to heaven (September 19, 1997) and the deep impact he has left on my life and the lives of many others, I am dedicating this month’s posts to his memory.

Today I’m excited to share with you some of the things I’ve learned from this one-of-a-kind pilgrim and ragamuffin.

Ragamuffins are the unsung assembly of saved sinners who are little in their own sight and aware of their brokenness and powerlessness before God. A ragamuffin knows he’s only a beggar at the door of God’s mercy.

— Brennan Manning

come as a child

At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

— Matthew 18:1-4 (ESV)

With a boyish grin and an infectious laugh, Rich Mullins had a delightfully endearing childlikeness all throughout his life. Eagerness and enthusiasm put a spark in his eyes and a spring in his step. He wasn’t pretentious and didn’t put on airs. His smile was disarming and his laughter contagious because his joy was genuine, flowing from a spirit revitalized by God’s love.

Embracing the Father’s unconditional love for him didn’t come easily for Rich, partly because of his fraught relationship with his father. But as he came to accept the depths of love found in the Father’s heart, he was freed to become the child of God he was destined to be.

Well, we are children no more / We have sinned and grown old / And our Father still waits / And He watches down the road / To see the crying boys / Come running back to His arms / And be growing young

— Rich Mullins and David “Beaker” Strasser, “Growing Young”

step lightly

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

— Proverbs 17:22 (NIV)

Finding humor in unlikely places such as his own mistakes was one of Rich’s strengths. He didn’t take himself too seriously. Laughter is a great means of easing tension, and Rich used that to its full advantage. His irresistible sense of humor coupled with his childlike spirit enabled him to say some convicting things while making his audience laugh at the same time. 

It’s about as useless as a screen door on a submarine / Faith without works, baby, it just ain’t happenin’ / One is your right hand, one is your left / It’s your light, your guide, your life and your breath / Faith without works is like a song you can’t sing / It’s about as useless as a screen door on a submarine

— Rich Mullins, “Screen Door”

shatter stereotypes

For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. 

— Galatians 1:10 (ESV)

Striving to be normal wasn’t on Rich’s list of things to do. Pleasing people wasn’t his life goal; pleasing God was. That often led to making choices others didn’t understand or agree with, but Rich was okay with that. His desire was to be the person God wanted him to be—no more, no less. He didn’t waste energy trying to be like everyone else; instead, he channeled his energy into the passions God laid on his heart. By embracing his own uniqueness, he inspired others to do the same.

This life has shown me how we’re mended and how we’re torn / How it’s okay to be lonely as long as you’re free / Sometimes my ground was stony / And sometimes covered up with thorns / And only You could make it what it had to be

— Rich Mullins, “Elijah” 

have no fear

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

— John 3:8 (ESV)

Rich wasn’t afraid of what others thought about him. He refused to be ruled by others’ expectations. Instead, he went to great lengths to follow wherever the winds of the Spirit blew, even when that required him to set his sails in a direction opposite of the crowd. 

In the nature of a prophet, Rich wasn’t afraid to go where others wouldn’t go and ask the questions others dared not ask. Calling things out the way he saw them was his common practice. Sacred cows were sure to go flying whenever Rich came around. He had an unsettling way of flipping people’s religious notions upside down, challenging them to consider what they believed and why as he nudged them ever closer toward a deeper, more grounded faith.

bring forth beauty

My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer.

— Psalm 45:1 (NIV)

Rich was an incredibly talented artist and musician: a poetic lyricist, skilled composer, and master pianist, among other things. His art was where the deepest parts of his heart came to surface, forever captured in lyric and melody. Much of his most meaningful and moving work was born out of his hardest struggles. Because of his bravery in unveiling those wounded places, many have found healing through his words.

Not only did he find fulfillment in creating art himself, but Rich was also constantly encouraging those around him to create. He knew that planted in each person’s soul is the essence of creativity, the ability to see the beauty in something and bring it forth, and he loved to draw out that innate desire to create.

Be praised for all Your tenderness by these works of Your hands / Suns that rise and rains that fall to bless and bring to life Your land / Look down upon this winter wheat and be glad that You have made / Blue for the sky and the color green that fills these fields with praise

— Rich Mullins, “The Color Green”

stay low

Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”  Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you. . .

— 1 Peter 5:5b-6 (ESV)

Despite his success (or maybe because of it), Rich tried to prevent others from putting him on a pedestal and expecting him to be perfect. He regularly confessed his struggles with sin and temptation. By admitting his weaknesses, he stayed relatable and made a stage for God’s strength to be seen.

I would rather live on the verge of falling and let my security be in the all-sufficiency of the grace of God than to live in some kind of pietistic illusion of moral excellence—not that I don’t want to be morally excellent, but my faith isn’t in the idea that I’m more moral than anybody else. My faith is in the idea that God and His love are greater than whatever sins any of us commit.

— Rich Mullins

be God’s

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 

— Colossians 3:1-3 (NIV)

This was Rich’s signature statement, which he wrote whenever someone asked him for his autograph. It was also the motto he lived by. His highest aspiration was to be known as one of God’s beloved children.

If my life is motivated by my ambition to leave a legacy, what I’ll probably leave as a legacy is ambition. But if my life is motivated by the power of the Spirit in me, if I live with the awareness of the indwelling Christ, if I allow His presence to guide my actions, to guide my motives, those sort of things. That’s the only time I think we really leave a great legacy.

— Rich Mullins

more than music

Rich Mullins is probably best known as a musician, but for me, his legacy reaches far beyond his music. It extends to how he lived the message he sang. His legacy of faith as shown in the life he lived inspires me to follow Jesus more closely and love Him with all I am, living in the grip of grace—a ragamuffin redeemed by God’s mercy.