Heart's still heavy over Jonathan and Thomas. Jonathan is intubated again after surgery yesterday. His condition is extremely serious. The gravity of the situation is sinking in even more as David, Sharon, Nicole and Megan are feeling bone weary. Please pray for them. I've added a link for updates. It's always encouraging to read the comments. People all over the world are praying for Jonathan.
Thomas Griffith is still struggling too. Bless his heart. I know John and Alice are hurting for him. Please be remembering them too.
We collapsed into bed last night. The trip went fairly well--as well as driving to Arkansas and back in two days can go. The girls loved seeing their cousins and we enjoyed our visit.
I wanted to make you aware of another blog. Rob Still leads worship some at Belmont Church (my church home before Otter). He also wrote "A New Anointing". I've added a link to his website or you can click here. You might like checking his blog from time to time.
I've been thinking about hymns this morning. Music in general has the ability to transport us like a time machine. Sometimes it's a good thing and sometimes it's painful.
I'm curious--what hymn or hymns are special to you? What memories do they evoke?
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
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31 comments:
I'll start the ball rolling...
This is My Father's World and O Love That Will Not let Me Go are two of my all time favorites. They were favorites of my dad and they were sung at his funeral. I can't sing either of them without vivid memories. Any time we sing O Love- I see those 8 or so friends who stood and sang a beautiful arrangement of it at the funeral. That picture is burned into my memory bank. And--it's a good memory.
I love to sing Beneath the Cross Of Jesus because of the way the melody really expresses the lyric.
"Great is Thy Faithfulness" was our official hymn during years of infertility. I can still barely sing it. In fact, when I lead it, I almost have to "go somewhere else" in my mind (not a technique I usually recommend) so I can hold it together. It reminded me that children or no children, God was still enough and that His grace was/is sufficient. "All I have needed Thy hand hath provided" indeed!
One other -- "Lord, We Come Before Thee Now" -- the line about "Lord, we know not how to go till a blessing Thou bestow" is a reminder to me to live my life that way every day. I need to stop doing whatever I want and then asking Him to bless it; I need to seek His path from the get-go.
Well, our church did a very powerful powerpoint presentation right after the 9/11 tragedy showing some pretty tough pictures while "Deep Calls To Deep" was playing on CD. I still can't sing that song w/o feeling at a loss for the world that was before 9/11. Personally, I get choked up singing "Still" - I hope that my doubts never get in the way of honestly singing that. And finally, "Your Grace Still Amazes Me" brings those tears of undeservedness (is that even a word?) to my eyes & heart. Please, oh please, dear ZOE Group - do a version of "Restore Me" by Jason Ingram - that song does the same for me too!!!
OK - I know you said hymns, but the ZOE stuff is as much the hymns of today as the older music is. Just wanted to clarify!
"There's A Fountain Free" was being led by my Daddy when I decided to be baptized, August 6, 1986. He baptized me.
The old "Jesus, Lover of My Soul". Was my grandmother's favorite song. We tried to record it to be sung at her funeral, but none of us (parents, brother, aunts, uncles, cousins) could get through it. (Recorded several others.)
Daddy and I went to Friday night singings together almost every week in my teenage years (I was quite the social butterfly), so I hear him either on lead or on bass in almost every hymn you could imagine. Comfort, emotion, longing, peace. All those things converge.
Just remembered there are two old "Jesus, lover of my soul" songs. The one I'm thinking of says, "Hide me, Oh, My Savior, Hide, 'Til the storms of life have passed."
"It Is Well With My Soul" and "When I Survey The Wondrous Cross". I like the way both songs flow naturally from 1st to last verse. "Great is Thy Faithfulness" is an all time favorite that has already been mentioned. I love that song. And finally, a specific verse from "How Great Thou Art":
"And when I think that God, His Son not sparing, sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in."
I scarce can get those words out without crying.
"Oh Lord, Our Lord" and "The Lord Bless You and Keep You," because I can always hear Buddy Arnold's beautiful baritone leading that song. He did it with such spirit that you knew the words were a reflection of the heart within him.
Like Brandon, two of my favorites revolve around my dad. His own favorite was "Amazing Grace" and I will NEVER be able to sing it without thinking of him. I have always loved "Peace Like A River," but since he died the last verse has choked me up. When I sing "the clouds be rolled back like a scroll," I see my dad right up there with my Lord...coming down with him...holding out a hand for me. Dang it ~wiping tear~ whose idea for a topic was THIS??
Justin--
You were 7 in 1991??? Please! I'm not even going there. (fossilizing as I type)
Please continue to pray for Jonathan. Things are just hard right now. David (his father) has the flu--a bad case. They are really tired. I am trying to figure out when to get up there. Since we begin recording next week, I'm not sure how or when. My heart is just so heavy for them today.
