Hymnody of Quiet Trust in Trials
We sang several songs in our Sunday morning service which emphasized the believer’s quiet and confident trust in God in the midst of the trying… Read More »Hymnody of Quiet Trust in Trials
I seek to be a student of the Scriptures — New Testament in particular — and also have a deep love for the praise of God through music in the church. I have at the present time the privilege of overseeing the music and leading the singing in my local church, a ministry which brings me great joy and provides a God-ordained outlet for my musical energies. I've enjoyed serving in music-related areas in the church since high school — some 25 years now — as a vocalist, choir member, choir director, and congregational songleader. In addition to serving as a member — and for a time as an assistant pastor — in various local churches, I've also had the privilege of traveling during my college years to many churches throughout the United States and Canada as part of a vocal ensemble. I hunger to see, both in my own church and beyond, an increased appreciation for the great historic music of the church in which theologically rich texts are wedded to music which provides an appropriate setting for those texts, and through which our affections are turned toward God. I'm also eager to see new contributions to the rich heritage of Christian music which share in the same characteristics.
We sang several songs in our Sunday morning service which emphasized the believer’s quiet and confident trust in God in the midst of the trying… Read More »Hymnody of Quiet Trust in Trials
As a general rule, each month I teach one new or more unfamiliar hymn (or occasionally two) to our congregation. (In March, it was a… Read More »Easter Hymnody
A few Sundays back, I structured our congregational singing around the theme of God’s pardon of guilty sinners on the basis of Christ’s death. There… Read More »Hymns on Pardon
Samuel Rodigast, “Whate’er My God Ordains Is Right” This outstanding hymn was introduced to our church back in 2009, and after singing it for a… Read More »Samuel Rodigast, "Whate'er My God Ordains Is Right"
“Blessed Jesus, at Thy Word” makes an outstanding musical call to worship. The text is superb, and the tune LIEBSTER JESU is a good fit.… Read More »Tobias Clausnitzer, "Blessed Jesus, at Thy Word"
Recently, I came across an article entitled “Art, Nakedness, and Redemption” by William VanDoodewaard, a church history professor at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary. In this… Read More »The Christian and Nakedness in Art
This month, our pastor preached through the Ephesians 6 passage on spiritual warfare. We used Wesley’s “Soldiers of Christ, Arise” (to the usual tune DIADEMATA),… Read More »Wesley on prayer in "Soldiers of Christ, Arise"
In relation to critiquing other cultures in an age of cultural relativism, Titus 1:12-13 caught my eye a couple of years ago as I was… Read More »Paul and Cultural Critique: Titus 1:12-13
Over the years, I’ve become hesitant to sing “O Holy Night,” a Christmas song widely used as a solo because of its dramatic nature and vocal difficulty. Our… Read More »Incarnation Hymnody: "O Holy Night"
Continuing our series on incarnation hymnody, we take a look today at “Angels, from the Realms of Glory.” ___________________________ “Angels, from the Realms of Glory”… Read More »Incarnation Hymnody: "Angels, from the Realms of Glory"
Here is a spectrum of theological observations on the incarnation ranging over the past 1800 years. Helpful in the light of C. S. Lewis’s… Read More »Insights on the Incarnation, Ancient and Modern
We here continue our series on Incarnation Hymnody. Today: the ancient “Come, Thou Redeemer of the Earth” and the not-quite-as-ancient-but-still-very-old “Lo, How a Rose E’er… Read More »Incarnation Hymnody: "Come, Thou Redeemer of the Earth" and “Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming"
Today’s post continues our series on “incarnation hymnody.” Today: the ancient “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” and Charles Wesley’s “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus.” ____________________… Read More »Incarnation Hymnody: "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence" and "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus"
God’s people, and especially those who would stand before the Christian assembly and lead in singing praise, ought always to be thoughtful about what they… Read More »Incarnation Hymnody: "Of the Father's Love Begotten" and "Silent Night"
I am always thrilled when someone introduces me to a hymn that is well-written and theologically rich, and for some reason or another has been… Read More »Hymn Highlights: "Jesus Lives, and So Shall I"
This month, our pastor used Sunday evenings to preach a series covering the broad, overarching metanarrative of Scripture. Titled “The Epic Story,” he moved in… Read More »Notes on "It Is Well"
At least nine times, Scripture directly refers to a “new song,” via both psalmist (Ps. 33:3; 40:3; 96:1; 98:1; 144:9; 149:1) and prophet (Isa 42:10;… Read More »Sing to the Lord a New Song