I had a request for some contemporary song ideas for Reformation, which I had sort of jumped over – along with All Saints and Christ the King – to get to Advent.  So here are a few ideas for each of these special Sundays in October and November.

For my Advent/Christmas update this year, I’m going to try and maintain some degree of separation between these two liturgically distinct seasons.  In a way, the progression of the church’s seasons in December reflects the movement from the “Kyrie” to the Song of Praise in historical liturgy.  We express our need for God – through longing, hope, and expectation – in Advent, and then celebrate the fulfillment of that need, God’s answer to our longing, in the coming of Christ.  You’ll have to decide whether your congregation will stand for not singing any Christmas songs before December 24, but consider holding off enough to maintain the Advent mood.  For this post we’ll stay in Advent, and follow with a Christmas post soon.