Mark Knows It All

Psalm 19 is the Episcopal Lectionary Psalm for this Sunday.  It is better known as The Heavens are Telling.  Many of us are familiar with the great oratorio choral music pieces of Handel and Bach.  But the Creation by Franz Josef Haydn is a gem. Written in 1797/98...it celebrates the Creation of the world incorporating three content sources: The Book of Genesis / The Book of Psalms / and Milton's Paradise Lost.  The Heavens are Telling is the finale of the piece.  It is a lot of fun to sing...not particularly difficult.  It is almost hokey in its construction.  Every time I have chorally performed it I am smiling, almost laughing, at the end because the movement of the music is so predictable.  Hope you enjoy it. 

Lifeway Research provides many research tools and programs geared toward growing your church.  As attendance drops in all mainline Protestant denominations, especially the liturgical denominations, knowledge is power.  Here is some data provided by Lifeway Research as to the dynamic of young adults leaving the church.  You can reach the primary site by clicking here.  

10 Songs for a Snowy Weekend

It's a Sunshine Day The Brady Bunch I think i'll go for a walk outside now the summer sun's callin my name (i hear ya now) i just can't stay inside all day i gotta get out get me some of those rays everybody's smilin sunshine day everybody's laughin sunshine day everybody seems so happy today it's a sunshine day I think I'll go for a walk out side now the summer sun knows me by name (he's callin me) I gotta get out, gotta get out, gotta get away I gotta get away, get away, get away, get away... Into the sunshine day... can't you dig the sunshine Now its all but the same can't you hear him callin your name? Oh, I think I'll take a walk everyday now the summer sun has shown the way to be happy now I just can't stay inside all day I gotta get out get me some of those rays... everybody's smilin sunshine …

DO YOU KNOW THE SECRET CODES IN WADE IN THE WATER  by Calvin Earl Link to Original Article Here I was recently asked the question: “What does the song “Wade in the Water” mean in its entirety?” This is a question I have been asked many times and am always happy to answer. In fact, I’ve dedicated a entire page on my website http://www.calvinearl.com/wade-in-the-water/ to describe the meaning of the spiritual “Wade In The Water”. Not only is is an amazing spiritual, but it is one of the spirituals that is still widely sung today, both for educational purposes and Christian baptism practices. On my website page I explain the secret codes and meaning, their is also an educational video, a sound recording and lyrics of the song on that page. Take a look and listen to the sound recording. Let me know what you think! Below is a sample of the information on my website page. Peace and love all around. ***Wade In The Water is one of the spirituals that has many secret code...

Last week my wife and I were doing some shopping in a garden shop in Cleveland. It’s one of my favorite places to go with lots of pots and such to look at. The music being played over the speaker system was some “really boss” music from the 1960’s.  As I was looking at some fertilizer it started to play MacArthur Park sung by Richard Harris. You know… MacArthur Park is melting in the dark, all the sweet green icing running down. Someone left the cake out in the rain. I don’t think that I can take it Cause it took so long to bake it And I’ll never have that recipe again…Oh no!!! What an uplifting little ditty. Well…not really. But it was one of my favorite tunes back in the day. I used to play it on the piano driving my parents’ nuts, especially the rock bridge between the main melody lines. It was a long song lasting almost eight minutes. It gave the DJ’s a chance to use the facilities, so to speak. I remember there was a...