Tag Archives: Hymns

A Prayer During the Storm

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Michael Summers

I enjoyed an intense time of study and fellowship this past week. I spent most days (all day) in an intensive residence period with a small group of preachers from across the country examining the Exposition of Luke. Preachers from … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged discipleship, faith, faithfulness, fear, glorifying God, hope, Hymns, Jesus, leadership, love, mentoring, Prayer, Spiritual Formation | 1 Comment

God Has Given Us a Heritage

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Michael Summers

Songs encourage us with inspiring lyrics. Among my favorite hymns as a young man were songs that pointed me “to a rock that that is higher than I” and that reminded me that God is our refuge and an ever … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged christianity, discipleship, faithfulness, fear, forgiveness, glorifying God, heritage, hope, Hymns, love, Prayer | 4 Comments

Master, The Tempest Is Raging!

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Michael Summers

Yesterday, my wife and I celebrated our wedding anniversary. We set out on a “road trip” to explore the countryside of Northeastern Arkansas. I enjoyed the beauty of the hills and farmland through which we traveled. She took photographs of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Church Music, faith, fear, hope, Hymns, Jesus, overwhelmed, Prayer, Spiritual Formation, submission | 3 Comments

Father, Hear the Prayer We Offer

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Michael Summers

What does the homeless woman pray as she huddles under a cardboard shelter? What did the religious among the schoolchildren who drowned in South Korea pray as they sank beneath the surface? What does the unemployed veteran cry out to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Church Music, hope, humility, Hymns, Lament, overwhelmed, Prayer, Psalms, Theology | 3 Comments

A Hymn That Taught Me How to Pray

Posted on February 28, 2014 by Michael Summers

When I was a teenager, our local church had singing classes on Sunday evenings. We sat according to the part we sang (soprano, alto, tenor, bass), learned new songs, and learned how to sing familiar songs correctly. In addition to … Continue reading →

Posted in Hymns of Prayer, Uncategorized | Tagged christianity, Church Music, glorifying God, Hymns, love, Prayer, Psalms, Spiritual Formation, Theology | 3 Comments

A Prayer for Joy, Peace, and Hope

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Michael Summers

Division, whether in politics, families, or churches, arises often from insecurity. Paul’s prayer of blessing in Romans 15:13 underscores the role of trust (faith) in achieving peace. Disunity disrupts growth; it displaces hope with confusion and anger. Even as Christianity … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Christian unity, Church of Christ, faith, glorifying God, hope, Hymns, joy, love, Paul, peace, Prayer, Romans, self-denial | 3 Comments

Worthy of Praise

Posted on July 25, 2013 by Michael Summers

The prayers of Revelation have inspired hymns and praise songs. In my last blog, I quoted the hymn “Worthy art Thou” by Tillit S. Teddlie. The prayers and praise songs of Revelation chapter 5 inspired the words of that hymn. … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Christian unity, christianity, Church Music, confession, faithfulness, glorifying God, hope, Hymns, Prayer, Revelation, submission, vision | 2 Comments

The Prayer that Sets the Stage for Revelation’s Calls for Fire

Posted on July 20, 2013 by Michael Summers

One passage of prayer introduces the prayers of Revelation. In its earliest paragraphs, its author addresses a prayer to Christ the liberator: “To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Church Music, Church of Christ, confession, discipleship, glorifying God, Hymns, kingdom of God, love, Loyalty, Prayer, priesthood of believers, Revelation, Tillit S. Teddlie | Leave a comment

Prayer in the Book of Revelation

Posted on July 11, 2013 by Michael Summers

The words “apocalypse” and “apocalyptic” often are used to describe horrors of war. A movie about the Vietnamese Conflict, Apocalyse Now, displayed riveting scenes of destruction to villages, jungles, and Soldiers. In the case of the Soldiers and the villagers, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged apocalypse, faith, faithfulness, glorifying God, Hymns, Prayer, prophecy, Revelation, vision, war | 3 Comments

An American Prayer

Posted on July 4, 2013 by Michael Summers

For Independence Day in the United States of America, I reflect on this prayer whose words are the lyrics of the American National Hymn, “God of Our Fathers,” by Daniel Roberts: God of our fathers, whose almighty hand Leads forth … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 1Timothy, ethics, faithfulness, glorifying God, Hymns, Independence Day, Loyalty, National Hymn, Prayer, Religion and Politics, submission | 1 Comment