Tom and "the kids" were over at the new construction site recently and recorded the first hymn sing in Jonathan's future home. Jonathan said he hopes it's the first of many that will take place in the years to come. I thought this would be a good time to post their song as today's Sunday hymn.
Here's an impromptu version of Come Thou Fount by Jonathan, Sarah, and Hannah recorded in Jonathan's future living room:
The house is coming along but not under roof yet, as the trusses were delayed in arriving. House building is slow going sometimes, but work has definitely come a long way since ground was broken!
In other hymn news...
My friend, Carol, stopped by for an overnight visit on her way from Texas to Pennsylvania. Since she's been a long-time lover of hymns and given many hymnology talks over the years, she asked if she could speak to a group of friends I might invite over to learn more about hymns and to sing!
Here are some of our guests we enjoyed hosting. I was very encouraged that my friend Kim came for the evening with her girls to participate: Carol treated us all to a very informative evening learning about hymn writers, hymn trivia and history, and finishing with a hymn sing. Here she is teaching the etymology of the word doxology:
Below: our family singing...thankfully, Jonathan was able to join us after getting home late from working on his house. Since we don't own a piano, we brought out an old keyboard for Carol to use for accompanying the singing:
As part of the evening, we enjoyed hearing Carol's list of her 50 top hymns. If you're interested, over on Tim Challies' blog, you'll find his choices of the 10 Greatest Hymns of all time with commenters chiming in on their top favorites.
Do you have a favorite? I'm partial to Come Thou Fount which you heard at the beginning of this post and also There is a Fountain. Thank you, Carol, for such a delightful and informative session. Here's a photo of the two of us that will go in our guest book as a record of her visit:
~Deb
**Stay tuned for our next post...Dayton Days Craft Festival from this past weekend
Oh wow, that was beautiful acapella -- but you know what I really loved besides seeing the kids "live" .... Jonathan's accent!
Posted by: Rose | Monday, October 06, 2014 at 01:01 AM
Wow, Deb! Your children have beautiful voices, and I love that Jonathon wanted to sing the Lord's praises in his house before it's even finished. Have a great week!
Posted by: Toni | Monday, October 06, 2014 at 08:12 AM
Won't be long and the hymns will be heard at the house all of the time.
Abide With Me by Henry Francis Lyte. It was the only hymn I was unfamiliar with .
Posted by: Tammy C | Monday, October 06, 2014 at 04:38 PM
Oh, Deb! I am sitting here crying because the kids hymn is so beautiful! That is one of my favorites. Their voices are so beautiful! I've always wished I could sing but I just "make a joyful noise" with the emphasis on "noise". Every one of your kids are so talented! My favorite hymn is In The Garden. I am so excited to see Jonathan's house.
Blessings to all of you,
Bobbi
Posted by: Bobbi | Monday, October 06, 2014 at 08:38 PM
Loved, loved hearing your children singing so beautifully together! Looks like Jonathan is making good progress on his home.
My favorite hymn has always been A Christian Home - not as well known but a wonderful song.
Victoria
Posted by: victoria | Tuesday, October 07, 2014 at 01:43 PM
They sounded lovely!!!! The Lord has brought me to this song so many times over the last few days. <3 What an interesting talk your friend must have given. I would have enjoyed it.
Posted by: Theresa | Tuesday, October 07, 2014 at 02:20 PM
Wow,such nice singing. Thank you for sharing the video,
It looks like y'all have made quite a bit of progress on the house. Can't wait to see more pictures.
Blessings,
Katelyn W
Posted by: Katelyn Wahlquist | Thursday, October 09, 2014 at 02:26 PM
"Come Thou Fount" was beautifully sanged by a Jonathan, Hannah and Sarah! I love that song! My favorite is "Great is Thy Faithfulness". Ask them to sing it, video it and post it. (-: Tell Jonathan I am so happy for him. His house is going to be beautiful and a place where God will be honored.
Posted by: Carolyn | Thursday, October 09, 2014 at 06:04 PM
I so enjoyed hearing your "kids" sing, and seeing the obvious love between them. While I like many old hymns...and even more so as I grow older...I love lots of the new ones. Our church sings a good mix of old and new, including ones from the Gettys, Sovereign Grace and Chris Tomlin. I like "A Mighty Fortress"--particularly the words that speak of Satan's fate--"one little word will fell him." Can't wait! I also really, really like "Before the Throne of God Above." Rich in doctrine, my favorite words are:
"Because the sinless Savior died
My sinful soul is counted free
For God the Just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me"
I always think, "What's wrong w/this picture?? God looked @ Jesus hanging there, and pardoned me?! Really?! Praise God, 'tis true!
Lastly, Matt Redman's "10,000 Reasons" is terrific.
Posted by: Cathy | Tuesday, October 14, 2014 at 05:41 PM
how beautiful! crying as well, mainly because i wish my family was more like this. pray for me, all y'all, please.
Posted by: erica | Friday, October 17, 2014 at 01:51 PM