A Passion For Thee

A Passion For Thee

By: Joe Zichterman

Set my heart, O dear Father,

On Thee, and Thee only,

Give me a thirst for Thy presence divine.

Lord, keep my focus on loving Thee wholly,

Purge me from earth;

Turn my heart after Thine.

Chorus:

A Passion for Thee;

O Lord, set a fire in my soul, and a thirst for my God.

Hear Thou my prayer,

Lord, Thy power impart

Not just to serve, but to love Thee with all of my heart.

Father fill with Thy Spirit, and fit me for service,

Let love for Christ ev'ry motive inspire;

Teach me to follow in selfless submission,

Be Thou my joy and my soul's one desire.

Chorus

This song is the prayer of my heart. I first heard it a few years ago at one of our Bright Lights meetings. Whenever I sing it, I think of how my heart's one desire is to love God more and more each day. In a world full of cares and distractions it is easy to set our hearts on other things besides God. For me, it's easy to set my heart on my dreams and the plans that I make, but I have come to realize that God is the author and finisher of my faith and it is He who will do work in my life. Psalm 37:4 says, "Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He will give thee the desires of thine heart." I used to think that this meant if I was a Christian, God would give me the things I wanted most. But, that is not what the psalmist was saying. "Delight thyself in the Lord..." If I am delighting in the Lord, I will have a passion for serving Him, for obeying His laws, for loving His Word, etc. Then my desire will be for God's perfect plan to be fulfilled in my life. I will desire to glorify God. I will desire to further His kingdom.
I want to love Christ above everything else. I pray that He would keep my focus on loving Him wholly, because He has given me everything; Life, breath... everything. I can do NOTHING for Him. Anything that I do, is really only Christ working through me. Therefore, I, with my own power, cannot love God. That is why I must pray, and beg Him to fill me with His love; to give me a love and passion for Him greater than anything else in my life.
The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. My motive for everything that I do, should be to bring glory to God. Oh, this hurts! So often I fall short and find myself doing things for other reasons than to glorify God. That is why I must pray, "Let love for Christ ev'ry motive inspire."
I could go on and on about this song that has become another one of my favorites. I've been thinking about it alot lately because I played it for my piano recital. May this prayer of mine become your prayer too. I pray God fills us with love and a passion for Him. We must strive to quit putting our hopes and desires on other things than Christ. Let Him be the motive for all we do and say!
In Christ,
Kaila

Luther's Musical Achievement

How I LOVE when I find a gem among the ex-college library music books that I have accumulated! I'll be honest; most of these books are not exactly what I would consider pleasure reading. Not that this is a bad thing, they're just not easy to read. It's like overdone steak. You have to chew it for a VERY LONG TIME. Well, I was looking through my music books and came across this little gray book entitled, "Patterns of Protestant Church Music." It is wonderful! (So far) I just finished the first chapter which was on Martin Luther.
Luther had such a great love for music. He believed largely in singing in church, which was an issue argued by different reformers.  He said of music, "Next to the Word of God, only music deserves being extolled as the mistress and governess of human feelings.... Through the medium of praise the Holy Spirit placed His gifts into the hands of the Prophets; again through music the devil was driven away, as was the case with Saul, king of Israel.... The Fathers and Prophets desired....that nothing be more intimately linked up with the Word of God than music." 1

Luther not only loved congregational singing, but he also greatly liked polyphonic singing done by trained choirs. He is said to have defined music, "as an art which to be appreciated properly must be studied rather than merely listened to…" 2
 He knew music well and had a very good voice. He believed that the study of music was an essential part of the school curriculum. He would not hire a teacher that was not trained in music. He himself knew music well enough that when he got a new song book, if he saw one slight mistake he would return it and have it corrected.

"When natural music is sharpened and polished by art, then one begins to see with amazement the great and perfect wisdom of God in his wonderful work of music, where one voice takes a simple part and around it sing three, four, or five other voices, leaping and springing round about, marvelously gracing the simple part, like a square dance in heaven, with friendly bows, embracings, and hearty swinging of partners." Martin Luther, Quotation from Luther's foreword to Georg Rhau (1538) 3

One other thing that struck me was that he enjoyed "researching" the composers of the time to see if their music was appropriate. This is something that I enjoy doing myself, to some extent.
I intend to write a brief summary on every chapter of this book as I go through. Thus far, I have been exceedingly delighted by what I have found.  One thing is certain, the more you study music and the history of music, the greater appreciation of music one has.

In Christ,
Kaila

1. Stevenson, Robert M. Patterns in Protestant Church Music. London, England: The Duke University Press, 1953. pg.9

2. Ibid pg.4

3 Ibid pg.9-10

Love at Home - John Hugh McNaughton

1.  There is beauty all around, When there’s love at home;
There is joy in every sound, When there’s love at home;
Peace and plenty here abide, Smiling sweet on every side,
Time doth softly, sweetly glide, When there’s love at home.

