Music - what a gift to us!

I've been blessed recently by listening to some amazing music - by that I mean that I appreciate the composition as well as (and especially) the lyrics.
If you haven't checked these out - might I recommend:

http://www.redmountainchurch.org/rmm/alb/albums.html - a group of church musicians who have recorded several collections of old hymns - many to new arrangements - I especially treasure the CD's - Depth of Mercy, and The Gadsby Project.

http://www.jimspencermusic.com/index.asp - His Faithfulness - The Poetry of Amy Carmichael - which has been set to music by Jim Spencer - you can check out some sound bites at the website.

Today I received an "old friend" in the mail. My favourite CD for some time was Mercy in the Wilderness by Steve Camp - full of great songs for reflection - Christ Died for God, We stand in Grace, the Beauty of Holiness etc. I had purchased it used at Chumleighs without knowing what a treasure I was getting. Then, at some point, I lent it out, but completely forgot who to. I've been looking for a replacement for some time as it is no longer being sold, and last week found someone by googling who had a "nearly mint" copy for a very reasonable price. It was great to listen to the words again tonight.

My dear nephew Andrew also put me on to Indelible Grace music - another group of wise people who have rediscovered the depth of truth in some of the older hymns. I haven't ordered yet, but there is lots to listen to at: http://www.igracemusic.com/

I'm sure this doesn't even scratch the surface of what is available out there in terms of beautiful sound combined with sound meaning.

What are you recommending these days?

Another beautiful covenant union

Glorious

Came home tonight to this beautiful masterpiece.

God reigns

Abiding in the vine

Brief observation. Monday night a 30 foot "living"
limb from the tree at the back of our yard fell across the tip of our yard, landing largely in the yard of our next door neighbour. At this point only preliminary work has been done to remove it. By Thursday, all the foliage on that limb was dead and turning brown.

How much do we understand about John 15, and the absolute necessity of abiding in the vine?
This was a sobering picture for me.

The Joyful Couple

My nephew Andrew married his "Rachel" on Saturday July 15th in West Virginia. I was privileged to witness the beautiful ceremony, which included stirring exhortations and encouragements from the father of the groom and the father of the bride. While they were directed specifically to the couple, I certainly benefited from hearing them.
In this picture, they are listening to one of the many speakers who expressed delight over them having made this covenant commitment.
There is nothing as beautiful as a Christian wedding, except maybe a Christian funeral.

My short lived relationship with Tolkien

After having finally seen L.O.T.R. part 3, I decided to be the last adult in North America to read the books. This seemed fitting to me, my father was the last man in Canada to own a colour TV, my sister the last girl in her high school to get her ears pierced, etc.
Finding myself at the local library one day on business, I checked out the three volumes which make up the 8 books (sorry, I'm a little fuzzy on details). I brought them home with the express intention of a reading marathon.
I read the forward, where I found this interesting comment by Tolkien, "I think that many confuse 'applicability' with 'allegory'; but the one resides in the freedom of the reader, and the other in the purposed domination of the author." I liked that, and it was certainly true that I found much 'applicability' in part 3 of the cinematic coverage.
I'm afraid I didn't get any further. The books have now gone back to the library. They just didn't grab me, I guess timing is everything. Now I've got reading for a course, missionary biographies, Holy War (right Tod?), etc. etc. etc.
I might get to Tolkien in my retirement, except, wait a minute, would that be too much like a shell collection?