Essays and reflections on spiritual formation, the church, music, and daily faithfulness — 638 pieces, gathered in one home.
A child asks, "Why is this night different than all other nights?" Then the story is told with both narrative and symbol. It is a story of God's action to free the Hebrew people fr
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 8 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 7 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 6 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 5 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 4 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 3 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 2 of my paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some a
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
What will our next hymnal be like? This is Part 1 of a paper presented to the NAC Historical Society on the movement of Methodist hymnody in the United States. I've learned some am
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Lord, Henri Nouwen has started messing with me today. He reminds me that where I am and what I am doing is not what makes me either miserable or happy. It is insignificant compared
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
We live in a time of crisis in worship. In our culture of consumerism, worship has become seen as one of many options for how to "spend" ... "our" ... time. What if we gave ourselv
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This has been a hard week in my community as we continue to walk through grief after the recent shootings at Discovery Middle School and UAH. Yet even in the midst of such tragedy,
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my LifePoints column which appeared in the Faith & Values Section of the Huntsville Times on Friday, Feb. 12, 2010. It appeared on the day of Todd Brown's funeral and the a
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I have begun working on a project for the North Alabama Historical Society entitled "The Movement of Methodist Hymnody in the United States: The Past, Present, and Future." Reflect
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Here is a thought by Henri Nouwen for today: Without the solitude of the heart, our relationships with others easily become needy and greedy, sticky and clinging, dependent and sen
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Deuteronomy 32 describes God in the beautiful feminine image of a mother eagle who nurtures her young. The Lord is "like an eagle that stirs up her nest and hovers over her young,
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This last week, we have grieved and prayed for the people of Haiti. Here is a beautiful prayer by Taylor Burton-Edwards found on the GBOD website : Again the ground shakes, Earth h
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Here is a great quote by Henri Nouwen: "People who live close together can be sources of great sorrow for one another. When Jesus chose his twelve apostles, Judas was one of them.
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
The farther along I get in ministry, the more I see the mystery. Most of the time, I feel like a beginner at the art of seeing with new eyes. But the more I navigate myself and oth
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Thank you, Lord, for the gift of relationship. I am crafted to be in three-fold relationship ... with you, with the earth and the accompanying universe you created, and with those
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Tomorrow is the day of Epiphany, January 6. For the western church, this is the close of the twelve days of Christmas and the beginning of the Epiphany season of light and enlighte
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I have been thinking about New Year's resolutions. I usually set goals related to things like losing weight. Sometimes I set goals I am indeed able to accomplish. At other times, a
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is a song I wrote several years ago. A musical version may be found on my "Living Stones" CD. I share the words in hopes that you continue to be blessed during the Christmas s
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
You’ve heard it a hundred times. Every year at Christmas, we retell the angel Gabriel's promise that Mary will have a child named Jesus. Every year we are reminded that it was a vi
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
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