Showing posts with label Because He Lives. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Because He Lives. Show all posts

Sunday, April 28, 2019

At Easter, we celebrate Jesus’ victory


Our Savior has risen!

The Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection, as the greatest and most important Christian feast, is a Day of Obligation for all Christians.

The resurrection of Jesus reminds us that God makes all things new. It also reveals to all believers the deepest meaning and purpose of the Christian’s faith in the One who came to destroy death and give life to the world.

Here are some of the best known (powerful, Scripture-centered) Easter hymns that celebrate the resurrection of our Christ.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow
Because He lives, all fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living, just because He lives
---Because He Lives

Amazing grace
How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see
---Amazing Grace

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
O what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood
---Blessed Assurance

Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia! 
Earth and heaven in chorus say, Alleluia! 
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia! 
Sing, ye heavens, and earth reply, Alleluia! 
 ---Christ the Lord Is Risen Today

Great is Thy faithfulness! "Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—
Great is Thy faithfulness,  Lord, unto me!
--- Great Is Thy Faithfulness

Sunday, April 1, 2018

Easter Sunday’s songs and hymns


The Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection is the greatest and most important Christian feast. It is the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as it reveals to all believers the deepest meaning and purpose of the Christian’s faith in the One who came to destroy death and give life to the world.

What better way to honor the sacrifice Jesus made, and celebrate the hope He offered to us through His sacrifice, than with songs of praise and love!

Of course, there are so many hymns and songs to sing during the most important celebration in the Christian calendar.

Your VRS has 5 favorite Easter songs and hymns. You can read alongside the Psalms and the Gospels "to feel" the spirit of the Easter.

Jesus took the sting for us so that we wouldn’t have too, so join with me in singing, “Hallelujah!”

1. Because He Lives.  It is not just popular around Easter or on Resurrection Sunday but all year long because the lyrics are timeless truth that comforts the believers.

God sent His son, they called Him Jesus
He came to love, heal and forgive
He lived and died to buy my pardon
An empty grave is there to prove my savior lives

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow
Because He lives, all fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living, just because He lives.

2. Amazing Grace. A beautiful hymn written by John Newton in 1779.

Amazing grace!
How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see

T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear
And Grace, my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed

Through many dangers, toils and snares
We have already come.
T'was grace that brought us safe thus far
And grace will lead us home.

3.  Christ the Lord is Risen Today. The hymn perfectly fits the Easter Gospel of the Lord's resurrection.

Christ the Lord is ris’n today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heav’ns, and earth reply, Alleluia!

4. My Redeemer Lives. This brings us to the cross and to the grave, and the one is found empty because the Redeemer lives.

I know He rescued my soul
His blood has covered my sin
I believe, I believe
My shame He's taken away
My pain is healed in His name
I believe, I believe
I'll raise a banner
My Lord Has conquered the grave
My redeemer lives
My redeemer lives
My redeemer lives
My redeemer lives

5.  Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah.  This well-known choral piece is usually sung at Christmastime. But when the German composer Handel wrote his oratorio “Messiah” in the 1700s, the Hallelujah Chorus was placed at the end of the second part of the piece after Jesus returns from the grave.  It has an excellent arrangement that sounds so amazing.

Hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah
 Hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah
For the lord God omnipotent reigneth
Hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah
For the lord God omnipotent reigneth
Hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah
For the lord God omnipotent reigneth
Hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah

King of kings forever and ever  hallelujah hallelujah
And lord of lords forever and ever  hallelujah hallelujah
 King of kings forever and ever  hallelujah hallelujah
And lord of lords forever and ever  hallelujah hallelujah
King of kings forever and ever  hallelujah hallelujah
 And lord of lords King of kings and lord of lords
 And he shall reign
And he shall reign
And he shall reign
He shall reign
And he shall reign forever and ever.


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Sunday, April 16, 2017

Alleluia! Jesus Is Risen!

Christ is risen from the dead. We are one with Him again.

Easter is about victory, and there are songs that celebrate the power of Christ’s resurrection.

I serve a risen Savior,
He's in the world today;
I know that He is living,
Whatever men may say;
I see His hand of mercy,
I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him
He's always near.

He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and He talks with me
Along life's narrow way.
He lives, He live, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives:
He lives within my heart.
—  I Serve a Risen Savior (Ackley)

           
The miraculous lesson of Easter is 
that through Jesus' death on the Cross, 
we have been granted a second chance—permission
 to leave our old lives behind and stand before
 the pristine, unmarred canvas of a new day, with 
all its potential for joy and choices that honor God. 
Leo Udtohan
I know that my Redeemer lives!
What joy this blest assurance gives!
He lives, he lives, who once was dead;
he lives, my everliving head!

He lives triumphant from the grave;
he lives eternally to save;
he lives exalted, throned above;
he lives to rule his church in love.

He lives to silence all my fears;
he lives to wipe away my tears;
he lives to calm my troubled heart;
he lives all blessing to impart.
—  I Know that My Redeemer Lives (Nicole Mullen)

God sent His son, they called Him, Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives!
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone,
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives!
— Because He Lives (Bill and Gloria Gaither)



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The Curls’ ‘Sa Isip Lamang’ is now available
on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon

The Curls’ Sa Isip Lamang is finally available on Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon and other music streaming services. The Curls is a Philippine music duo composed of Glee Orcullo and Feby Ingking.


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Thanks for your letters, all will be answered. Comments welcome at leoudtohan@yahoo.com, follow leoudtohanINQ at Twitter /Facebook.

Sunday, March 27, 2016

Blessed Assurance!

