Monday, January 1, 2024

But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. Acts 16: 25,26

Happy New Year! The end of one year and the impending commencement of another is usually time dfor reflection. As I thought recently about the year 2023, countless blessings flooded my mind. I am grateful for the favor that has rested upon me over the last 12 months. I also thought about some of the challenges my family and I have experienced, including a number of losses. Among them was my dad’s older sister whom God granted 95 years here on earth. For me, her passing was especially difficult because she and I talked several times a week. During our New York/South Carolina conversations in the last season of her life, we discussed some of the songs that reminded her of God’s presence and his promises. She asked, “Do you know this one?” and then began singing. Usually the title was a hymn.

Believers have sung hymns for thousands of years. In Psalm 40, David wrote that God put a new song in his heart. After Jesus established the Lord’s Supper, he and the disciples sang a hymn and went to the Mount of Olives. Paul and Silas in the book of Acts sang hymns while they were imprisoned. Yes, hymns, grounded in God’s word, speak to our hearts. 

This week and for two weeks following, we will look at some hymns––their histories, their writers, and applications for our lives. “Holy, Holy, Holy;” “Amazing Grace;” “Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross;” “Great is Thy Faithfulness;” and so many others. The titles, even without the lyrics, tell stories.

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for hymns. Speak to our hearts. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen