December 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for December 2015 is I Sing a Song of the Saints of God.

This instrumental version has the lyrics embedded in the video:


This one doesn't have the lyrics, but this was very nice:

November 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for November, 2015 is When Morning Gilds the Skies.

This first video is... uh... not very polished, but does the job:


This instrumental version has the lyrics embedded and is very nicely done:

October 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for October, 2015 is O Thou In Whose Presence. This was/is a totally new song for me personally.

I found this beautiful arrangement by Fernando Ortega, but lyrics are not embedded:


I didn't like this one nearly as well, but it is the best one I could find with the lyrics embedded in the video:

I Bind Unto Myself Today - 09/2015 AO Hymn Selection

The September hymn selection for the current Ambleside Online hymn rotation is "I Bind Unto Myself Today". I have selected a You Tube video that presents the song with the lyrics:

September 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for September 2015 is I Bind Unto Myself Today. This should have been the selection for March because it is known as the hymn of St. Patrick!

I found this version (without lyrics):


I did not like this version quite as well, but it has the lyrics embedded, so it is good to have for covering this hymn:


 

August 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for August 2015 is How Firm a Foundation.

I found this selection, clearly a gathering of men. Very moving.

July 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for July, 2015 Let Us With a Gladsome Mind. 

I found this lovely a capella version with lyrics embedded:


This second version seems more traditional most of the way, but is then updated on part (upbeat, modernized), and very easy to worship to:

June 2015 Hymn Study - Ambleside Online

The Ambleside Online selection for Hymn Study for June, 2015 is Let Us With a Gladsome Mind.

The best recording I found for this piece is one you can listen to, but the words are not displayed on the screen:


The ones I found with embedded lyrics were ...painful... to listen to... Not polished... voices not blending well... But here is one, since you might need the lyrics:

Hymn Study: Oh God Our Help in Ages Past

The church I attend does primarily contemporary music. Periodically, though, they slip in a hymn. ....um.... usually contemporized.

I guess I'm getting ornery and/or crotchety in my "old" age, but I almost always find the offering too fast or too slow, contemporary, abbreviated, or in some other way annoyed by the arrangement. In an effort to stop complaining about this, but still feed my soul and worship freely, I have decided, when this happens, to just find a different arrangement that I can find on YouTube, that meets the needs/wants of my heart.

So this week's offering is "Oh God, Our Help in Ages Past". I found this lovely arrangement -- I hope you enjoy it!

May 2015 Hymn Study (Ambleside Online)

The Ambleside Online Hymn Study rotation selection for April 2015 is "All Praise to Thee, My God, This Night". The word "Thee" was changed to "you" in this performance, so it is possible other words were altered as well, but this was totally the nicest selection (with lyrics) that I found.

April 2015 Hymn Study (Ambleside Online)

The April, 2015 Hymn Study rotation selection recommended by Ambleside Online is "Man of Sorrows (What a Name)":

March 2015 Hymn Study (Ambleside Online)

The Ambleside Online Hymn Study recommendation for March, 2015 is the song, "Jesus Paid it All":

February 2015 Hymn Study (Ambleside Online)

The Hymn Study rotation on Ambleside Online recommends for February, 2015 the song "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence":

Today's Worship Selection - 1/20/15

Here is the music selections we chose today in our morning worship time:

Be Thou My Vision

Hymn Study for January 2015

Come down, O love divine, seek Thou this soul of mine,
And visit it with Thine own ardor glowing.
O Comforter, draw near, within my heart appear,
And kindle it, Thy holy flame bestowing.

O let it freely burn, til earthly passions turn
To dust and ashes in its heat consuming;
And let Thy glorious light shine ever on my sight,
And clothe me round, the while my path illuming.

Let holy charity mine outward vesture be,
And lowliness become mine inner clothing;
True lowliness of heart, which takes the humbler part,
And o’er its own shortcomings weeps with loathing.

And so the yearning strong, with which the soul will long,
Shall far outpass the power of human telling;
For none can guess its grace, till he become the place
Wherein the Holy Spirit makes His dwelling.

Joy to the World - Hymn Study

In honor of our celebration today of our Lord's birth, I wanted to post the traditional Christmas hymn of Joy To The World.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel - Hymn Study

I wanted to supplement our December hymn study with some really nice, traditional Christmas hymns. I chose to start with this hymn. The first piece is instrumental, so the 2nd one has lyrics.



With lyrics:

Hymn Study: I Am Thine, O Lord: Draw Me Nearer

Today's hymn is the Ambleside Online hymn rotation song for December, 2014, "I Am Thine, O Lord," by Fanny Crosby:



I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,
And it told Thy love to me;
But I long to rise in the arms of faith
And be closer drawn to Thee.

Refrain

Draw me nearer, nearer blessèd Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died.
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessèd Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.

Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the power of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine.

Refrain

O the pure delight of a single hour
That before Thy throne I spend,
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God
I commune as friend with friend!

Refrain

There are depths of love that I cannot know
Till I cross the narrow sea;
There are heights of joy that I may not reach
Till I rest in peace with

Refrain

August 2014 Hymn Study

The August, 2014 hymn selected by Ambleside Online for their Hymn Rotation list is "Awake My Soul and With the Sun":

I selected that video because I really like it, but it doesn't have the lyrics. So here is that has the lyrics so that you can see the lyrics that are coming to help you sing:

My second personal choice song for the month is "Awesome God":

July 2014 Hymn Study

The Ambleside Online Hymn Rotation selection for July, 2014 is "I Love to Tell the Story":

Each month I also like to select a second hymn. When the AO selected hymn is singing ABOUT Jesus, I try to select as a 2nd song a song that sings TO the Lord. This month I have selected a song that might not be a traditional song, but it is a song that is very meaningful to me and seldom fails to move me. It has carried me through many seasons of highs and lows. "Blessed be the Name," performed by The Newsboys: