I love reading about how the great hymns came to be. For some hymns, one writer sat down and composed lyrics and music. Others were collaborative, like the work of Fanny Crosby and Philip Bliss (wouldn’t it have been something to sit in on one of their songwriting sessions?) But some, like today’s hymn, came together more slowly. Originally, it was written as a poem by a young Methodist preacher named Robert Robinson, in the year 1757. But it wasn’t set to music until roughly... Read more
I must say that I am equal parts shocked and disgusted with the inexplicable surge of popularity that Donald Trump has been enjoying among alleged conservatives. And not only conservatives, but Christian conservatives no less. A recent NPR story had a photo of an Alabama rally that drew 30,000 fans, some of whom held a banner saying, “Thank You, Lord Jesus, for President Trump.” You think I’m making this up? Click here. The letters were hand-drawn in red and blue... Read more
Last year, I did a post on southern gospel singers with doppelgangers in the entertainment world. It was quite popular and prompted a number of great suggestions from my readers. Since then, I’ve collected a few more myself. Enjoy! Kirk Talley and young Ron Howard: Val Kilmer and Dean Hopper: Michael Keaton and Wayne Haun: Paula Deen and Gloria Gaither: And, my personal favorite of the suggestions from last time, Pastor John Hagee and gospel pianist/journalist David Bruce Murray. (Wait,... Read more
Many of you are probably familiar with the Christian movie productions of Sherwood Pictures. They’ve had great success with limited budgets on films like Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and Courageous. Each of their films covers a particular theme, like faith, marriage, or fatherhood. The other week, they released a new project entitled War Room, focused on prayer. It was a box office smash, vying with hot Hollywood releases like Straight Outta Compton. However, like the church’s other projects, it’s come under criticism for being poor... Read more
Apologies for my lack of contentful columns in the past week or so as I ramp up for a hectic semester. Several posts are brewing, including some thoughts on the Kendrick Brothers’ latest movie and a new Glen Campbell documentary. But for now, enjoy a little slice of comedic gold from everyone’s favorite Odd Couple. In this episode, Oscar is trying to cure Felix of agoraphobia. The results are, shall we say, less than optimal. Read more
It’s probably safe to say that Fanny Crosby was the most prolific American hymn-writer, perhaps the most prolific of all hymn-writers. She wrote so many thousands of hymns that her publishers literally couldn’t read them all. I’ve always wondered whatever happened to all those unpublished hymns. Just recently, I was pointed to a radio podcast that answers my question. Those unpublished hymns were, quite literally, stuffed into a box and forgotten. That box was eventually donated to Wheaton College, where it continued... Read more
It’s official: Josh Duggar is a serial adulterer and p*rnography addict. The data unearthed in the recent hack of Ashley Madison, a subscription web service designed to facilitate extra-marital affairs, left no room for speculation. Josh has made public statements confirming his infidelities, liberally laced with appropriately shamed/repentant language. Of course, whether he means a word of it remains for his wife and immediate family to see. I wrote an article back when the first Duggar scandal broke a couple... Read more
Well, to be clear, former members of Signature Sound. But that would have been too long of a title. We’ve got Josh on tenor, supported by both Doug Anderson and Ryan Seaton plus Roy Webb on piano. Josh, of course, is a former Gold City tenor, and Roy was also employed by Gold City after his tenure with Signature Sound. This is an unusual combination, but it’s a reminder of how talented every one of these guys is. Read more
Here’s the link to the second half of my Robin Williams top five retrospective, guest-posted at Paul Asay’s blog Watching God. We’re going backwards, so Part II discusses my top two choices. If you missed Part I, click here. I also close out Part II with a video tribute I edited together last year. (Those of you who haven’t seen it already can watch directly on YouTube here.) In arranging this shortlist, I focused on the films that I thought were... Read more
This project finds southern gospel’s most inventive quartet trying on yet another hat: Broadway. They are aided in their efforts by acclaimed tenor singer J. Mark McVey, who is best known for his performance as Jean Valjean in Les Miserables. It’s been available from their site for a while, but it was only recently released to retail. I’m choosing to feature the album cover they designed while Doug Anderson was still with the group, because (thankfully!) his vocals have been preserved... Read more
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