Recommended Reading in Worship History
As I am preparing for comprehensive exams, I am constantly reading. Some of these books are new to me, and some I am re-reading books from previous seminars. In an…
Including Hymns in your Daily Devotions
If you haven’t already selected your Bible reading plan for 2022, I hope you take these last few days of December to select a plan. If that sounds daunting, take…
The First Hymn of Christmas
One of the reasons I love Christmas is because I get to sing some of my favorite hymns. The triumphant "Joy to the World," where we praise Jesus’ coming to…
Christina Rossetti’s Carols of Christmas
When people ask what my favorite hymn or Christmas carol is, I tend to chuckle and say it depends on the day! There are many wonderful hymns and it is…
Worshiping as a Family during Advent
See amid the winter's snowborn for us on earth below,see the tender Lamb appears,promised from eternal years.Edward Caswall, 1858 I am incredibly thankful that God gives us the season of…
Charismatic Worship in Evangelical Churches
As I have visited in person a handful of evangelical churches in the past couple of years, and watched many more online, I have become deeply concerned about the future…
Singing in Worship, Part 1
Since this is a website dedicated to the discussion of worship practices, I thought a discussion on the theology of congregational song would be appropriate. This is a two-part blog…
Discernment in Worship, Part 2
Last week I wrote about the importance of utilizing discernment in worship, and I interacted with T. David Gordon's six criteria for liturgical song assessment. If you missed last week's…
Imagination in Hymnody
Imagination in Hymnody Below is an excerpt from a larger paper that I titled "Music as More than Mental Mechanism: An Analysis of Imagination in the Hymnody of Thomas Hastings."…
A Reflection and Anticipation of God’s Faithfulness
A Reflection and Anticipation of God's Faithfulness One of the great hymns of faith that has been reverberating in my brain over the past few months is “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” written…