O Come O Come Emmanuel

Jordan

Jordan has left for an adventure out West, and we are missing him already. Listen to him play here:

Who is He?

Many people wonder about the second verse of the Gaither song, “Because He Lives”.

This verse speaks of the wonder of holding a newborn child but then speaks of the assurance that one can feel because one knows that “this child can face uncertain days because He Lives”.

The word “He” in this verse, as well as in the chorus of the song, is written with a capital, upper-case letter. The word “He” refers to the living Jesus Christ; (-NOT to the newborn baby). Many translations of scripture also capitalize the pronoun “He” whenever it is used in reference to Jesus Christ.

Each time that the chorus is sung, the “He” refers to the risen and living Christ.

Verse one summarizes Christ’s purpose in coming to earth.

Verse two summarizes our confidence that Christ provides for future generations even in troubled and uncertain times.

Verse three is similar to David’s statement in Psalm 23 that “I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever”.

And; - it’s all because He (Jesus Christ) lives.

~ Keith

"Praise Him with trumpet sound"

Not all of us have our instruments directly mentioned in the Bible, but John does!  Here is an interview revealing some insights into his musical life.

Why did you decide to learn trumpet?

A boy that lived down the street from me played the trumpet. I heard him and decided that I would like to learn to play it. I was 8 years old at the time. My mother wanted me to play the piano, since we had one in the house, but that was not for me. We borrowed a Cornet for a year, I took lessons, then bought a trumpet of my own. When I was 15, I then travelled to Toronto every other weekend to take lessons from a well-known trumpet player. 10 years later I received The Associate of The Royal Conservatory (ARCT) diploma for Performance in trumpet from the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto.

What other instruments can you play?

I used to play the upright Bass (played that for four years in High School), played the Clarinet for a few years in High School, the flute for a year and I was the Junior Organist at the Lutheran Church in Port Colborne where I used to attend. I also have my Grade 9 Piano with the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto.

How often do you practice the trumpet?

I try to practise at least every other day. It is necessary to keep the lip in shape. It doesn’t take long for it to go soft and then it is a difficult road to get it back in shape.

What are some specific practice strategies you use?

To get me to practise regularly, I use CD backup tracks albums. Over the years I have purchased over 40 backup CDs, each having 10-12 songs per CD. Each CD runs approximately 30-35 minutes and that keeps me practising for 30-35 minutes at a time.

Why do you enjoy playing the trumpet for worship services?

I enjoy it because I know that my playing touches people’s hearts. That gives me great satisfaction. It also helps that I really love to play. I thrive on the live performances but do not like to rehearse!

What other groups have you played with?

In my younger years during High School, I played with a 9 piece Soul band and then later on a Rock band. I later joined up with a wedding band (for 16 years) and have played in Concert bands as well as 16 piece dance bands. I was trained classically but have played many musical styles over the years. I also occasionally play trumpet for two church choirs in Niagara Falls.

Who are your favourite artists? 

Francesca Battistelli and Meredith Andrews

What are your favourite songs right now? 

“Open Up the Heavens” by Meredith Andrews and “Angel by My Side” by Francesca Battistelli

Do you have any other comments about worship?

I really enjoy playing the Contemporary Worship songs. It allows me to freely express myself since there are no trumpet parts scored for me. I follow the chord and lead charts and just fill in whatever comes to my mind and what I feel will enhance the sound of the Worship Team.

Top Songs

In a typical hymnbook, you find around 500 to 600 hymns. Hymnbooks of different denominations reflect some distinct hymns, but the majority of songs across hymnbooks remain the same. The same 90% of songs sung by the hymnbook generation of churches are printed and reprinted in a testimonial to the communal church experience.

Now, however, with the age of print falling behind the rapidly accelerating digital world, there is a new way to document the shared experience that is Christian musical worship.

Christian Copyright Licensing International was created to protect churches and copyright owners around the world, and acts as a distributor for most professional Christian worship musicians. 160 000 churches pay each year for the right to universal access to CCLI's vast bank of worship resources. Being a member allows Glengate to display lyrics to the congregation during worship services, use fully transposable digital sheet music, and print and copy these resources as we please.The licensing fee charged is calculated proportional to our church size, and a percentage is paid as royalties to the composers, lyricists and publishers of the worship music we enjoy so profusely.

CCLI is also able to track member churches' activity through their SongSelect service, and data collected directly from churches. They post a continuous, comprehensive ranking of the 100 most popular songs being sung in churches today. For most of this year, "10 000" Reasons has held the #1 spot. This licensing agency provides information, once manifested in hundreds of similar hymnbooks, now readily available to anyone at the click of a button.

There is a reason some songs are so popular. God is using these songs to speak to the hearts of worship leaders and church congregations throughout North America. He is influencing trends and leading people to sing for a reason. There is something about these songs that is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy, and CCLI organizes them for anyone to access. We know first-hand that 10 000 Reasons is a beautiful song that allows people to worship every time we sing it, and the CCLI Top 100 list only corroborates this connection we feel to it. This list is a legitimate resource that the Glengate worship team should continue to use and reflect upon, as it can give us insight into how God is moving in churches across the world, and allow us as worship leaders to better serve Him in our own services.

~ Clara and Heather

No Other Name

~ by Heather Birch

Here is an interview with Pastor Jake which took place during his week of holidays, where he was camping at Rondeau Shores Park.

Why is worship important?

Worship is part of who we are. We were created to worship before we were even created to relate to one another. Adam was first with God in the garden and it was very good; it was only later that human relationships came along. We were created primarily to worship, to relate to God and to reflect back to him how much he is worth to us.

It's also important because we're commanded to worship. Jesus said that the most important commandments were to love the Lord God with all your heart, soul, and strength and to love your neighbour as yourself. The love referred to here is not primarily about an emotion, but it's primarily about loyalty and action and priority, and about putting God first in our thoughts, deeds, and attitudes. That is at the root of what worship is, showing something worth.

What's one thing you appreciate about the Glengate worship team?

I appreciate the team's diversity - diversity of ages and styles; how together everyone works together in selecting songs, and in performing and leading songs. I also appreciate the team's artistry - we have some amazingly talented musicians.

What is one thing you've learned about worship and worship teams over your years of being a pastor?

I have learned that developing new worship team members is very important. Worship teams can fall into the pattern of the same people playing the same songs all the time, and one of the best ways to keep worship fresh and innovative and connecting with the people, is to keep the team members developing as individuals, becoming better singers and players, but also growing and developing the team as a whole. This helps the congregation as they see new people up there worshipping, playing and singing in different ways, it encourages them to worship in their own way. 

What is your favourite worship song right now?

Right now, one of my favourites is No Other Name because it reminds me of how we are saved only by Jesus and his blood and his work for each of us, that there is no other way, and no other name. It stresses that Jesus is the one who died for me personally and that matters a lot to me. This is a song that the kids learned in 2:52, and then taught it to the congregation. This is exciting for me because it gives our kids the opportunity to contribute to the service, to feel a part of our family of believers.

No Other Name (Todd Fields)

No other name on earth is worthy

No other name in heaven above

No other name is sung in glory

But Jesus, God's redeeming Son

No other name would die for me

No other name could cleanse my sin

No other name could set me free

Jesus, your fame will have no end

Jesus, your praise will have no end

Jesus, your name will have no end.