Today With The Institute

We’re moving along, full strength, here at the Institute.

The Masters students are working through biblical theology of worship, with a focus on Reformation themes/liturgies/music/leadership, along with forays into the the history of worship expression over the past 500 years. Fascinating work in graeco-roman thought (platonic dualism) as compared to a biblical ordering of the universe. A joy to tumble on this ground, it is.

Today we reflect on core influencers in Western hymnody (only one part of the wider worship work culturally in the last 1/2 millenium) and the introduction of spirituals into North American worship music. This leads us into the values of the contemporary worship movements of today in relation to recent history. Each module will take us back in time.

Our One Year students are presenting their creative retellings of the Origins Of Worship at chapel today. Wood carvings, physical theatre, songs, video projects, visual art, storytelling and other creative means will fill the famous SSU Red Room today. A very creative batch of students, we have. Should be a joy.

I’m off to teach – our Three Voice Learning model makes these times so rich for both teacher and participants.

AVAILABLE WHEREVER YOU BUY BOOKS

Sheltering Mercy: Prayers Inspired by the Psalms

Sheltering Mercy, along with its companion volume, Endless Grace, helps us rediscover the rich treasures of the Psalms—through free-verse prayer renderings of their poems and hymns—as a guide to personal devotion and meditation.

The church has always used the Psalms as part of its prayer life, and they have inspired countless other prayers. This book contains 75 prayers drawn from Psalms 1-75, providing lyrical sketches of what authors Ryan Smith and Dan Wilt have seen, heard, and felt while sojourning in the Psalms. Each prayer is a response to the Psalms written in harmony with Scripture. These prayers help us quiet our hearts before God and welcome us into a safe place amid the storms of life.

This artful, poetic, and classic devotional book features compelling custom illustrations and foil-stamped hardcover binding, offering a fresh way to reflect on and pray the Psalms.