   Refrain 1:
Love at home, love at home; 

    Time doth softly, sweetly glide,
When there’s love at home.

2.  In the cottage there is joy,  When there’s love at home;
Hate and envy ne’er annoy,  When there’s love at home;
Roses bloom beneath our feet,  All the earth’s a garden sweet,
Making life a bliss complete,  When there’s love at home.

   Refrain 2:
Love at home, love at home;
Making life a bliss complete,
When there’s love at home.

3.  Love becomes a way of life,  When there’s love at home;
Sweet, insistent end to strife,  When there’s love at home;
Glad submission each one’s gift,  Willing pledge to love and lift,
Healing balm for every rift,  When there’s love at home.

   Refrain 3:
Love at home, love at home;
Healing balm for every rift,
When there’s love at home.

4.  Anger cools and pressures cease,  When there’s love at home;
Children learn to live in peace,  When there’s love at home;
Courage to reach out in grace,  Meet a stranger face to face,
Find a reconciling place,  When there’s love at home.

   Refrain 4:
Love at home, love at home;
Find a reconciling place,
When there’s love at home.

5.  There’s no question you can’t ask,  When there’s love at home;
There is strength for any task,  When there’s love at home;
Sharing joy in work or play,  Confidence to face the day,
Knowing love will find a way,  When there’s love at home.

Refrain 5:
Love at home, love at home;
Knowing love will find a way,
When there’s love at home.

6.  Kindly heaven smiles above,  When there’s love at home;
All the world is filled with love,  When there’s love at home;
Sweeter sings the brooklet by,  Brighter beams the azure sky;
Oh, there’s One who smiles on high  When there’s love at home.

Refrain 6:
Love at home, love at home;
Oh, there’s One who smiles on high
When there’s love at home.

7. Jesus, show Thy mercy mine, Then there’s love at home;
Sweetly whisper I am Thine, Then there’s love at home.
Source of love, Thy cheering light Far exceeds the sun so bright—
Can dispel the gloom of night; Then there’s love at home;

Refrain 7:
Love at home, love at home,
Can dispel the gloom of night;
Then there’s love at home.

This is the hymn we have been studying in school this month. I have learned so much about love. I guess I just never realized how much there was behind true Christ-like love. We did a Bible study on 1 Corinthians 13 (you can click here to access it) and I was humbled at the lack of Christ-like love in my own life. I knew that I didn't have perfect love as Christ did, I just didn't realize to what extent. It is always good to be brought down to the reality of our sin. Without it, we would never see our need for a Savior. Of course, we have learned alot of other things, (this song is loaded) but the big topic for me was love.

Another song we have been learning is "The Fear of the Lord" by: Joseph Hart. Oh, is it a powerful song! When I have time I will type out the lyrics to share.

Anyways, I'm terribly sorry about the long wait for a post. I've been very busy lately. I was in a piano recital yeasterday and... well you can just look at my Mom's blog to read about our business. I won't go into detail. Perhaps I will put up a video from the recital.

In Christ,

Kaila

A Preface To All Good Hymn Books - Martin Luther

Having a great love for music, I naturally have a great love for poetry - good poetry that is. I love reading it, singing it, reciting it and in truth, the only thing I don't like about it, is the fact that I cannot write it. Some people are just so amazingly gifted with a poetic tongue and sadly, I am not one of them. One of those gifted people was Dr. Martin Luther who wrote the powerful song, A Mighty Fortress Is Our God. While going through some boxes of books, (a common occurrence in our household) my Mom came across a small book of stories from the life of Martin Luther. In the book, there are several poems that he wrote, but this one was my favorite (naturally). It is called "A Preface To All Good Hymn Books," and it honestly should be the preface to all hymn books.

Lady Musick Speaketh.
Of all the joys that are on earth
Is none more dear nor higher worth,
Than what in my sweet songs is found
And instruments of various sound.


Where friends and comrades sing in tune,
All evil passions vanish soon;
Hate, anger, envy, cannot stay,
All gloom and heartache melt away;
The lust of wealth, the cares that cling,
Are all forgotten while we sing.


Freely we take our joy herein,
For this sweet pleasure is no sin,
But pleaseth God far more, we know,
Than any joys the world can show;
The Devil’s work it doth impede,
And hinders many a deadly deed.


Se fared it with King Saul of old;
When David struck his harp of gold,
So sweet and clear its tones rang out,
Saul’s murderous thoughts were put to rout.


The heart grows still when I am heard,
And opens to God’s Truth and Word;
So are we by Elisha taught,
Who on the harp the Spirit sought.