Jesus lives! This is the day the Lord has made!

Today’s Homily centers on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It assures us that God has accepted Christ’s sacrifice for our sins; it assures us that there is life after death; and it assures us that Christ is with us in the present and in the eternity future.
 
As we celebrate Easter Sunday, let us sing together Bill Gaither’s Because He Lives:

God sent His son, they called Him, Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives!

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives!

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives;
But greater still the calm assurance:
This child can face uncertain days because He Lives!


Now, let us sing Fanny Crosby’s Blessed Assurance:

Note: Blessed Assurance is one of my favorite hymns written by blind hymnist and Queen of Gospel Song Writers Fanny Crosby. It has touched my heart since my childhood days and even until now I hum this whenever I remember with my heart at peace. Indeed, God has given us a blessed assurance through Christ. 

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long...

Perfect submission, perfect delight!
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest!
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

Let’s move on to the old Jerusalem, the birthplace of Easter!

Note: On this page are pictures at the village of the Compassionate God in Barangay Fatima, Inabanga town.

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The Holy Week started with the celebration of the Palm Sunday to commemorate Christ’s passion and death by marking His triumphant entry to Jerusalem.

Several important events for the Christian faith were the Last Supper, the washing of the disciples’ feet, Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, the kiss of Judas, the Calvary, the death of Christ, Deposition and the Burial and Resurrection.

Inside the St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral in Tagbilaran City, a giant scaffolding rose right before the church’s interior.  It has reached to the ceiling of the dome which is being painted.

The painting is expected to finish on or before May 1, the city’s fiesta, church officials said.

The St. Joseph Cathedral the Worker Cathedral is one of the parishes founded by the Jesuit missionaries in 1595.

Although the bamboo scaffolding might be distracting during a worship service, it didn’t hinder hundreds of Boholano Catholics to attend Palm Sunday o Bendita sa Lukay.

Many brought palm fronds to church and re-enacted Christ’s entry to Jerusalem, waving the leaves at the priest as he made the entrance procession to the altar before the start of the Mass.

Bringing palm fronds, Florencia Dacaldacal, 72, was able to attend the 9 a.m. holy Mass officiated by Tagbilaran Bishop Leonardo Medroso of the Diocese of Tagbilaran.

In his Homily, Bishop Medroso reminded the Boholanos  to reflect on the sacrifices of Christ for our salvation and carry the cross of Christ.  He also reminded the people that Christ is the only hope amidst trials and failures in life.

“This Holy Week, we should be like Jesus. We should follow His cross. The Holy Week is also a perfect opportunity for us to be reunited with the Church,” said Bishop Medroso in local dialect.

After the Mass, the faithful waved their palm fronds as the priest blessed them with holy water.  In Catholic belief, the waving of palms symbolizes the discipleship and a sign of the faithful’s desire to follow Christ.

Outside the church, several vendors were selling palm fronds since Saturday night. They sold palm fronds at P10, P20, P30 and P100.

For cotton candy maker Vic Maamo, 64, Palm Sunday was an opportunity to earn a living.

He said he ordered 50 bonds of lukay (young coconut leaves) from Catigbian town, at least 33 km from Tagbilaran. He bought it for P25 per bond.

Maamo said he could earn as much as P5,000 in a day compared to selling cotton candy which earn him only P1,000 on Saturdays and Sundays in front of the church.

“God’s mercy helps my family. We can buy rice and viand. And there is a little left for us to buy clothes for the kids,” he said.

After the Mass, the churchgoers returned home and hanged their blessed palm fronds on their front doors or windows as a sign of welcoming Christ in their homes.

But Dacaldacal believes that hanging the palms can also ward off evil.

“It has power because it was blessed by a priest,” she said.

Other faithful observed that while the St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral has an ongoing painting, the Holy Week was also a perfect time to repainting the Christian faith. 

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Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Christ is risen! Alleluia!



For three days, Satan must have believed that he had won the battle. He believed that Jesus would be forever in the grave and he conquered the world.

After all, Jesus had cried out in the cross "It is finished" and Satan thought it was a cry of surrender or defeat.

Then, the tomb is empty!  There is Light in the midst of our darkness.  Alleluia, Alleluia!

Easter is a significant day in the history of Christianity. It is with Easter that we remember and rejoice at the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

To make this day more profound and meaningful, let us sing together the hymn Christ the Lord Is Risen Today, composed by Charles Wesley. You can read alongside the Psalms and the Gospels "to feel" the spirit of the Easter.

Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia!
Earth and heaven in chorus say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth reply, Alleluia!

Love's redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids him rise, Alleluia!
Christ has opened paradise, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once he died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where's thy victory, boasting grave? Alleluia!

Soar we now where Christ has led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like him, like him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!

Hail the Lord of earth and heaven, Alleluia!
Praise to thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail the Resurrection, thou, Alleluia!

King of glory, soul of bliss, Alleluia!
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia!
Thee to know, thy power to prove, Alleluia!
Thus to sing, and thus to love, Alleluia!

And Bill Gaither’s Because He Lives:

God sent His son, they called Him, Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives!

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives!

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives;
But greater still the calm assurance:
This child can face uncertain days because He Lives!


***
Thanks for your letters, all will be answered. Comments welcome at leoudtohan@yahoo.com, follow leoudtohan at Twitter /Facebook.


The burning of Judas in Baclayon, PHL, an Easter-time ritual, where an effigy of  Judas Iscariot is burned.
Egg hunt during Easter Sunday in Tagbilaran
Hugos or Easter Sunday ritual in Baclayon, Bohol, Philippines