November 7, 2006 8:47 AM
Thanksgiving hymns
Also from the archives:
First of all, I have to admit I am prejudiced when it comes to hymns. Praise songs are okay, but to me they seem more based on feelings. Hymns have feelings too ;) - but they are so packed with the tenets of our faith that for me they pack a double whammy.
When I was homeschooling a large crowd, we began each morning with hymns. Since no one played piano, we sang a capella (or as my younger kids always said, Alcapulco). Today, even though I'm at best a mediocre singer,my kids are all sensational. When people ask how they got such good voices, we always tell them we sang hymns each morning. God was gracious in return.
When our church bought new hymnals, we bought ten of the old ones so there would always be plenty to go around (our family now includes 12 children, 2 sons-in-law a daughter-in-law and 10 grandchldren - and is still growing, so maybe we should have bought more). But today, you can find any hymn you want at Cyberhymnal - with a history, associated Bible verse, all lyrics, and the melody plunked out so you can sing along at your computer.
In early November, we begin singing our special Thanksgiving hymns. We all memorized them way back when and through the years they've provided a rich backdrop to Thanksgiving, just as carols do for Christmas. Also an excellent way to add meaning to a celebration with nonbelieving relatives.
Click on each of these for the lyrics and music:
We Plow the Fields and Scatter
I hope you have the time to read and sing these wonderful hymns. Gather your kids around the computer to learn their histories and sing the verses together. Do it every day at least for a while - your kids will love it, and soon you'll hear them humming away as they do their work.
By the way, our family hymn - which we always close with and which was part of Jasmine's wedding - is Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing. You might want to choose or ask God to help you choose a family hymn - one that's emblematic of how your family began, what you stand for, your vision and utmost prayer.
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Comments
I'm with you on hymns. I was raised in the era of worship choruses, and I much prefer hymns. I don't want to sing about how I may or may not feel, and how I promise to be on Sunday morning. I want to be reminded of who God is, and His faithfulness to us inspite of everything, and his ability to be above/greater/stronger than everything I find overwhelming.
My oldest is 5 so we just started the homeschool adventure, but we begin everymorning with the doxology, and I plan to teach them more as they grow older.Our wedding song was Great is THy Faithfulness which is still my favorite.
Posted by: carrien | November 9, 2006 12:29 AM
Barbara,
I love the harvest photo here....where did you get it? I would love to have something like that to put up in my home for the children.
thanks,
Laurie
Posted by: Laurie | November 9, 2006 1:31 PM
