The words for “Joy to the World! The Lord is Come” were written by Isaac Watts and later arranged by Lowell Mason to music by Handel. Although this was originally meant to commemorate Jesus’ second return, it’s become a beloved Christmas song. 1 Joy to the world! The Lord is…

Merry CHRISTmas! “O Come, All Ye Faithful” is a Latin hymn with credit ascribed to several authors, but we know it was put to music by John Francis Wade. “Word of the Father in flesh appearing…” Oh, what a gift! 1 O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, O…

“The First Nowell” is a traditional English carol. I love the announcement, Born is the King of Israel! (For simplicity’s sake, I’ve changed “nowell” to “noel.”) 1 The first Noel the angel did say was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay; in fields where they lay keeping…

“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is no doubt very familiar to most of us. Charles Wesley penned the lyrics (which were tweaked by George Whitefield), and they were put to music by Felix Mendelssohn. I love hearing this one played by a full orchestra–so powerful! But probably not as powerful…

This time of year, I love singing the old carols. To celebrate the Reason for the Season, how about a week of CHRISTmas carols? Staring with “O Little Town of Bethlehem” by Phillips Brooks, music by Lewis H. Redner. This sweet carol seems to be a standard for children’s choirs.…

I don’t know if you noticed that this week’s images featured sunrises over different settings: a lake, mountains, the rolling prairie, a beach, and an ocean. I wanted to plant pictures of God’s beautiful creation in your mind. God crafted this world in such a way that we would see…

We are saved from eternal separation from God by proclaiming our faith in Jesus Christ. See Ephesian 2:8-9 for confirmation. If it were up to works, none of us would get into heaven; we could never do enough! But if we truly love Jesus, the things we do and say…

HYMN DAY! “Because I Have Been Given Much” was written by Grace Noll Crowell in the midst of the Great Depression. When you view the words against the backdrop of financial devastation and emotional despair, they become even more meaningful. 1. Because I have been given much, I too must…

When I was little and tried to blame someone else for my poor choice, my mom would say, “When you point your finger at somebody else, there are three fingers pointing back at you.” (Yes, I checked my hand to see if she was right.) (Yes, she was.) We’re very…

We live in a time when society proclaims that some lives have value and some don’t. Some people’s voices are cheered and others’ disdained. People are placed into classifications based on appearance, economic status, popularity, age, gender, and countless other qualifiers. These kinds of actions and attitudes only cause division…