God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen

This hymn-carol-song-verse is often not included in our traditional church hymn books since it is considered by some to be secular even though the verses do include the Christmas story. Although published in 1827, it was well known as an old English carol " sung in the streets of London". We also learn that "old London had municipal watchmen who were licensed to perform certain tasks, including the singing of Christmas carols" and this carol was one of those performed. Mind where you breathe on the comma -- Ye rest merry, gentlemen and not God rest ye, merry gentlemen.

It was included, to great effect, in A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens. You might remember that Ebenezer Scrooge hears it being sung on Christmas eve and yells at the singers that he will hit them with a ruler if they continue to sing. Merry, indeed -- bah! humbug!

The verse tune is in a minor key, unusual to our ear for Christmas and the chorus is short and in the relative major key, so that the song does end on a more positively sounding note, which is in keeping with the words of the refrain:

O, tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy:
O, tidings of comfort and joy!

I'm sure that just reading the above refrain has you humming the tune.

The first verse and the last verse give the title of the carol particular meaning. "Let nothing you dismay" and "save us from Satan's power when we were gone astray" from the first verse set the focus of the words. And then we sum up the merry attitude in "Now to the Lord sing praises" and "true love and brotherhood each other now embrace". Those are wonderful reasons to be merry!

I really like the last line:
"This holy tide of Christmas all other doth deface."
Think about that. The holiness of Christmas puts all other "holidays" to shame. And what a shame that so many think of this Blessed Holy Day as just another holiday for worldly merriment and not the merry (blessed, happy) JOY that is ours, given to us, in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The words for all verses are here: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/g/o/godrest.htm

Here is a gift for your eyes - a reproduction of an old carol book.
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/bramley/carols/files/jpg/0007=2.htm
Turn some of the pages to see the lovely art work, not only for God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen but some others, as well.

From Heaven Above to Earth I Come

Perhaps you won't recognize this Christmas hymn by it's title or it's music. But I'm pretty sure the you will know the giant of a man who wrote the words-- Martin Luther. Those of us who claim a Reformation heritage and cling to the Reformed doctrines know Luther for his monumental stand against the abuses of the Roman Catholic clergy and their practices. And we know him for his prodigious output of translating the Bible into the common language so the church could read the Word for itself and on his Scripture commentaries. And we may know him for the mighty hymns (no pun intended) he wrote (A Mighty Fortress is our God).

But here is a Christmas hymn, authored by Luther. This charming song was written specifically for his 5 year old son, Hans, and it was to be sung at all family Christmas celebrations. Interesting to know that as God communicated with us by sending His Son into the world, Luther communicated the Gospel to his son with this story-song.

It contains 15 4-line verses and a man dressed as an angel would come into the gathering and sing:
"From heaven above to earth I come;
To bear good news to every home;
Glad tidings of great joy I bring
Whereof I now will say and sing."

Then follows the verses that tell the glorious story until verse 8 where the assembled children and adults answer:

"Welcome to earth, Thou noble Guest,
Through Whom e’en wicked men are blest!
Thou com’st to share our misery,
What can we render, Lord, to Thee!"

The verses then tell of the humble surroundings for the birth and remind us that Jesus Christ is for everyone - young, old; rich, poor, wise, simple. Christmas is beyond our understanding, and yet presented in a way that even small children can grasp.

I imagine the last 2 verses were sung with great feeling and a swelling of joyful, grateful voices:

"My heart for very joy doth leap,
My lips no more can silence keep,
I too must sing, with joyful tongue,
That sweetest ancient cradle song.

Glory to God in highest Heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given,
While angels sing, with pious mirth,
A glad New Year to all the earth."

I would hope that all parents would love telling THE Christmas story, finding unique ways to impress upon their children the "Glad tidings of great joy" while young hearts and eager minds can hear The Truth in all it's Glory!

All of the verses are here:http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/r/fromheav.htm

We live in uncertain times...

That was a comment I heard from a radio commenter this morning. As believers we know that we always live in uncertain times...

But even from the world's point of view, we should see that we always live in uncertain times...

1760s-1770s ~ the American Revolution
1790s ~ the French Revolution
1800-1815 ~ Napoleonic era
1820s & 1830s ~ restlessness in Europe following the French Revolution
1848 ~ Europe convulsed with revolution
1860 ~ American Civil War
1870s ~ Louis Napoleon's delusions of grandeur ~ Franco-Prussian war ~ Bismarck & the unification of Germany
1880s-1910s ~ Tensions between Germany - France - Austro-Hungary - England
1914 ~ World War One
1920s ~ illusion of less uncertain times...
1930s ~ worldwide economic collapse
1940s ~ World War Two - Korean War
1950s ~ illusion of less uncertain times...
1960s ~ assasination of JFK - "revolutions" on the campuses - Viet Nam
1970s ~ stagflation
1980s ~ continued economic angst - Reagan - Berlin Wall comes down
1990s ~ glastnost - internet - dot com - illusion of less uncertain times...
2000s~ 9/11 & its fallout - almost worldwide economic collapse - likely to happen yet...

What was/is happening in Asia, South America, Africa & the rest of the world...

We always live in uncertain times...we live in a fallen world.

That will change~ Psalm 2

Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming

My Dad and Mom enjoyed roses. Dad became quite involved, learning and always trying out new methods of growing and became the family expert with his various rose gardens, working hard to keep them blooming. And Mother got the greatest joy going to visit folks who needed her cheery smile, carrying a small bouquet or even just one of Dad's prize roses. It was a rare treat to have a rose bush keep blooming until Thanksgiving and I can remember no time that we had fresh roses on the Christmas table. Certainly , no "Flower bright, amid the cold of winter, when half-spent was the night."

