Gratitude

A wonderful reminder of gratitude to God for the abundant blessings of life, even in a fallen world:

Don't You Want to Thank Someone
Andrew Peterson, from the Light for the Lost Boy album

Don't you ever wonder why
In spite of all that's wrong here
There's still so much that goes so right
And beauty abounds?

'Cause sometimes when you walk outside
The air is full of song here
The thunder rolls and the baby sighs
And the rain comes down

And when you see the spring has come
And it warms you like a mother's kiss
Don't you want to thank someone?
Don't you want to thank someone for this? 

You can hear the entire song below:

He Will Rise Up in the End

I don't know about you, but there are some days when I just need to be reminded that there really is coming a day when God will right every wrong, when the Judge will delay his judgment no longer; and therefore, I just need to be patient and trust in him.    

And there is no song I'm aware of that better captures that truth than Ben Shive's "Rise Up."  Listen. Ponder. Enjoy. 



Rise Up
Words and Music by Ben Shive

Every stone that makes you stumble
and cuts you when you fall
Every serpent here that strikes your heel
to curse you when you crawl
The king of love one day will crush them all

And every sad seduction and every clever lie
Every word that woos and wounds the pilgrim children of the sky
The king of love will break them by and by

And you will rise up in the end
You will rise up in the end
I know the night is cruel
but the day is coming soon
And you will rise up in the end

If the thief had to come to plunder when the children were alone
If he ravaged every daughter and murdered every son
Would not their father see this? Would not his anger burn?
And would he not repay the tyrant in the day of his return?
Oh, wait. Oh, wait the day of his return

Cause he will rise up in the end
He will rise up in the end
I know you need a Savior
He is patient in his anger
And he will rise up in the end

And when the stars come crashing to the sea
and the high and mighty fall down on their knees
When you see the Son descending in the sky
the chains of death will fall around your feet

You will rise up in the end
you will rise up in the end
You will rise up in the end

Keith and Kristyn Getty in Jackson

Keith and Kristyn Getty's "Joy: An Irish Christmas" tour will be making a stop in Jackson this Sunday evening.  They will be at West Jackson Baptist Church at 7:00PM on Sunday evening.

Tickets are $10 and can be purchased here.

A Melody That Had Long Been Silent

While re-reading J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit over the holiday weekend, I was struck by how significant a role music and songs played in his tale (and the same is true in The Lord of the Rings).  There is joyful singing, playful singing, sorrowful singing, etc.  Songs and music play a central role in the story. 

Maybe the most poignant place to notice this is in what Tolkien says about the dragon, Smaug, and how music and melody had been lost under his cruel dominion.  Listen to what happens when Bilbo and the dwarves come upon the unguarded treasure of the dragon:

Fili and Kili were almost in merry mood, and finding still hanging there many golden harps strung with silver they took them and struck them; and being magical (and also untouched by the dragon, who had small interest in music) they were still in tune. The dark hall was filled with a melody that had long been silent.    

Poetry and Melody

The following quote is from a book about music recently given to me by a church member who is an avid reader and fellow poetry lover.  While the author doesn't seem to completely share our biblical worldview (especially as it relates to creation and evolution), he does make some fascinating observations and insights. 

In the opening chapter, he draws a connection between poetry and music, arguing that poetry is rhythmic, melodious, and serves as a form of music.  I couldn't agree more.  Here's the way he states it:  

[W]hatever its form, written poetry is characterized by a kind of music.  Accent structures in words naturally make a sort of melody.  In the word melody itself the first syllable is stressed, which makes it louder than the others, and most native English speakers will give it a higher pitch than other syllables.  The word melody has a melody!  Good poetry plays with speech sounds to create a pleasing set of pitch patterns, and good poetry contains rhythmic groupings that are songlike.  When a poem succeeds, it is a sensual experience - the way the words feel in the mouth of the speaker and the way they sound in the ears of the hearer are part of the encounter.  Unlike prose, most poems ask to be read aloud.  This is why poetry lovers usually do so.  Just reading the poem is not enough.  The reader needs to feel the rhythms.

--Daniel J. Levitin, The World in Six Songs

Music and Memory

Music and Memory
M. Justin Wainscott, Copyright 2012

The relationship between music
and memory is a mystery,
but a mystery common to all men.
Who among us hasn't heard a song
and instantly remembered a person
or a place or a season of life?
Even if that particular person or place
or that time of life was, in our minds,
a distant, even forgotten, memory,
music has a mysterious way
of making it feel like only yesterday.
It's as if music is a melodious key
that unlocks men's memories.
Of course, some of those memories
we'd rather remain hidden and locked away,
but music and memory, it seems,
have minds of their own.

New Music from Andrew Peterson

Andrew Peterson just released his new album, Light for the Lost Boy.  And while the music on this album is less acoustic and folksy as his previous work, the lyrical depth is classic Peterson.

I've only been able to give it a few listens thus far, but I think my favorite song at this point is "Carry the Fire."

Here is a video of Peterson explaining the story behind the song.



And here is a rough video shot on the tour bus of Peterson playing and singing an acoustic version of the song.

 
Andrew Peterson, "Carry the Fire" from The Rabbit Room on Vimeo.

Carry the Fire

I will hold your hand, love
As long as I can, love
Though the powers rise against us

Though your fears assail you
And your body may fail you
There’s a fire that burns within us

And we dream in the night
Of a city descending
With the sun in the center
And a peace unending

I will, I will carry the fire
I will, I will carry the fire
Carry the fire for you

And we kneel in the water
The sons and the daughters
And we hold our hearts before us

And we look to the distance
And raise our resistance
In the face of the forces
Gathered against us

And we dream in the night
Of a King and a kingdom
Where joy writes the songs
And the innocent sing them

I will carry the fire for you
Oh, sing on, sing on
(Light up the darkness)
When your hope is gone, sing on

And we dream in the night
Of a feast and a wedding
And the Groom in his glory
When the bride is made ready

I will carry the fire for you

Ron Boud in Concert

This Sunday at 5:00PM, First Baptist Church Jackson (TN) will be hosting an organ concert featuring Dr. Ron Boud, a renowned musician and composer.  The concert is a part of our church's yearlong 175th Anniversary Celebration.  It is free and open to the public.