Truth For The Heart
– For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9 – The lyrics of “Thou Who Wast Rich Beyond All Splendour” were written in China by Frank Houghton, an Englishman. […]
Read MoreChristmas and the holiday season are not always times that are cheery and bright. Loneliness and loss can have a sharper edge in December because of the contrast of times remembered or the contrast of times hoped for, but seldom known. Pray for all who undergo hardship. Look for those around you who may need […]
Read More“Joy to the World” is one of my favorite Christmas carols. The words are based on Psalm 98, and it is one of the more than 600 hymns written by Isaac Watts (1674-1748).1 Watts wrote the hymn, however, not about the First Advent of Christ, but about His Second. “Joy to the World” was in […]
Read MoreThe wonder and glory of the birth of Jesus resound as Isaiah’s words are sung in this chorus from Handel’s Messiah. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting […]
Read MoreThere are some songs with words and music so personally significant, I still remember the first time I heard them. Mary, Did You Know? was a song I heard sung by a small vocal ensemble at the water’s edge of a town harbor during an outdoor Christmas celebration over ten years ago. The lyrics and […]
Read MoreMusic is one of the most wonderful aspects of the Christmas season. The songs of hope, joy and love span centuries and countries, and when we sing these words or listen to these carols, we join with other believers who in other times and in other places worshiped God with the same music. “Lo, How […]
Read More“I Wonder As I Wander” is an American Christmas carol with words and melody by John Jacob Niles. He based it on a few snatches of song he heard on July 16, 1933, in the small Appalachian town of Murphy, North Carolina: A girl had stepped out to the edge of the little platform attached […]
Read More“In The Bleak Midwinter” is a lovely Christmas carol written by Christina Rossetti. Our God, heaven cannot hold him, Nor earth sustain; Heaven and earth shall flee away When he comes to reign; In the bleak midwinter A stable place sufficed The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ. In these two videos the words are sung […]
Read More“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 (KJV) – The roots of the music of Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel! go back to the 15th century.1 The Messianic titles in the lyrics, called the O Antiphons, […]
Read More
Kindling for Candles 