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Draw near: Tune our hearts

Lynne Baab • Tuesday August 2 2022

Come, thou Fount of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy grace; streams of mercy, never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise. Teach me some melodious sonnet, sung by flaming tongues above. Praise the mount I'm fixed upon it mount of God's redeeming love.

Robert Robinson was 22 years old when he penned those words in 1758 as a hymn for Pentecost. He was in transition from his work as a hairdresser in London to the preacher he would become. Notice the two things this verse asks for: “tune my heart to sing thy grace,” and “teach me some melodious sonnet sung by flaming tongues above.” Jesus’s...

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Draw near: Learning from Celtic Christian thankfulness

Lynne Baab • Tuesday July 26 2022

A look at some of the themes attributed to Celtic Christianity can enrich our thoughts about gratitude. What we call “Celtic Christianity” flourished from about the fifth to ninth centuries throughout the British Isles, but was particularly concentrated in the west and north: Cornwall, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. There were also Celts in Brittany in France.

The Celts were described briefly in Greek literature in the centuries before and after Jesus, but very little is known about the pre-Christian Celts. We do know that in the Roman Empire the Celts were renowned for their ability to learn very long stories and poems...

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Draw near: O Antiphons

Lynne Baab • Tuesday July 19 2022

O God of words and music, we give thanks for psalms and hymns and spiritual songs connecting us to long-ago believers. We thank you, Lord of sound and harmony, for the Church’s many voices raised in praise. Sing your Spirit in our hearts and voices, that our gratitude might brim and overflow.

O Lord of leaves, O Maker of the trees, O Rooter of all life by living waters, Pruner of branches, Ripener of fruit, Lord who sweetens sap and reddens berries, help us through the season of cold hearts. When bare of fruit, build us firm in faith. Feed our hidden roots until the spring. —Diane Tucker, from “One Winter: Forty New O Antiphons”

O...

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Draw near: Praying with Others

Lynne Baab • Tuesday July 12 2022

I’ve written before that people often tell me they wish they prayed more. They seem to be referring to prayer alone. Many of my blog posts imply that I am focusing on praying alone. In reality, of course, any prayer idea can be used in prayer with others as well as alone. I want to stress that here.

Most Christians find it easier to pray with others than to pray alone. Last year, I had the privilege of being asked to write an article for Christianity Today on communal prayer. (You can read the whole article here.) Here are a few sentences...

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