Category: Random

Kevin DeYoung on church music:

The worship wars could have been mitigated greatly if younger generations wanting newer songs had taken the time to remember memory. Church leaders may say, “It’s about reaching young people.” Or, “We need music that resonates with the culture.” These may even be good reasons to change some things. But we have to realize that those who grew up with hymns don’t just lose the songs they prefer, they lose continuity with their past. They lose a whole lifetime worth of experiences–happy times, sad times, birth, marriage, death–a thousand bits of life that get embedded in the songs we’ve always sung.

None of this means we can’t sing new songs. Praise God that we can have new songs to be filled with new memories for a new generation. But we have to do more than honor the past. We have to sympathize with those who lose their connections to the past, in church of all places. More than that, we have to remember the past and make an effort to preserve what is best from it. We forget at our own peril. For the Church’s memories should be our memories. And our memories are not just our own, but belong to those who come after us. We must not hide them from our children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders he has done (Ps. 78:4).

[Matt. 1: 18-25- Meditations on the lives of Joseph and Mary and the Birth of the Lord Jesus.]

Mary was a virgin. She didn’t kow she was going to be THE virgin that was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah. She had no idea that her life was going to be a fulfillment of an ancient prophecy. No idea that through all her single life of probably waiting and praying for the right husband, God was unfolding a story far greater than her prayers. Blessed are you among women… That salutation is an understatement.

Her virginity. If Jesus were to be born in America or the Philippines today, God would probably have a hard time looking for a godly virgin woman that had the character of Mary. Her humble submission to the divine plan even if ruined her social life spoke volumes about her spiritual tenacity and faith. How often can you find virgins today who are more concerned about the will of God than in being hot? Continue reading Susmaryosep!

[Meditations on Matthew 2:1-12, the visit of the Magi from the East.]

It’s curious that the first to announce the coming of the Messiah (aside from the choir of angels) were people from outside the Jewish faith. They labored to travel from a far off place to see the King of the Jews. According to some scholars, talks about The Sovereign of the World coming out of Judah was prevalent in the Middle East in those days.

Two points worth considering: First, those who came from a far place were more excited to hear the good news than those who were within the vicinity. How typical of us humans. Sometimes, those who have to take three rides are the first to come to church compared to those who live next to the church building. Continue reading They Only Pretended to Wait

CS Lewis, in his book Reflections on the Psalms, wrote about praise:

The world rings with praise—lovers praising their mistresses, readers their favorite poet, walkers praising the countryside, players praising their favorite game—praise of weather, wines, dishes, actors, motors, horses, colleges, countries, historical personages, children, flowers, mountains, rare stamps, rare beetles, even sometimes politicians or scholars.

I had not noticed how the humblest, and at the same time most balanced and capacious, minds praised most, while the cranks, misfits and mal-contents praised least. Continue reading Why Should I Praise You, God?

When people read the book of Jonah, they immediately get entangled with questions about marine ecosystem that they miss the obvious: Jonah’s predictions didn’t happen! God relented and the Ninevites were shown mercy.

Don’t lose sight of the mercy of God just because you can’t understand the outworkings of His power.