Last year, I had the privilege of contributing to an Advent devotional book called Advent: Preparing for the Arrival of the Savior. My contribution included Christmas and Advent hymns from church history, with a peek into the theology and history of the hymns. For our blog post today, I have included the introduction that I wrote for that devotional. I hope it encourages you in your own Advent studies this year. May the hymns you sing during Advent encourage and strengthen your faith as you worship the birth of our Savior!
I am incredibly thankful that God gives us the season of Advent, when we get to anticipate the incarnation of our Savior, Jesus. The season is full of beauty, wonder, Scripture, and hymns, all pointing us to the first coming of our Messiah. It’s a time of year to utilize beloved hymns written throughout the centuries in personal and family worship. We do not have to look far into Christian history to see the importance that hymns played in the personal lives of Christians. Before churches printed hymnals and housed them in buildings for weekly worship, families used their own copies of hymnbooks that they carried to-and-from church with their Bibles.
As believers, we are called to study God’s word on a regular basis. I often conclude my personal bible study by singing a hymn, as it helps voice my prayer and express my worship. One look at the feasts in the Old Testament also reveals the importance of congregational and family worship. God instituted the annual rhythms of the feasts for the Israelites to remember and re-enact God’s provision from years past. Today, through the church calendar, we celebrate the seasons of Advent, Lent, and Pentecost, to name a few, which keep us centered on God’s rhythm of worship. In addition to these “larger picture” worship rhythms, we also have the rhythm of daily family worship. J. W. Alexander, son of Princeton Theological Seminary’s first professor, Archibald Alexander, wrote that family worship “is a service due to God in regard to His bountiful and gracious relation to families as such, rendered necessary by the wants, temptations, dangers, and sins of the family state; and in the highest degree fit and right, from the facilities afforded for maintaining it by the very condition of every household.”[1] Family worship, then, is a time of thanksgiving to and worship of God, which he instituted. This special time allows us to worship, sing, and pray as a family; a time that is insulated from the noise of hectic schedules. There is no greater time to begin than the season of Advent.
If family worship is not already established in your home, let me offer a reason for including it in your daily practice, and how to begin the rhythm of family worship in your home. Family worship allows us time to refocus and retune our hearts to God. In a world of frenzy and chaos, there is no better opportunity to teach our children how to make God - not culture - the priority. Turn off the television and read before bed, or make it a part of your dinner routine. Establishing the rhythm of worship will take determination at first, but you will quickly wonder why you did not incorporate it sooner. By prioritizing this special time, you are demonstrating to your children that God’s desires, as instituted in Scripture, are more important than our carnal desires.
If you are concerned that you will not be able to musically lead worship in your home, look for the recommended hymns in this devotional (and also included at the end of this blog post) to take that burden off your shoulders. I know that many of these hymns may be unfamiliar to you, but they have a rich heritage in the history of the Church, and some have been used for centuries in the celebration of Advent. It is my hope that these hymns find their way into your hearts to help you express worship to your Savior.
Let this Advent season be the time you establish family worship as a priority in your home. Pray for God to show you the importance of incorporating it into your daily or weekly rhythm. Join your voices in singing, “Hail! Thou ever blessed morn! Hail, redemption’s happy dawn! Sing through all Jerusalem, ‘Christ is born in Bethlehem.’”[2]
Here is a LINK to the book on Amazon if you’re interested in reading it!
Reccomended Hymns:
Once in Royal David’s City - this hymn has been used to open the Lessons and Carols service at King’s College Chapel in Cambridge, England since 1919.
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence - from Liturgy of St. James, 4th century
Joy to the World - Isaac Watts, 1719
In the Bleak Midwinter - Christina Rosetti, 1872
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel - Latin Hymn, 12th century
—-
[1] James W. Alexander, Thoughts on Family Worship (Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1847), 29.
[2] Edward Caswall, “See Amid the Winter’s Snow.”
Meet the Author!
Kim has been a member of Council Road for 33 years, where she loves singing in the choir and helping lead worship on Sunday mornings. She just received her Ph.D. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in the degree of Church Music and Worship. Kim stepped out of higher education after 20 years and now works in her family’s business of group employee benefits. Jason and Kim have been married for 23 years and have one son, Nolan (if you don’t know him, you’re missing out!) The Arnold family loves to travel and hike in God’s creation.
