General Chat

While it's a rainy Sunday, I thought i may ask if you have a hymm or semi - religious song from former days which has left an impression on you, whether you are still a believer or not.

I remember with affection from boyhood, "there is a green hill far away". A perfect picture of the event in my mind and I then believed it all.

Sadly, just a genuine seeker these days.

Happy days

Our memories are the only paradise from which we can never be expelled.

Our school hymn. Praise , my soul, the king of heaven. Played at our wedding and our sons funeral. We help our local church do events and help keep the place in good repair, but dont manage services these days. God has left the world to its own devices, and a poor mess we are making of it. Helping others and being kind is sooo simple, why cant we all do it?

How appropriate you started this thread!! I am just at the moment listening to Susan Boyle singing Silent Night from her debut album. It is wonderful and Chrismassy albeit a bit early, but wonderful all the same.

Jxx

All things bright and beautiful!

Annx

'The Old Rugged Cross' - it was my Gran's favourite and was played at her funeral. I was 12 at the time and had never heard it before as it had become 'unfashionable'! It evokes, for me, a bygone era and I can't hear it now without tears, lol! I am not a believer but I do love (some) hymns and sacred music.

Too many to mention really. I was brought up a Baptist but the main thing about our church was we loved singing hymns, we'd have a fellowship hour after church and the Navy lads from HMS Collingwood would join us, we had quite a few of them in the congregation and some of them had wonderful voices. One used to sing How great thou art, one of my Dad's favourites. Another of dad's favourites was the old rugged cross. But I think his and my all time favourite was Guide me Oh though great Jehovah (Redeemer in some hymn books). Both he and Mum used to sing in the choir and I can see them now belting out these hymns.

I no longer go to church although I retain my beliefs but I still love listening to hymns that raise the roof!

Jerusalem...it was sung at my b i l funeral last month, beautiful. But the song that sticks in my mind from a funeral is 'Dance, Dance where ever you maybe'...the funeral was a 21yr olds, he died from SADs.

Jean you are so right, it really does'nt take much effort to be nice and helpful to others.

jude

Have to agree with Ann in glos. I also used to go to a Baptist church and just loved the singing. I never got converted into any faith but the hymns have never left my memory, unlike trying to remember words of songs now. I did tend to sulk if the wrong tune was played and felt like sending my hymnbook flying via the organist ,but I usually made my protest by not singing. As a teenager I used to be the pianist for the junior sunday school but my problem was I could only play at speed in spite of pleasant requests to play ' a little slower'. I did used to try.If hymns are sung too slowly I find it a wind-up......but as I said I never found the faith, perhaps its just as well.-One little chorus that comes to mind so many times as I've got older is 'Count Your Blessings'- JLe

I have too many favourite hymns/songs to mention, but we sang a favourite one today "O for a thousand tongues to sing" - very rousing, and just good fun to sing! We are but a small rural Baptist chapel, but a fair number of us have decent singing voices. As you may gather, I'm a believer and a regular churchgoer, plus one of the leadership team, to boot! Last week, we held our Harvest Festival service, and that's something that's very special in the countryside, especially as 4 of our members are farmers.

Like Ann...there are so many hymns that it is hard to pick one out.It's strange how we still remember all the words as it was much different to these days and we sang in church and school.
I recently played my late d'i'l's favourite hymn "All things bright and beautiful" at her memorial service at he mother's church and could hardly see the keys for the tears.
I don't go to church these days,but still have my beliefs.

Brenda x

Do the baptists among you remember 'We've a story to tell to the nations' I can remember the children singing it with gusto, the hymn is as appropriate today as the day it was written.....just another favourite........ at this rate I might leave the computer and have a couple of hours on the piano -JLe

...yes Ann that is the same Count Your Blessing.

I was quite sad to hear recently that 'my' church which used to be quite a modern type of Baptist church has gone more to the Brethren way of preaching and thinking.

Oh yes Janet
Count your blessings
Name them one by one,
Count your blessings
See what God has done,
Count your blessings,
Name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

Is that the one you mean? As sunday school verse we used to sing.

My thanks to all who have replied. Glad to have stirred a few memories.

Happy days

One of my favourites from school days was 'We plow the fields and scatter, the good seed on the ground'. I have always loved Harvest Festival. Strange I should grow up and be a great believer in grow your own, having an allotment, and freezing much or our produce.
Of course, I am very fond of Rod Stewart singing 'Sailing' especially the part when the pipes are playing. Another reminder of childhood.

Julia in Derbyshire

I didn't have a favourite previously but "How Great Thou Art" will be with me forever after we sung it at my dads funeral this summer.
I'd never been brave enough to sing out before but I did it for dad, a very moving hymn.

Jude, 'Dance, dance....' do you mean 'Lord of the Dance'? We had that too.

Am I the only one apart from Harry who loves There is a Green Hill Far Away? I went to a church school, the church and Sunday school and we sang it at all of them. I used to get to the third and fourth line and stop, trying to work out how He could die for us because He loved us. I was only young then.

Caz xx

Island...thats the one:o))

Also love How Great thou art.....and loads more but can't remember the names.
Welsh choirs singing at football...oh yesss:o)

Every end of term and sometimes during the year .......
"Now girls we will sing hymn number six hundred and 26..... Which we all always had ready.
...' Praise to the Lord the Almighty the King of Creation'.....

I chose it for one of the hymns at our wedding, but somehow the message got lost between us, the vicar and the organist and she struck up the tune to something entirely different, which people struggled to sing.

I like How Great though Art too. The music was played at my brother's funeral and the hymn later sung with feeling at Mum's funeral, led by the Welsh contingent.


Gwyn

Janet I feel I ought to remember we've a story to tell to the nations but can't quite 'get it'.

Strangely, although I went to a Baptist church, I went to a C of E primary school so also remember all the hymns from the songs of praise hymn book as well as those from the Baptist hymn book, Sankey's hymn book and the Billy graham hymn book.
Although I no longer go to church I have fond memories of church and sunday school mainly for the singing and the fellowship.
My sister also no longer goes to the church although she still lives in the town, but she recently went back for a reunion of the Girls' Brigade and people were asking after me. It is 40 years since I moved away and I only saw those people since at my parents funerals.

Jeruselem is my favourite , but after talking to someone at local crem that said they had some people that requested "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen,i've told my family that I wouldn't mind that one ha ha.