Of the Week

John Milton went blind in his forties. The loss of his eyesight, "that one Talent which is death to hide," is almost certainly the subject of this sonnet. It was after Milton went blind that he wrote (dictated)  Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, and many other works. When I consider how my light is spent,   E're half my days, in this dark world and wide,   And that one Talent which is death to hide,   Lodg'd with me useless, though my Soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker, and present   My true account, least he returning chide,   Doth God exact day-labour, light deny'd,   I fondly ask; But patience to prevent That murmur, soon replies, God doth not need   Either man's work or his own gifts, who best   Bear his milde yoak, they serve him best, his State Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed   And post o're Land and Ocean without rest:   They also serve who only stand and waite. "they that wait up...

Andrew Remillard's YouTube channel is a great resource for finding and learning hymn melodies. He has recorded entire hymnals and continues to upload new videos regularly. Besides hymns, he has also recorded some classical music by various composers. Here are the links to his channel pages, as well as to his website: YouTube channel home uploads playlists about website So go check it out, and enjoy the beautiful melodies. Here's a sample: " O may we ever praise Him with heart and life and voice, And in His blissful presence eternally rejoice! " Jean­ette Threl­fall

A Golden Harvest John Clayton Adams 1889 Harvest Time, Surrey John Clayton Adams 1874 Returning from the Harvest John Clayton Adams Haymaking near Amberley James Aumonier A Surrey Cornfield George Cole 1864 A Surrey Harvest George Cole 1848 At Arundel, Sussex George Cole 1887 August Days George Cole 1881 Landscape — Harvest Time George Cole 1865 The Last Load George Cole 1865 The Veteran in a New Field Winslow Homer 1865 Harvest Scene in the Delaware Valley George Inness 1867 Corn Stooks in a Mountainous River Landscape Sidney Richard Percy 1861? Harvest Edmund George Warren c. 1870s "he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together." John 4:36

On June 10, 1959, "Sandy" Schmuck was born Sandra Jean Greene in Warren, Michigan to Wyatt F. and Bessie M. Greene. She moved to Pensacola, Florida in 1977 and graduated from Pensacola Christian College in 1980. Two years later, she married Ronald Michael Schmuck. They had three children. Sandy Schmuck taught for many years at Pensacola Christian Academy and through the A Beka Academy homeschool program. After a battle with cancer, she passed away on October 6, 2011 at the age of 52. As part of the A Beka Academy homeschooling program, I had Mrs. Schmuck for 8th grade, 9th grade, and 11th grade English classes. She was one of my favorite teachers, and impacted my life by encouraging me both academically and spiritually. Mrs. Schmuck was an encourager. She depended on God despite her struggles. The poem below the video is an excerpt from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "A Psalm of Life." Longfellow was Mrs. Schmuck's favorite poet, and we memorized the selecti...

According to Wikipedia, " Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring is the most common English title of a piece of music derived from the 10th and last movement of the cantata Herz und Mund unt Tat und Leben , BWV 147 ("Heart and Mouth and Deed and Life"), composed by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1716 and 1723." The basic melody for this chorale was written by Johann Schop. Johann Sebastian Bach harmonized and orchestrated it. The words below are not the original words Bach used. Written by the poet Robert Bridges, they are the most commonly-heard English words associated with this piece. Jesu, joy of man's desiring, Holy wisdom, love most bright; Drawn by Thee, our souls aspiring Soar to uncreated light. Word of God, our flesh that fashioned, With the fire of life impassioned, Striving still to truth unknown, Soaring, dying round Thy throne. Through the way were hope is guiding, Hark, what peaceful music rings; Where the flock, in Thee confiding, Drinking of ...