Here are my two (even though I have grown up in a very overhead and then powerpoint world). The Phos Hilarion which I love, but rarely makes a song rotation. I love it how it connects us with the earliest church. The majority of times that I have sung/experienced it have been when I take college students to gatherings conferences (Passion, OneDay, etc). Second, All Creatures of God and King, thanks to David Crowder
Now you have trempted my ears to open up iTunes (but not until Easter arrives).
My Papa's two favorite songs were Walking Alone at Eve and Jesus is All the World to Me. Both move me to tears. And I am with Stephen, I don't think I have ever sung the complete phrase "And God his son not sparing" without choking up.
Praying for your friends.
"I've got a mansion." My brother sang this as a child..we sang it at his funeral and bless his heart...HE GOT IT! Also, "I cry out" not a hymn, but a vivid reminder of my brother's journey down low and his ultimate trip home.
i turned 7 in 91. yep justin mundie born sept 21 1984.
sorry about the fossilization. i'm having a hard time though that my youngest brother can beat me in wrestling now. it seems like i was always so much older than him, but hes a soph in high school now. weird.
I can't sing "For the Lord is a Righteous God" without thinking of my precious friend, Shanon Dickerson. It will forever remind me of his friendship and love of worship. But the words that really get to me, really challenge me..."Love, so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all." I'll also always remember being honored and humbled to sing "On Eagle's wings" with you, BST and Sheryl. Thanks for asking the question, BST. I've had some great memories and songs running through my head today.
Sunny
Two of my all time favorites are "I'll Fly Away" and "Victory in Jesus"...I guess because they paint such a positive portrayal of living with Christ and the joy that we have-and they are just good 'ol songs that are fun to sing!
Then there are all of the songs that my mom loves-too numerous too count-she has an AMAZING voice and would always go around our house singing them-I loved that, unless it was in the early morning!!! I didn't value it as much when I was at home, but now when I go home to visit-I love hearing that voice and I know those words are coming from her heart.
Of the new songs, and this seems to have become very popular lately-"Blessed Be Your Name" is my fav-I can't sing it without tearing up and smiling-even when things are tough-blessed be His name...
Even though my tastes now are far more contemporary, some of the songs I have the most vivid memories of are old ones.
The summer I was 16, a friend and his older brother drowned in a boating accident. Our high school chorus sang "My God and I" at the funeral. I still cannot sing all the way through it without tears -- it takes straight back to the funeral and two young men so full of promise.
Music is truly the language of my soul -- very few words from a sermon stay with me for years, but the songs and the memories they bring back stay with me forever.
"Peace, perfect peace." I have always liked the hymn, but when my long time friend John Ogren sang it at Flaming Pine Youth Camp on his guitar, with the tree frogs singing along and in a not so peaceful time in his life, I loved it. I saw how it soothed him, and learned something about what a song can do.
A close second is going to ahve to be "Walking Alone With Eve When Adam Was Not Around." JK
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!
Walking Alone At Eve....picturing the home with God that we will one day have. Even typing about it brings tears to my eyes. Farther Along and Precious Memories were my grandmother's favorite songs and were sung at my Granddad's funeral.
Living By Faith...hearing one particular gentleman belt out in his wonderful tenor voice and seeing him sing with his whole body! Can't sing it now without tearing and thinking of that time in my life.
Being led by Alton Howard through any song was moving - Hearing him sing "The Scars in the Hands Of Jesus" - Wow!
How do you mention them all?
Growing up, I went to a church where all we sung were those older hymns. While I love all of the new worship songs of course, I think that we often lose sight of the power of those older songs. Some of them are truly beautiful. Almost every song I had at my wedding was a "blue book" song. I walked down the aisle to "My Jesus I Love Thee", and I don't think that any song could have described more perfectly how I was feeling at that moment. I sang the first verse a cappella from the back of the auditorium, and then the piano played as i walked down...I didn't want anyone to know in case I chickened out! and i didn't want it to be like a performance...it was my own personal prayer and I couldn't have come up with words more appropriate for that moment if I had tried
Songs like "Great is thy Faithfulness","Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing", "Nearer my God to Thee", "Whispering Hope", "I Come to the Garden Alone"...just to name a few! (I can't ever NOT write a novel...SORRY!) those words are truly beautiful and never fail to move me...When I listen to the song "Ancient Words", although it is speaking of the Bible and although I doubt any of our elders would like to be referred to as "ancient", I think that alot of those older songs speak some amazing truths and are truly beautiful works that have obviously withstood the test of time. They are such a reminder of the great heritage of faith that has been passed on to us.
And of course I can't forget my childhood favorites of "Victory in Jesus" and "Have a Little CHOCOLATE Jesus"! (aka "Have a Little TALK WITH Jesus!)
