Archive for March, 2010
« Previous EntriesThe Trauma of Changing Church Music: An Ironic Story
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, many people are traumatized by the changing of music in church. I am one of those people. I must confess that I am bugged when I’m singing a familiar hymn, one I memorized in my youth, and all of a sudden everybody else is singing different lyrics. […]
Crown Him With Many Crowns: A New Verse
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010In yesterday’s post I explained the unusual origin and history of the hymn “Crown Him with Many Crowns.” Though most hymnals today include four verses of this hymn, its original author, Robert Bridges, wrote six. Then, a couple of decades later, another writer composed six additional stanzas, intending them to replace the original six. The […]
The Surprising Origins of a Great Hymn
Monday, March 29th, 2010One of my favorite hymns, and one that is frequently sung during Holy Week and Eastertide, is “Crown Him with Many Crowns.” The lyrics of this glorious hymn celebrate the multi-faceted sovereignty of Christ.
If you were to look in several different hymnals, you’d find some variation in the lyrics of “Crown Him with Many Crowns.” […]
Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling
Sunday, March 28th, 2010The Seven Last Words of Christ for Holy Week: The First Word
READ Luke 23:1-34
”Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”
Luke 23:34
The seven last “words” of Christ are, in actuality, seven sentences spoken by Jesus from the cross. They are found in the four biblical Gospels: Matthew/Mark (1); Luke (3); John […]
The Smells of New York
Saturday, March 27th, 2010I recently posted a series of photographs of New York, souvenirs of a sprink break trip. Undeniably, there is more to see in this city than in just about any place else on earth.
And more to smell. This fact hadn’t quite invaded my consciousness until I read an AP news story today. “Volunteers amble through […]
A Thriving Church in New York City . . . Why?
Friday, March 26th, 2010During a recent visit to New York, I had the opportunity to visit Redeemer Presbyterian Church. It was my first time at Redeemer, and I was pleased to join the congregation at one of its several Sunday worship services. I had heard about this church for years, and knew that it is one of the […]
Midwestern Happenings
Thursday, March 25th, 2010Today I want to comment on a couple of items related to the middle of our country.
A Mennonite College and the National Anthem
First, I’ve been fascinated by a story about Goshen College in Goshen, Indiana. The college has been embroiled in a controversy over the National Anthem. For decades, Goshen College, a Mennonite college, […]
Things You Don’t See Every Day . . . Unless You’re in New York (Part 3)
Wednesday, March 24th, 2010Finally, three more photos of New York City. I’ve never seen anything like these before, anywhere.
First, an M&M rainbow from the M&M store on Broaday. You don’t get those colors in your normal bag of M&Ms.
I saw the following sign in a classroom at NYU, during a college tour. The Threshold of Hearing is the […]
Things You Don’t See Every Day . . . Unless You’re in New York (Part 2)
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010Here are some more things that you don’t see every day . . . unless you happen to be in New York City. And even then you might not see them every day, but you could.
The Irises by Vincent Van Gogh, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Late in life Van Gogh painted a number […]
Things You Don’t See Every Day . . . Unless You’re in New York
Monday, March 22nd, 2010Here are a few photos from my recent trip to New York. They’re sights you don’t see very often, if at all, outside of the Big Apple.
The elevator indicates that we’re on the 86th floor (of the Empire State Building).
What the city looks like from 86 floors up (1050 feet high).
All over New York City […]
Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling
Sunday, March 21st, 2010The Foundation of Wisdom
READ Psalm 111:1-10
Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true wisdom.
All who obey his commandments will grow in wisdom.
Praise him forever!
Psalm 111:10
Wisdom seems to be on the wane these days. Our society tends to value that which is trendy, spectacular, and instantaneous. Thus we tend to neglect wisdom, which is […]
New York: A Photographer’s Paradise
Friday, March 19th, 2010My family and I visited New York City over spring break. I had fun taking lots of photos there. But I think I had more fun observing my son, who has become quite a fine photographer, taking his photos. I thought I’d share a few of these memories with you.
Nathan on top of the Empire […]
God in 100 Words (or less)
Thursday, March 18th, 2010I have recommended the Patheos website here before. Patheos, which is substitled “Balanced Views of Religion and Spirituality,” provides a platform for people of various religious commitments, or no religious commitment whatsoever, to converse in a mutually respectful way.
Recently, Patheos invited several bloggers to answer the question: What/Who is God? Each writer was allowed a […]
Voldemort in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York???
Wednesday, March 17th, 2010During a recent trip to New York City, I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art. “The Met,” which contains over two million works of art, is one of the world’s largest art galleries. You could spend days wandering through its rooms and corridors.
I was delighted to see works by some of my favorite artists (Rembrandt, […]
Full-Size!
Tuesday, March 16th, 2010I’ll never forget the first memorial service I ever performed as a pastor. It was for a grandmother of one of my college students at Hollywood Presbyterian Church. I did not know this woman, but was the only pastor her family knew, so they asked me to do the service.
The service happened in a mausoleum […]
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