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There are not many words today, but lots of music from a variety of sources and types.
Here is a song of gratitude, and a real day-brightener, by South African performer The Kiffness. I had not heard of him until yesterday, but I like the message of this song and its creative presentation.
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Hezekiah Walker is also new to me. I found this lively video when I was looking for the one above. No more introduction is needed, so just PRAISE GOD and enjoy!
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I am familiar with Alan Jackson and I like this song. He begins the video by describing why this song is especially meaningful to him, and to his mother. (NOTE: The lyrics posted within the video are not always accurate– for correct wording, see the lyrics posted below.)
We’ll meet all our loved ones and see Jesus, too.
That will be a glad reunion and there’ll be much to do
While I stroll over heaven with you.)
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Why Me, Lord? was one of the biggest hits in the long career of Kris Kristofferson (1936-2024). The lyrics are powerful, the tune is unforgettable, and there is a wonderful story behind it. In the video below, Kristofferson tells of the night he ‘came to Jesus,’ and how his conversion led to the writing of this song in 1972. He and Willie Nelson then sing Why Me, Lord? with its message of gratitude to God for His undeserved grace.
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In 1824 Ludwig van Beethoven, by then almost completely deaf, composed Symphony No. 9. It is one of the most frequently performed symphonies in the world, and, is considered to be one of the supreme achievements in the history of music. It is a choral symphony, the words being adapted from a poem written by Friedrich Schiller in 1875. In 1907, Presbyterian pastor Henry van Dyke took the fourth and final movement of the symphony, known as Ode to Joy, and wrote his own lyrics. The result became the much-loved hymn Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee. In the video below, the piece is performed by a ‘flash mob’ in Spain. Below that are the lyrics to the familiar hymn.
1- Joyful, joyful, we adore You,
God of glory, Lord of love;
Hearts unfold like flow’rs before You,
Op’ning to the sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;
Drive the dark of doubt away;
Giver of immortal gladness,
Fill us with the light of day!
2- All Your works with joy surround You,
Earth and heav’n reflect Your rays,
Stars and angels sing around You,
Center of unbroken praise;
Field and forest, vale and mountain,
Flow’ry meadow, flashing sea,
Chanting bird and flowing fountain
Praising You eternally!
3- Always giving and forgiving,
Ever blessing, ever blest,
Well-spring of the joy of living,
Ocean-depth of happy rest!
Loving Father, Christ our Brother,
Let Your light upon us shine;
Teach us how to love each other,
Lift us to the joy divine.
4- Mortals, join the mighty chorus,
Which the morning stars began;
God’s own love is reigning o’er us,
Joining people hand in hand.
Ever singing, march we onward,
Victors in the midst of strife;
Joyful music leads us sunward
In the triumph song of life.
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Psalm 95:1 — Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
Ephesians 5:19b — Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord.
Psalm 98:1a — Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things.
Psalm 135:3 — Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant.
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We beg you, Lord, to help and to defend us. Deliver the oppressed, pity the insignificant, raise the fallen, show yourself to the needy, heal the sick, bring back those of your people who have gone astray, feed the hungry, lift up the weak, release the captives. May every nation come to know that you alone are God, that Jesus Christ is your Child, that we are your people, the sheep that you pasture. Amen.
–Clement of Rome, first century A.D.
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