Advent 2021: Love “There is Room at My Side for Thee” “Thou dost reign on high / with a kingly crown / yet Thou camest to earth for me / and in Bethlehem’s home / was there found no room / for Thy holy nativity.” “Thou Dost Reign on High,” written by Emily E.S....
Advent 2021: Joy “Emmanuel Shall Come to Thee” “O come, O Come, Emmanuel / and ransom captive Israel / that mourns in lonely exile here / until the Son of God appear.” We live in a culture that tells us that happiness is the most important thing. Countless...
Advent 2021: Peace “Peace on the Earth, Goodwill to Men” “‘Peace on the earth, goodwill to men / from heaven’s all-gracious King’ / The world in solemn stillness lay / to hear the angels sing.” Several years ago, I saw a dramatization of the birth, life, and death of...
Advent 2021: Hope “Born on Earth For Us Below” “See, amid the winter’s snow / Born on earth for us below / See, the tender Lamb appears / Promised from eternal years.” Thus opens Edward Caswall’s “See, Amid the Winter’s Snow,” one of the more obscure and, to me, one...
Perspective: O Come Emmanuel By Larry Steen Years ago, the pastor of a small backwoods country church wished to improve the interior of the sanctuary and asked the church board to approve the purchase of a chandelier. One old deacon rose to his feet to oppose it and...