The German composer, Michael Praetorius (1571-1621) set this piece to music sometime around 1605. The words had been written earlier in the 15 century and there is no definite author given. It was not translated from the German to English until the late 1800's.

The title comes from the Song of Songs 2:1, "I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys." Early on The Rose was assigned to Jesus Christ and the Rose became another name for our Lord. Often, it is used in conjunction with the well known passage from Isaiah 11:1-2: "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him -- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord--".

As with the Christmas hymn "In the Bleak Midwinter", the tune is simple and matches the simplicity of the words. The image of the rose and the branch prophecy of the lineage of King David, in the first verse, are woven easily together:

"Lo, how a Rose e'er blooming from Tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse's lineage coming as men of old have sung.
It came, a Flower bright, Amid the cold of winter,
When half-spent was the night."

The phrase "When half-spent was the night" is repeated at the end of verse 2. Was the author referring to the actual event or is this a more theological point -- that the night is still with us and we are waiting for the Day of the Lord? This Rose bloomed and the fragrance has sweetened the whole world but Christians all await the beauty and overpowering presence of that morning when, at His 2nd coming, Christ will be revealed as the Ruler of all, for all times.

"This Flower, whose fragrance tender with sweetness fills the air,
Dispels with glorious splendor the darkness everywhere.
True man, yet very God, From sin and death He saves us
And lightens every load." verse 3.

Those of us who live in the part of the country where we can enjoy roses all year long, have the privilege of being reminded of this lesson of the Rose. As we come up the walk approaching our home, our rose bush, Don Juan, is a colorful and beautiful reminder of this beautiful Christmas hymn.

The verses and tune can be heard here: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/l/h/lhowrose.htm

Bleak Midwinter JOY

We don't know for sure the month that our Savior was born, we are just told that "the time came for her baby to be born" in Luke 2:6-7. But for alot of us we celebrated the Christmas season during the bleak midwinter. Sometimes we enjoyed a break with mild temps, so one could ride a new 2-wheeler (with Dad holding on to the seat for safety) the very day that it was found under the tree (or on the front porch as Santa could not get it down the chimney). But there were other times when the thermometer plunged down to -25 on Christmas eve and, although there might be protests, Mom would bundle everyone up, Dad would warm up the car and we would all join in our traditional candle lit service at church.

Christina Rosetti wrote a simple yet powerful poem, In the Bleak Midwinter, that has some vivid images of that night. Look at some of the phrases in vs. 1, "Snow on snow, snow on snow" and "earth stood hard as iron" to describe the winter-ness of the night. The 2nd verse gives us the paradox of that occasion, "He comes to reign...a stable place sufficed". The 3rd verse is precious as the"cherubim and seraphim thronged the air" and "His mother...worshiped the beloved with a kiss."

But perhaps it is in the 4th verse that we are confronted with our inadequacy as humans to present HIM with a gift and Rosetti sums up this simple, profound hymn with these words: "Yet what I can I give Him: Give my heart."

Christina Rosetti (1830-1894) was part of a family that was interesting and influential in arts and letters. This poem was set to music 12 years after her death by the English composer, Gustav Holst, better know for his large orchestral compositions (The Planets). Holst wrote the music early in his career. And Christina, a devout Anglican, was well known and respected for her books of poetry which were largely religious.

The words to this beautiful hymn are here:
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/i/n/intbleak.htm

If you are in bleak circumstances, climate or heart, I pray this will help you focus on the GIFT of the Lord Jesus Christ and that your joy may be full as your give your heart to HIM.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel

I have always been inspired, comforted, challenged, informed and sometimes even convicted in spirit by the words of our Christmas Carols and Hymns. And I would like to share some of these precious gifts of music with you.

The first one is very appropriate to be first as the title suggests: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, which is taken from the book of Isaiah 7:14 - Behold, a virgin shall conceive and shall bear a son and his name shall be Emmanuel.

The tune used is called plainsong which was the music of the medieval church. There is a lack of a strict rhythm and you can feel a freedom in the meter which creates a sense of the melody rebounding back and forth from the stone cathedral walls.
O Come, O come, Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

The text is interesting as it originally had no chorus, the one that we sing being:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel!

Each stanza of the verse was part of a liturgical phrase used during Advent and each stanza had a different name for Christ and an emphasis on that particular name so that the hymn could be used for Christian meditation. That would be a good practice for us to continue today. The names used are:
Emmanuel - God with us;
Wisdom from high;
Desire of nations;
Lord of might;
Rod of Jesse;
Dayspring;
and Key of David.

As we approach the time to celebrate God fulfilling His Covenant Promise in the Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, it would be pleasing in His sight and balm for your soul to contemplate these names. They really have nothing to do with a baby, and yet that Baby is all of the these names!

The melody and some information as well as the words for all the verses can be found here:

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/c/ocomocom.htm

Because of all the rain this spring, summer, fall, tonight again! the leaves are just amazing colors!! In this picture you can see the bright red of a fire bush; just to the right, the copper color of what I call the "penny" tree (the leaves are a round shape & look like copper pennies in the fall); and the brilliant yellow of the maple tree. The Lord is so good to give us such a dazzling delight to the eyes as we head into the days of winter.