This week's talk is "Blessings Upon our Heads" by John S. Tanner,
husband of Susan W. Tanner and author of the text for Hymn 138 "Bless
Our Fast.". The start of the school year is a second new beginning for
us. We set goals in January, but also enjoy a new start in the Fall as
our family returns to a bit more of a schedule and we try more
diligently to incorporate things we hope will bless our family. I love
the Hymns and have a testimony of their power to lift, inspire, and
comfort. Now we are striving to use them even more frequently to bless
our family. Throughout my days, it is often the words of hymns that come
to mind as I ponder solutions to challenges or seek encouragement. I
know of no faster way to invite the Spirit than through listening to
sacred music.
Our family enjoys singing a Hymn as we begin our scripture study. This
consistently gives me a spiritual and emotional boost. We sing through
the Hymn book and it has been wonderful to become familiar with each of
the Hymns. They are powerful teachers of truth. I love the promise that
the song of the righteous is a prayer and will be answered with a
blessing upon our heads. (D&C 25:12) I feel those blessings!
I am grateful for the medium Hymns provide us to worship as they best
communicate my feelings for our Father and His Son. I appreciate
Brother Tanner's teaching that "music doubles the delight and deepens
the power of words to teach...music brings the message home to our
hearts." Truly the Hymns do bring blessings upon our heads.
How grateful I am for the them--for their power to teach, elevate and
edify.I am especially grateful for the medium they provide for us to
express our adoration for Our Heavenly Father and for the Savior.
Love and Blessings,
CD's have become my favorite wedding gifts to share.
NO MP3 link
In the Doctrine and Covenants the Lord declares that He delights “in the song of the heart” and that He will answer “the song of the righteous … with a blessing upon their heads” (D&C 25:12). The Lord has surely showered blessings upon me and my family as we have sung hymns to Him with all our hearts. Through hymns, I have taught and been taught lasting and life-changing gospel lessons. The hymns have moved me to “repentance and good works,” strengthened my “testimony and faith,” comforted me, consoled me, and deepened my determination to endure. 1 I have felt the Spirit through the hymns in powerful ways. Indeed, some of my sweetest and most tender spiritual experiences are associated with hymn singing.
I recall a precious family experience on a Sunday evening not long ago, when my wife, Susan, and I spontaneously gathered around the piano with our teenage children and a few of their friends to sing the songs of Zion. This scene has been repeated often in our family. On this occasion, I went to the living room by the piano and started to sing. Soon I was joined by Susan, who sang with and accompanied me. One by one our children joined us. One daughter brought her friends. As we sang, the Spirit came tangibly into the room, filling our hearts with love for the Lord and for each other. We each chose favorite hymns. The texts let us speak of truths that lay close to our hearts, while the music let us express tender feelings of testimony and joy which, in contemporary culture, parents and teenage children rarely share so openly or without embarrassment.
As I looked around the room, my heart swelled with joy, and I felt the urge to seize this precious moment in time, for “the fugitive moment refuses to stay.” 2 So I fixed the scene in my mind as a treasure for future reflection, like Wordsworth’s jocund daffodils, 3 and will remember always that tender tableau of loved ones gathered around the piano, fervently singing hymns from our hearts as the sun cast its soft, fading glow on a peaceful Sabbath. Surely this moment was a taste of heaven on earth and a foretaste of what joys await us in heaven when we shall sing a new song before the throne of God (see Rev. 5:9; Rev. 14:2–3). We lifted our hearts in song to God, and He answered with a blessing upon our heads.
Read the rest HERE.
Hello Friends,
ReplyDeleteSince I wrote the above post, I had the privilege of hearing Alex Boye speak. Some things he said have caused me to ponder. He said that during General Conference, the Choir always sings before the Prophet or one of the Apostles speak to invite the Spirit. He suggested we not go a day without listening to music that testifies of Christ. We become the environment we spend time in. Music makes us think--it gets into our subconscious and will not leave. The more we think about Christ, the easier our life becomes. Live your life in crescendo!
Love to you all,
Noni