The best time of the year is mine,
When all the little birds combine
To sing until the earth and air
Are filled with sweet sounds everywhere;
And most the tender nightingale
Makes joyful every wood and dale,
Singing her love-song o’er and o’er,
For which we thank her evermore.


But yet more thanks are due from us
To the dear Lord who made her thus,
A singer apt to touch the heart,
Mistress of all my dearest art.
To God she sings by night and day,
Unwearied, praising Him alway;
Him I, too, laud in every song,
To whom all thanks and praise belong.
Translation byCatharine Winkworth.
Public Domain at The Online Library of Liberty

Is that not an absolutely beautiful poem? It just captures the essence and purpose of music in an absolutely wonderful way! I love the line which says, "Where friends and comrades sing in tune, All evil passions vanish soon..." It is such a true line. I feel this way when we sing A Mighty Fortress Is Our God in church. It is such a powerful song that it just draws you right in... at least for me.

To God she sings by night and day,
Unwearied, praising Him alway;
Him I, too, laud in every song,
To whom all thanks and praise belong.

In Christ and for His Kingdom,
Kaila

A Problem of Sayings

“Every, Good, Bird, Does, Fly – All, Cars, Eat, Gas – Great, Big, Dogs, Fight, Animals – F, A, C, E,” Ah, the wonders of the desperate imagination. Who would have thought that I would be teaching others that cars eat gas? Yet, I find that I say this ridiculous saying more than nearly every other concept of piano while teaching. The problem is, when it comes to treble clefs and bass clefs, lines and spaces, and a host of notes from A to G, it just gets to be a little confusing for some.  I remember learning the sayings that would help me figure out my notes.  I seem to remember it working…well, most the time anyways…

Now as a teacher, I see these sayings in a whole new light. The fact of it is, after saying them for eleven years, they are just a way of life (in the musical world). I used to think it was sooooooo much fun to teach these sayings to my students. Then slowly, I began to despise them more and more. I first began to dislike them when I was told, “It’s not Every Good Bird Does Fly. It’s Every Good Boy Does Fine.” Sure, it wasn’t that big of a deal at the time, but the more I taught the more versions I heard.

All Cows Eat Grass. Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge.  Good Boys Do Fine Always.  I could name a few more, but I’ll spare you. I’ve come to realize that while these sayings may be helpful, they are equally confusing! And, what’s with all the sayings about “good boys”? How am I supposed to get the girls to memorize sayings about boys getting fudge and doing good and fine? J  I guess that’s the joy of imaginations gone wild. My sayings would probably be worse if I was given four or five letters and told to make a creative saying, for example, Farmers Always Cook Eggs… Ants Carry Extra Gravel…. Boy, is that original! You’ll never hear those at music school!

Anyways, it’s an adventure all in itself, and although it can be frustrating, it can also be very helpful. Besides, it has encouraged me to be creative. (Hehe) I even made up a little rhyme to help one of my piano students remember what word to spell for the treble clef spaces. “To find a treble space, spell the word face.” Hey, it seemed to work.

So now it’s your turn. Do you know any other note sayings than the ones I listed? Have you made up any of your own? Or do you have any funny stories about note saying experiences? Please share, because I would love to read them!

In Christ and For His Kingdom,

Kaila

Peace

Peace; quiet, serene, lovely peace. If only we could always live in a peaceful garden, complete with roses, butterflies, big puffy clouds…you get the picture. Reality quickly jumps to inform us that this picture of peace is not realistic and the world is quite willing to hand you an artificial “make love not war” kind of peace instead. But Biblically, this is not peace. True peace from God is not based on man's natural desires and inclinations, but rather on tranquil contentment and satisfaction in knowing that God is in control and that He has a far greater plan than we could ever imagine. This kind of peace will last far longer than the world's fake peace because it is of God and given by God to man.


We must first understand that true peace is of God. If God is not a part of our “peace,” then it cannot truly be peace. It is only temporary happiness. Philippians 4:6-7 say, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” This verse tells us that if we make our requests known to God in prayer and supplication that God’s peace will keep our hearts and minds. We won’t have to lay in bed at night worrying or crying from a broken heart because God’s peace will “keep” our heart and mind through times good and bad. Unfortunately, most people only believe that there is peace in good times. They do not realize that they are fooling themselves and it is because of this belief that so many of them break down or become depressed during the bad times.


Since peace is of God, it is only through Him giving it to us that we can obtain it. “The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace.” (Psalm 29:11) “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27) God is the giver of peace. The ceasing of war, the stopping of murder, the end of a President’s term in office etc. will not bring peace. God, and God alone, can give true peace and His peace is “not as the world giveth.” The world can give you all sorts of “peace.” Just read the lyrics to a song called “Imagine,” by John Lennon.


