2 New Devotional Resources

WE HAVE 2 NEW RELEASES TODAY!

40 Favorite Hymns for the Christian Year: A Closer Look at Their Spiritual and Poetic Meaning by Leland Ryken
Everyday Prayer with the Reformers by Donald K. McKim

40 Favorite Hymns for the Christian Year: A Closer Look at Their Spiritual and Poetic Meaning

About

For generations, Christians have celebrated holidays and seasons with special songs. We all have favorite Christmas carols or Easter hymns, and some of us associate certain hymns with events like Thanksgiving or the New Year. But often we overlook the fact that these familiar songs are also powerful works of devotional poetry.

This anthology of great hymns associated with the calendar year invites us to experience these works as poems—to slow down and savor their well-turned phrases, their surprising metaphors, and their evocative language. English professor Leland Ryken provides historical background and literary analysis for each hymn, finishing each with a Scripture reading to accompany it. The result is a wonderfully devotional and poetic study for the Christian’s year, drawing on hymns for the New Year, Good Friday, Easter, Christmas, and more.

List of Hymns

New Year

O God, Our Help in Ages Past by Isaac Watts
Standing at the Portal by Frances Ridley Havergal
Great God, We Sing That Mighty Hand by Philip Doddridge
God of Our Life by Hugh Thomson Kerr
Another Year Is Dawning by Frances Ridley Havergal

Good Friday

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross by Isaac Watts
O Sacred Head, Now Wounded by Paul Gerhardt
Beneath the Cross of Jesus by Elizabeth Clephane
Alas! and Did My Savior Bleed by Isaac Watts
My Song Is Love Unknown by Samuel Crossman
Lead Me to Calvary by Jennie Evelyn Hussey
Jesus, Keep Me near the Cross by Fanny Crosby

Easter

Christ the Lord Is Risen Today by Charles Wesley
Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands by Martin Luther
The Day of Resurrection! by John of Damascus
The Strife Is O’er, the Battle Done by Author Unknown
Look, Ye Saints, the Sight Is Glorious by Thomas Kelly
Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain by John of Damascus

Reformation Day

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God by Martin Luther
I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord by Timothy Dwight
O Word of God Incarnate by William Walsham How
Not What My Hands Have Done by Horatius Bonar
How Vast the Benefits Divine by Augustus Toplady

Thanksgiving

Now Thank We All Our God by Martin Rinkart
Come, Ye Thankful People, Come by Henry Alford
We Plow the Fields by Matthias Claudius
We Gather Together by Author Unknown
For the Beauty of the Earth by Folliott S. Pierpoint

Christmas

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus by Charles Wesley
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel by Author Unknown
Joy to the World by Isaac Watts
Hark! the Herald Angels Sing by Charles Wesley
As with Gladness, Men of Old by William Chatterton Dix
O Little Town of Bethlehem by Phillips Brooks
Once in Royal David’s City by Cecil Frances Alexander
Angels, from the Realms of Glory by James Montgomery
Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning by Reginald Heber
O Come, All Ye Faithful by John Francis Wade
It Came upon the Midnight Clear by Edmund Sears
Silent Night by Joseph Mohr

The Author

Leland Ryken, author of more than fifty books on biblical and literary topics, is the literary editor of the ESV Bible and emeritus professor of English at Wheaton College in Illinois.

Everyday Prayer with the Reformers

About

When God’s children pray, we talk to a God familiar with the requests, praise, and longings of generations of his people. We have much to learn from those who went before us. In this devotional, Donald McKim takes us back to the wisdom of over twenty Protestant Reformers—including John Calvin, Martin Luther, and Philip Melanchthon. As McKim draws from the insightful writings and prayers of the Reformers of yesteryear, he provides brief, meditative readings, along with reflection questions and prayer points, to nourish our prayer lives today.

Endorsements

“We are all indebted to Don McKim for making the great Reformers accessible and for showing us how pertinent their work remains to our spiritual lives today. This is a gem of a book and a wonderful guide for worship and devotion.”

—Timothy George, Distinguished Professor of Divinity, Beeson Divinity School, Samford University

“These devotional gems bring together scriptural passages, Reformers’ insights, and Donald McKim’s own pastoral heart. This rich resource will surely foster and deepen believers’ lives of prayer.”

—Karin Maag, Director, H. Henry Meeter Center for Calvin Studies, Calvin University

“This book weaves together two wonderful avenues of theological reflection: historical and theological perspectives on Scripture from the Reformers as well as thoughtful direction for how we can apply these truths in our lives today. Rich in content without being too heavy or heady—a wonderful addition to my daily reading.”

—Scott Manor, President, Knox Theological Seminary

The Author

Donald K. McKim has served as a pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA), a professor of theology and academic dean at Memphis Seminary, a professor at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary, and an editor for Westminster John Knox Press. He is an award-winning author and editor.