Lead vocal: David Francey Guitar: Craig Werth Bouzouki: Craig Werth Fiddle: Geoff Somers Percussion: Shane Simpson Backing vocals: The Boys Brigade Irregulars Album: Right of Passage Album year: 2007 We were standing the last watch At the close of the day— Three days on the water Out from Thunder Bay. 'Cross Superior, Huron, And into St. Clair, On a bright day in summer I found myself there. Dead calm on the water As blue as the sky, And we waved from the water As we slowly passed by. We entered Lake Erie. It was late in the day. You could see that storm coming  From a mile away. We had all lights burning bright, All lights burning bright. That storm overtook us, And it fell like the night, And the Point and the Island, They passed out of sight. But we sailed on rock steady, Set course through the storm, As the sky fell upon us And the wind drove us on. We had all lights burning bright, All lights burning bright. And I thought to...

"O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things" _______________________________________________________ It's been five years since the first "of the week" was published! The journey continues . . .

Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: and the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it . The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: the grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for e...

Composer: Adam Young Album: The Endurance Year: 2016 Click here to learn more about the album or to download it. "In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and his crew sailed for the Antarctic in the vessel Endurance. Not long into their voyage, they encountered polar pack ice and progress slowed to a stop. The Endurance was within 200 miles of her destination when the ship became beset, and as the wind compressed the ice in the Weddell Sea against land, the Endurance was slowly crushed to death and the men forced to abandon her. How Shackleton managed to reach South Georgia and arrange for the rescue of his crew remains one of the greatest survival stories of all time. The incredible resilience of the crew of the Endurance, and of Shackleton himself, is one of my favorite historical accounts because it serves as a reminder to us all: when things look bleakest, not all is lost." - Adam Young " thus we went along, and thus we returned." Ernest Shackleton

Band: NEEDTOBREATHE Album: Rivers in the Wasteland Year: 2014 Your love is  like radiant diamonds bursting inside us we cannot contain. Your love will surely come find us like blazing wildfires  singing your name. God of mercy, sweet love of mine, I have surrendered to your design. May this offering stretch across the sky And these hallelujahs be multiplied. " But the word of God grew and multiplied." Acts 12:24

Did you know you can use Google to search within one specific website of your choosing? This feature is helpful if you want to search a site that doesn't have a search bar of its own. To do this, go to the Google homepage and type in the phrase you want to search. Along with the phrase, type "site:", immediately followed by the link of the website. Even though this blog has a search bar, we'll use it as an example. To search Of the Week for "winslow homer," type this into the Google search bar: Google searches only this blog for the specified phrase, and here are the results: Another way to achieve the same result is to go to the Google Advanced Search page. Once there, type in the phrase you want to search in the top box, type in the website link in the box labeled "site or domain," and go. " Filter first for substance. Filter second for significance. . . .  Filter third for reliability. . . .  Filter fourth for c...

Advancements - "separable fastener" (zipper) patented - toggle light switch patented - marshmallow creme invented - 100-inch telescope completed (largest in its day) Facts - A little less than 5% of Americans owned a car, truck, or motorcycle. - 1917 had the most (recorded) consecutive days above 120 °F (43 days in Death Valley, California). - The year also had the coldest temperatures ever recorded in Tennessee (−32 °F) and West Virginia (−37 °F). Firsts - 1st jazz recording commercially released - 1st Pulitzer Prizes given Deaths - William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody - Louisa M. R. Stead (wrote the words to "Tis So Sweet To Trust in Jesus") - Andrew Murray - Ferdinand von Zeppelin - Emil von Behring - Scott Joplin - Asa Hull - Adolf von Baeyer Births - Robert Lowell - Hans Conried - John F. Kennedy Literature - J. R. R. Tolkien, on medical leave from the British Army, began writing  The Book of Lost Tales  (the first version of ...

The Stories You Tell is an English folk music album created by a band called Midsummer and released just this year (2017). The album is full of energy and emotion, and I highly recommend it. You can hear all the songs and read the lyrics on  Bandcamp.  The album is also available for purchase on that site. 1. I'll Wait 2. 1000 Days 3. Stoney Faces 4. The Stories You Tell 5. Don't Be Anxious 6. I Was Made in Birmingham 7. Wasted Time 8. Come and Rest 9. You Got It Then 10. Summer's Over "one of the year’s finest debut albums" Mike Davies

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearin...