Scott Aniol

Scott Aniol is the founder and Executive Director of Religious Affections Ministries. He is Chair of the Worship Ministry Department at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he teaches courses in ministry, worship, hymnology, aesthetics, culture, and philosophy. He is the author of Worship in Song: A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship, Sound Worship: A Guide to Making Musical Choices in a Noisy World, and By the Waters of Babylon: Worship in a Post-Christian Culture, and speaks around the country in churches and conferences. He is an elder in his church in Fort Worth, TX where he resides with his wife and four children.

Author Archives: Scott Aniol

A new hymn pairing

June 7th, 2017 | 0 Comments

As we move closer to publishing our print hymnal, Hymns to the Living God, I want to continue to highlight some of the new and unique selections that you will both find in the hymnal and can download for free even now. One of the unique hymns about which I am most pleased is not… Continue Reading

New Hymn by David Oestreich and Josh Bauder

May 24th, 2017 | 0 Comments

In January I mentioned the sudden passing of our friend, David Oestreich. David had been a supporter and occasional contributor here on the blog, and his tragic death due to complications from pneumonia was a shock to us all. David was quite an accomplished poet. He had several of his poems published in various collections,… Continue Reading

I’m Still Here, Too

April 20th, 2017 | 0 Comments

The most recent issue of Frontline Magazine is apparently getting a bit of buzz. I don’t subscribe, but through friends I’m getting caught up. It appears that the Fall 2016 issue, “Convergence,” caused a stir with how it treated the younger generation who grew up in fundamental Baptist churches. As a sort of response, Mark Ward… Continue Reading

Thine Be the Glory

April 16th, 2017 | 0 Comments

Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son; endless is the victory Thou o’er death hast won. Angels in bright raiment rolled the stone away, kept the folded grave-clothes where Thy body lay. Refrain: Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son; endless is the victory Thou o’er death hast won. Lo! Jesus meets us. Risen from… Continue Reading

Good Friday

April 14th, 2017 | 0 Comments

AM I a stone and not a sheep That I can stand, O Christ, beneath Thy Cross, To number drop by drop Thy Blood’s slow loss, And yet not weep? Not so those women loved Who with exceeding grief lamented Thee; Not so fallen Peter weeping bitterly; Not so the thief… Continue Reading

Review Article: You Are What you Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit

April 12th, 2017 | 0 Comments

For several years now James K. A. Smith has been helpfully speaking and writing on the subject of liturgical formation in education and worship. His first two volumes on this subject, Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation (Baker, 2009) and Imagining the Kingdom: How Worship Works (Baker, 2013), have reintroduced several important biblical… Continue Reading

How many songs can one church sing?

April 5th, 2017 | 0 Comments

Have you ever thought about how many songs your church can sing in a year? If you consult the average transdenominational hymnal published today, you might assume that churches can sing 700 or more hymns in a given year. The truth is that most churches–and I’m being very generous in my estimate here–can only sing… Continue Reading

The Benedict Option: The Christian Option

March 15th, 2017 | 0 Comments

Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Rod Dreher’s much anticipated book, The Benedict Option: A Strategy for Christians in a Post-Christian Nation, is how unremarkable his proposal really is. Yet it is a profoundly necessary correction for an American Christianity that has lost its biblical moorings and become just as secular as the culture around… Continue Reading

Looking through Psalm 137, Stanza 3: Worship that Trusts in God

March 8th, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 8 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

It is time to complete our discussion of Psalm 137 by looking through stanza 3, verses 7–9: Remember, O Lord, against the Edomites the day of Jerusalem, how they said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare, down to its foundations!” O daughter of Babylon, doomed to be destroyed, blessed shall he be who repays you with… Continue Reading

A good and bad way to use Lent

March 3rd, 2017 | 0 Comments

It’s that time of year again, a time when Evangelical Christians debate whether or not it is a good thing to observe Lent. My answer to that question is always the same: it depends on what you mean by “Lent” and “observe.” Here is a short note I have sent our congregation on occasion to… Continue Reading

Looking through Psalm 137, Stanza 2: Worship that is Pleasing to God

March 1st, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 7 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

We have considered our experience as God’s people in exile through stanza 1 of Psalm 137; now look at stanza 2, verses 5–6: If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill! Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do… Continue Reading

Looking through Psalm 137, Stanza 1: Worship in a Pagan Culture

February 22nd, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 6 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

In our study of Psalm 137 over the past several weeks, we have looked at the historical context of the psalm, the analogical relationships between the psalm and the present status of Christians, and what this psalm does aesthetically. We have seen that as pilgrims and exiles in this present world, Christians today have much to… Continue Reading

A New Catechism

February 16th, 2017 | 0 Comments

Through the years as our children have grown, we have given attention to catechizing them. We’ve used several different catechisms, and have found this traditional question/answer format to be of great value in teaching our children the core doctrines of our faith. However, for a number of reasons, some practical and some doctrinal, I have… Continue Reading

What Psalm 137 Does

February 15th, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 5 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Over the past several weeks, we have been looking at Psalm 137 and its relevance for Christian today. I have presented the historical background of the psalm and argued that it has significant relevance for us since, like the author/audience of Psalm 137, Christians are exiles living among a pagan people. Now let us consider… Continue Reading

Dual Citizens

February 8th, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 4 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Last week, as part of our study of Psalm 137, I pointed out the striking similarities between the conditions in which the Hebrews exiled in Babylon found themselves and the Church today. I ended by asking, “How many Christians today consider themselves sojourners and exiles? How many Christians recognize that their citizenship is in another… Continue Reading

A People in Exile

February 1st, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 3 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Last week I presented the historical context for Psalm 137, a context of the people of God living in exile among a pagan people. Now once again, understanding this immediate context may cause us to wonder, how in the world could this psalm be relevant for Christians today? Certainly we do not live under such depressing… Continue Reading

The Historical Context of Psalm 137

January 25th, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 2 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Last week I began a series looking at Psalm 137. I am going to do two things with the psalm; first, I will look at the psalm, and then I would like to look through the psalm and allow it to speak to us today. So let us begin by looking at Psalm 137. The psalm… Continue Reading

“Credo” by David Oestreich (1970-2017)

January 24th, 2017 | 0 Comments

Yes, I believe in Him who is Almighty, Father, God, Who made all things in heaven, earth, Who made them very good. Yes, I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord, Begotten by the Spirit and Of Virgin Mary born; Who under Pontius Pilate’s hand Was scorned and suffered grief; Who then was… Continue Reading

God’s People in Exile

January 18th, 2017 | 0 Comments

This entry is part 1 of 8 in the series God's People in Exile You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion. 2 On the willows there we hung up our lyres. 3 For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” 4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song… Continue Reading

Bible Narratives Reading Plan for Individual/Family

December 26th, 2016 | 0 Comments

Download a free 5 day Bible Narratives Reading Plan for 2018 here. This week our family is finishing successfully reading through the whole Bible. Each of us has independently read through the Bible using the same Bible reading plan. We used this 5 day chronological reading plan. We liked it because it was only five… Continue Reading