Oh, that lovely snow! Don’t mind me, I love snow. And summer always looks its best in the middle of the winter. And vice-versa.
I’m not doing nooze today, it’s our anniversary; but I am doing a Christmas carol in August, and I’ll post an Easter hymn before the month is out.
So here it is–Good Christian Men Rejoice, sung a capella by the Wissman Family: old, but still glorious.
It’s been horribly hot around here all week long, except for periods of torrential rain (which I got stuck in yesterday)… so why not a Christmas carol?
I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing, sung by Blackmore’s Night–and please don’t get hung up on the difficulties of getting any kind of ship to Bethlehem. That’s not the point! The divine rescue of a fallen world is the point.
A Christmas hymn, in March? Well, why not?
Isaac Watts wrote Joy to the World in 1719, and as you can see, it’s still going strong. Here we have a modern rendition of it by Pentatonics. Again, why not?
I’m saving Easter hymns for a little later.
I still need Christmas! This poor fallen world needs it every day. Only Christ can save us. Only the Holy Spirit can equip us for His service. And if I go on much longer, I’ll babble, so here it is, one more Christmas carol–It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.
Here’s a carol that I’ve never heard before–Caro Gesu Bambino, sung by Andrea Bocelli.
The Christmas Carol Contest is over, but we do take hymn requests every day, all year long… and it would be nice to have a few today.
“Elder Mike” has also won the carol contest: he asked for We Three Kings, and it go 25 views. Pick your prize, Mike.
We’ve also decided on a new editorial policy here. From now on, we’ll be open for Christmas hymns all year long. I think we need it. I’m sure I do!
Yes, we have a winner in our annual Christmas Carol Contest! In fact, we have two winners, tied with 25 views apiece for the carols that they nominated.
And the winners are Phoebe, for How Unto Bethlehem, and Elder Mike for We Three Kings.
Prizes! Well, you have a choice. An autographed book in my Bell Mountain series–and you can hold out for the next one, Behold!, if you don’t mind waiting; A red T-shirt that says “If they have to kill us, they’ve lost”; or a little bag of plastic army men for when you’re feeling nostalgic. (Sorry, the gold mask of Tutankhamen is no longer available.)
Guess I’d better play We Three Kings, too.
Requested by Michele. This is a new hymn for me, one I never heard before: Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming, by the Cathedral Singers. A choir is a living music instrument: amazing, how they get it to work.
And if you have any carols to enter in the carol contest, now’s the time to do it.
Last day of our Christmas Carol Contest! Tomorrow I’ll announce the winner.
Meanwhile, requested by Erlene–Christmas Is Always: introduced by Carroll Roberson, sung by Donna Roberson. The background scenery tells me we’re not in New Jersey anymore.
Only today and tomorrow, that’s all that’s left of our Christmas Carol Contest. So get those entries in. Meanwhile, I wonder if I should play them now and then throughout the year.
Requested by Ina, Mary’s Boy Child, by Boney M.