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Larry Norman: The Long Journey Home (from CCM June 1989)
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Fantastic Distraction
Fantastic Distraction
Dime Store Prophets
Fantastic Distraction
5 Minute Walk Records

In the modern church, there is a distinction between types of prophecy." There is what is known as "fore-telling" -- that is, speaking the future; and then there is what is known as "forth-telling" -- that is, speaking the truth in a way that has not been understood or told before.

With these "definitions" in place, one can understand that the Dime Store Prophets are in the latter group, the forth-tellers. In this project, the Prophets speak with sincerity and conviction about the truth that they find within themselves and in the world around them.

The philosopher Pascal talked about there being a "God shaped vacuum" inside each person; in the title track, and first song of this album, we catch a glimpse inside the lives of three people, each of whom are trying to fill their own "God shaped holes." Particularly telling is the story of Joy, a modern-day "hippie", who "keeps a strict diet of popsicles, pop-tarts, and heroin." She eventually finds Jesus in her search for fulfillment, and He reminds her that He, too, has been looking for her. Later in the song, we meet Sonny, a divorced man, using the TV to "(intoxicate) himself with gamma rays." In the end, it is noted, we all are like moths, drawing near to any light that beckons us, but always searching for the one true Light.

In "Soothsayer Speaks" we find a character that embodies all the qualities of the religious right and Satan. A strange combination one would think, yet in their own way, each keeps seekers from finding the Truth. "Well he looks over his shoulder at the desperate ones / He badgers them before they reach the door / He says say there sucker could something so big, so good / Be as easy as just opening the door?" That is indeed the question. Could something so right be that easy? As the Prophets sing later, "You won't find a back door to heaven ... It's alright now, it's ok / I'm coming home today."

Finally in "Heavy As It Goes" there is a disturbing, yet fascinating, picture of communion. Communion, which was designed to be a picture of the sacrificial gift of Christ, has, in many churches, become a ritual with little conscious thought. In "Heavy" the picture is reversed, showing how Christ might view this development.

On a personal note, one of the things I love about Justin Steven's style of writing (Justin wrote all the lyrics for this album) is that he often will load a line or phrase with multiple meanings. For instance the lines in "Fantastic Distraction" where he is writing about the ironically named Joy, who uses heroin to try to fill the "God shaped hole" in her life. He marvelously, yet succinctly, describes "she likes to open the doors and go looking for Morrison / She tripped and fell on Jesus." (Note: emphasis is mine.) And again in the chorus, where he describes her journey as "twelve steps forward and thirteen steps back."