I'm almost 59 years old. I've been online for 33 years - starting with my own dial-up bulletin board system in 1993 - and continuing with AOL, my own dot.com web site, Myspace, WordPress, Twitter / X, Flickr, and Facebook.
Every Sunday at my church I officially open our service after a cold opening first song of Praise & Worship. I greet my brothers and sisters, and I present Scripture – almost always from the Psalms.
This is one of my favorites – and one that I’ve probably quoted most often over the past few years:
Those are the final two verses of Psalm 100, and I always read the entire Psalm starting with Verse 1:
Shout with joy to the LORD – all the Earth ! Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before Him – singing with joy. Acknowledge that the LORD is God ! He made us, and we are His. We are His people – the sheep of His pasture. AMEN.
Give thanks to our God with each new day. Praise and worship Him !
All rights reserved (c) 2020 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries
Every Friday I post the Top 5 of one of my classic hit music charts based on personal preference and influenced by radio airplay from either 15, 25, 30, or 35 years ago this weekend (rotating each week).
It’s the 3RD Friday of the month, so I go back 30 years ago. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday November 18TH 1990:
It was a very British Top 3 on my chart 30 years ago this weekend. That Pet Shop Boys track was brilliant – and very underrated. I loved its breezy orchestral “underground” feel. It was a British and European pop smash, but here in the U.S. (and Canada) it was mostly a hit in the dance clubs. It was a bit too extreme for its time for Top 40 radio which was skewing more towards the safer Hot Adult Contemporary format at the time.
And speaking of Hot A.C. Phil Collins had the perfect track for the format. It’s one of my favorite songs from him. Deborah Cox scored with a HI-NRG dance cover of the track 13 years later in 2003 that peaked at # 4 and spent 32 weeks on my chart !
This past week marks 33 years since I’ve been back home stateside following a 2-year military stint working and living in the south of England (RAF Fairford). I vowed to return to the U.K. for a visit back then. It hasn’t happened yet, but it’s not over yet. Next Friday on RETRO I’ll go back to the very beginning of this weekly hit music chart hobby – 35 years ago to November 1985.
It’s halftime my friends. I’ll be back on Sunday and Monday with 2 more blog posts for this weekend. Enjoy your Saturday. Thanks for going RETRO with me !
All rights reserved (c) 2020 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries
About 4 weeks ago I got my first flu shot in about 28 years. My last flu shot was done during my final 6 months on Active Duty in the U.S. Military. Since then I’d decided not to get an annual flu shot, as I’d only experienced a couple of flus during my entire adult life. Of course this year COVID changed everything, and I decided to get a flu shot.
When I arrived at my local pharmacy for my free flu shot (actually they gave me $10 to get it) – the pharmacist asked me if I had received the Shingles vaccine. I had not, but as a 53-year-old watching all of those television commercials on the Shingles vaccine (some of them amusing) I had been contemplating it for a few years.
So before I got my free flu shot in my right arm I got my free Shingles (Shingrix) vaccine in my left arm. I walked out completely vaccinated-up. Surely there would be no side effects …
The listed side effects for the Shingles vaccine are as follows: “a sore arm with mild or moderate pain”, “redness and swelling at the site of the injection”, “tiredness, muscle pain, headache, shivering, fever, stomach pain, and nausea”. (These side effects affect more than half of the people who receive the vaccine.)
The listed side effects for the Influenza vaccine are as follows: “soreness, redness, and swelling where shot is given, fever, muscle aches, and headache”.
So I got the double-shot of vaccines late on a Friday morning, and by that afternoon I got the sore arm with mild to moderate pain. No redness. No swelling. I got tired. I had muscle pain. I got a mild headache. By that night I was shivering. It was generally a sleepless night. (I never got the stomach pain or nausea.) The side effects continued all day on Saturday into Saturday night. I actually slept really good on Saturday night into Sunday morning. When I awoke all of the side effects had subsided, and in fact I was no longer shivering – but sweating. The sweating continued for a few hours, and then it too was gone. I had about 48 hours of side effects, and then I was back to normal.
I’ll take those side effects over getting Shingles over the next several decades or the flu this season. The Shingles vaccine is actually done in two doses. My 2ND dose will be in February.
All rights reserved (c) 2020 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries
Every Monday I post my all-new Top 10 Christian hit music chart based on personal preference and influenced by radio airplay. It’s the continuation of a weekly hobby that goes back 40+ years. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday November 15TH 2020:
My Top 5 holds steady this week with a # 1 smash from Matty Mullins, a likely future # 1 smash from Andrew Ripp, and a former # 1 smash from Cain. It’s the first hit on my chart for all 3 artists. And then there’s Big Daddy Weave with an energetic track that should’ve been a # 1 smash, and it’s not too late to make that move. Finally – We The Kingdom are still at # 5 with their former # 1 smash that spent 5 weeks atop my chart.
Jeremy Camp is back with his 5TH hit on my chart since 2017 (6TH overall). 3 out of his last 4 hits have gone to # 1. In this one Jeremy proclaims that he will let the weight of his fear fall like sand – out of his hands and into Yours Lord.
Ireland’s We Are Messengers return with their 6TH hit on my chart, and I really liked this one as soon as I heard it for the first time. I hope that it continues to generate increased airplay on the radio. I’m looking forward to singing it out loud at the TobyMac show coming-up in 3 months.
It’s an exciting time to listen to Christian pop radio with so many strong songs with powerful lyrics praising and worshiping our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. Sing along to the music. Pay attention to the lyrics. God’s Good News is revealed in His music.
This concludes another weekend of blog posts. I’ll do it again this upcoming weekend – with 4 new entries on Thursday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday. I don’t blog on Saturdays. That’s my day of rest.
Your likes, follows, and comments are always appreciated. Thank You for being part of my online ministry to share God’s Good News and win souls for Christ through His music. I’m also on Twitter and Flickr.
Be blessed my friends ! May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
All rights reserved (c) 2020 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries
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