Brandon,
Singing the old hymns brings back many great memories from my childhood. Songs like "His Grace Reaches Me" and "I Need Thee Every Hour" bring goosebumps up my spine each time I sing them. Added to that are too many to name such as "Ten Thousand Angels" and "How Great Thou Art" which was sung at my grandparents funeral on my mom's side and tears me up each time I hear it. To the more contemporary worship songs I am moved by a worship song called "More Than Enough" that Jeremy Camp sings and "Blessed Be Your Name" which puts into perspective that despite the struggles of a hurting generation, blessed be your name, that no matter what evil comes my way, blessed be the name of the Lord.
-Zac-
Brandon,
Singing the old hymns brings back many great memories from my childhood. Songs like "His Grace Reaches Me" and "I Need Thee Every Hour" bring goosebumps up my spine each time I sing them. Added to that are too many to name such as "Ten Thousand Angels" and "How Great Thou Art" which was sung at my grandparents funeral on my mom's side and tears me up each time I hear it. To the more contemporary worship songs I am moved by a worship song called "More Than Enough" that Jeremy Camp sings and "Blessed Be Your Name" which puts into perspective that despite the struggles of a hurting generation, blessed be your name, that no matter what evil comes my way, blessed be the name of the Lord.
-Zac-
Brandon,
Singing the old hymns brings back many great memories from my childhood. Songs like "His Grace Reaches Me" and "I Need Thee Every Hour" bring goosebumps up my spine each time I sing them. Added to that are too many to name such as "Ten Thousand Angels" and "How Great Thou Art" which was sung at my grandparents funeral on my mom's side and tears me up each time I hear it. To the more contemporary worship songs I am moved by a worship song called "More Than Enough" that Jeremy Camp sings and "Blessed Be Your Name" which puts into perspective that despite the struggles of a hurting generation, blessed be your name, that no matter what evil comes my way, blessed be the name of the Lord.
-Zac-
guys sorry bout the multiple posts. my computer was doing some strange things and not sending the post. -zac-
I have 3 that hit me right in the gut. The first is How Great Thou Art - my dad used to sing it as a solo because he thought he could. He was wrong but I will always love the way he looked when he sang it. Fairest Lord Jesus. I remember vividly singing it at VBS as a kid and really "getting it". And finally, There's a Stirring. It was the last song we sang together at Winterfest this year and the last song Brody sang before he died. I will never sing it again and not think of him.
Wow ... what awesome thoughts you all have written. A couple of songs that didn't get a mention that I love are 'Tis So Sweet To Trust in Jesus ... and ... My Jesus I Love Thee. O Sacred Head is in there too. Thanks, everyone, for sharing your hearts.
Ok thre times yesterday I went to comment but got so emotional thinking about the songs I would comment on that I had to leave the computer before the comments page loaded!! I could write my bibliography with hymn that I have come to love along the way.
" The gravy and rolls song" or "Up from the Grave He a rose". When I was little (and apparently hungry and ready for lunch) we would sing this song and I was sure it said " Up for the gravy and rolls with a might try for more rolls .... heat the rolls, eat the rolls,Hal le lu jah Heat the rolls"
Then of course Amazing Grace, Night with Ebon Pinion, The "Come Home" song, Lord Bless You and Keep You.... the list is long and the meanings deep. Music completely moves me!
I know I'll butcher this--Stephen will ahve to help correct me. BUt--There was a man in Stephen's church growing up named "Edwin Pinson". You see where I'm going.
Stephen told me that when they would sing "Night With Ebon Pinion" the youth group would substitute Edwin's name in there. It was never the same.
i can never finish "come share the Lord" or "thomas' song." i ALWAYS start to tear and cry during both of those.
"my God and i" is a great one. we had a bass at park row that really did that song justice and i would stop singing to listen to him sing and think of walking with God.
"glorify Thy name" with descant on the last vesre sung by dee dee at park row is B-U-ti-full!!!
i LOVE the song service at church! God TRULY inhabits our praise. i feel Him with us when we really get going, ya know?
2 to share...
"I Stand in Awe" - We were just learning it when my grandmother passed away, and my family has this tradition of singing as a family during funerals. I know that this one carried a dual meaning for my dad, as he was also singing to his mother "You are beautiful beyond description..."
"When the Night is Falling" - We just learned this one a few months ago at Western Hills. One of our praise team members had an aunt struggling with cancer, and the doctors had done all they could, and the family was saying their "goodbyes". I had suggested we go out and sing this for her. (I was unfortunately unable to make it.) They did yesterday afternoon, and then a few hours later, God called her home so He could sing over her.
Please pray for Sharon Murrah's family during this difficult time after her glorious release from her struggles.
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