The Songwriter Who Never Saw His Paychecks

Rich Mullins wrote Awesome God, one of the most beloved worship songs of the late twentieth century. Churches around the world sang it every Sunday. The royalties were substantial. But Mullins arranged for every check to go directly to his church, which paid him a salary equal to the average American worker's income. Everything above that went to charity. He never even looked at the numbers.

While his songs filled sanctuaries and stadiums, Mullins moved to a Navajo reservation in New Mexico to teach music to children. He performed barefoot on stage. He lived simply. When asked why he didn't enjoy the wealth his talent had earned, he said he didn't think the Almighty was going to ask him about his career — but about whether he'd loved people well.

Mullins died in a car accident in 1997 at forty-one, on his way to a concert. He never built the platform his fame could have given him. He gave it away, like a man who understood that everything he had was already borrowed.

Jesus told His disciples, "Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for My sake will find it" (Matthew 16:25). Mullins took those words literally. He sacrificed comfort, celebrity, and financial security — not because he had to, but because he'd glimpsed something worth more.

This week, ask yourself: what am I holding onto that God is asking me to release?