"Imagine there's no heaven, it's easy if you try,
No hell below us, above us only sky,
Imagine all the people, living for today.
Imagine there's no countries, it isn't hard to do,
Nothing to kill or die for, and no religion too,
Imagine all the people, living life in peace.
You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one,
I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will be as one.
Imagine no possessions, I wonder if you can,
No need for greed or hunger, a brotherhood of man,
Imagine all the people, sharing all the world. "


Peace given to us by God is the only true and lasting peace regardless of what the world may say.


Another characteristic of peace is that, because peace is of God and given by God, it will not be given to every person on earth. “I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people…” (Psalm 85:8 emphasis added) “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” (Psalm 119:165 emphasis added) “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7) Those that love God’s love, make known the desires of their hearts to Him, and ultimately are His children, will be given peace. A true Christian who loves God with all of their heart, soul and strength, will have no reason to worry, but will have total and complete peace in knowing that their Heavenly Father has it all worked out. These are the people who will have peace.


Peace is a wonderful gift from God. Unfortunately, we live in a fallen world that naturally hates God. There will be many fake and artificial types of peace offered by those of the world, but we must keep in mind that these types of peace are only temporary and are truly, not even peace at all. The peace of God is long lasting and beautiful. Don’t let it slip away.

It Is Well With My Soul

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Refrain

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

It's Been Awhile

I can't believe it's already February! Time is flying by way to fast. I'm sorry it has taken so long to get this post out. While I enjoy blogging, it is pretty low on the priority list.

Anyways, it's been an exciting month, with lots of new experiances and lessons to be learned. First of all, several of the young ladies at our church (myself included) put on a Ladies Day Out. It was so wonderful getting to serve the Lord with other young ladies. My mom gave a talk on "Singing Songs in the Dark." There were talks by some other women from our church as well. I want to share some of the points my Mom gave on why we should sing.


1. Singing will keep your spirits alive! Do you want to fight depression and despair? – SING!

2. The devil hates Christ honoring music. Martin Luther says, “The devil cannot stand singing.”

3. Are you afraid? You can chase away your fears when you sing.

4. Singing purges us of evil thoughts. They cannot stay in your head when you are singing about Jesus. All demons flee at the sound of his name.

5. Singing pleases God. We are here to bring glory to God. So let’s do something that brings him much glory. It is commanded in scripture to sing many times.

6. The angels are engaged in singing and isn’t that what you want God to see you doing when He looks down on you?

7. Sing because it will cheer your friends.

I think these are great points about singing! Singing can do so much for you mentally and physically.



As far as books go, I've been working on a book called, "Harmony at Home - Straight Answers to Help You Build Healthy Music Standards" by: Tim Fisher. The first half of the book is about music in the home and the second half answers "Tought Questions Today's Young People Ask..." I'ts an easy read, although, it has taken me a while only because I'm the type of person that reads six books at once. It got me thinking about how my family enjoys singing, playing, performing... music together. I realized that I know alot of people that enjoy "doing" music together as a family. Sure, it's fun to sing and play music with your friends, but there's something so special about doing it with your family. I used to think that my family could never play together, then when we started, I never thought we would sound good. But, just like pretty much everything in life, it takes time, hard work and a WHOLE LOT OF PRACTICE.



Speaking of books, last year I made a goal to read 201 music books and read no fiction. About half way through the year I realized that perhaps reading that many books in a year was a little unrealistic. (I know there are people out there who can read that many books in a year. My problem was that I had been reading lots and lots of fiction books and fiction books are way easier for me to read than "real" books.) So, I read music books last year. There were times when I nearly gave it up because, "They are are just sooooo much harder to read," but I kept it up except for school related books now and then. Then the grand, glorious, relieving year of 2011 came and I scooped up my fiction books and began to read. Believe it or not, a great realization hit me after reading a couple. I couldn't stand how fluffy these books were. Most people would probably disagree with me, and that's okay, since these books were "good, wholesome classics" by some terms. But I couldn't handle it. It was like eating marshmallow fluff. You have to eat some real nourishing food in order to keep from getting an upset stomach. When telling a friend my woes she reminded me that I had just spent the last year reading no fiction. It was like a lightbulb went on. So, what is my point? Well, for those of you who might have been wondering, I'm back on my fiction fast and am still planning on reading music books this year. The only difference is that I will be reading books on other topics as well as music.



God is so good! He continues to help me grow more and more in Him and continues to teach me about His wonderful gift of music. I hope to continue sharing what He teaches me in this area. As a side note, I will be continuing "Whatsoever Things," in the near future. Just hang in there.



In Christ and For His Kingdom,

Kaila



P.S. Does anybody know if you can play the penny whistle with the right hand playing on top? I would really like to not have to re-learn penny whistle. :-)