Hymns & Hymnals, Rites & Ceremonies, Religion & Spirituality 

From the Introduction:The volume that you hold in your hands is a continuation of the work of Hymnal: A Worship Book. When it appeared in 1992, Hymnal's contents unleashed a significant flood of creative activity in Mennonite churches, in the form of new tunes and texts. The initial response of the publishers was to begin the Hymnal Subscription Service (1997-2003), which made available to congregations 270 new hymns and other worship resources.Sing the Journey, the second phase of response, is drawn from materials introduced in the Subscription Service and from other new resources not readily available. Sing the Journey is modeled on Hymnal: A Worship Book. Its table of contents uses the same outline. It is intended as a prayer book that contains rich musical and textual color. It is attentive to the gifts of the worldwide church and to the variety of religious experience within our denomination. Finally, it brings back some well-loved and often-missed hymns, while also offering materials that will lure congregations into new song.Sing the Journey is the first of a two-part Hymnal supplement, divided along the two halves of the Christian calendar. This volume explores the life of the Church and its mission in the world, corresponding to the season between Pentecost and Advent. It assumes that the work of the Holy Spirit continues in the present, and that the life of the Church, though changing, is not ever fully known or ever entirely complete. The second volume will focus on the life of Jesus, corresponding to the church year from Advent through Easter.It is with confidence that those who collected and chose materials, along with those who shepherded the publishing process, offer this volume to the glory of God, whose praise is sung by God's people throughout time and eternity, and in all places. We hope that the community of faith is widened through the use of this book, and that we all will be moved to sing more frequently and in more places. This is the church's calling: to worship, to reach out, to find common and welcome space—even when fear and paralyzing tensions threaten to keep us apart from one another and from God.Toward a goal of giving voice to the church as it emerges in the next generation of its life, we have given our time, our imagination, and our work. May God's blessings rest on this book, and upon and within all who use it.—Ken Nafziger, January 2005 - from Amzon