by Rev Robert A Wendel
Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything. Ephesians 5:19-20
I love the old hymns, and I look forward to singing them in a church on Sunday morning—usually the first, third, and last verses. At one point, I got a new song leader. When we sang a hymn, for him, we belted out all the verses. Over the years, as a church pastor I found a wealth of sound theology in lyrical language.
My church congregations all enjoyed holding evening “ hymn sings.” Most of those services were scheduled to last about an hour, but they almost always exceeded the time set for the occasion.
In other circumstances, you wouldn’t skip necessary ingredients. I can still hear my grandmother’s reminder to use all of the ingredients in the recipe for her apple pie. She would say, “Anything worth doing is worth doing well,” often with flour on her hands.
So many people today try to take shortcuts. Many older folks stick to the notion that what is worth doing, is worth doing completely.
Examine any Protestant hymnal and you will discover that all of the hymns were written before World War I.
Father, help us sing with enthusiasm all the verses of this life that you’ve chosen for us.
Mary Lou Carney