Tuesday is here again!!!! Welcome to The Notes!!
When reading the title to this week's Musical Notes, instant images of a
happy trumpet player with a gravely voice possibly popped into your
head....Well, let's complete the image:
What A Wonderful World Louis Armstrong
This
iconic song by Louis Armstrong has been used at weddings, funerals,
graduations, and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. It
didn't break the top 100 on American charts upon its initial release,
but zoomed to the top of the charts, reaching #1, in the UK. Tony
Bennett turned down the original offer to record "What A Wonderful
World". It was then offered to band leader Louis Armstrong who was the
oldest artist to ever reach #1 on the charts in England. At 66, Louis
Armstrong had a unique insight into how wonderful the world really could
be. His career started during the roaring '20s and would culminate in the clamor of the '60s. He would influence the music scene in America from the early 1920's until his death in 1971, where Bing Crosby,
Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Pearl Bailey, Count Basie, Harry
James, Frank Sinatra, Ed Sullivan, Earl Wilson, Alan King, Johnny Carson
and David Frost would serve as honorary pallbearers. In 1988, "What A Wonderful World" would be featured in the movie Good Morning, Viet Nam and subsequently be re-released as a single in the US reaching #32 on the top 100. His
impact on music continues to be felt as 41 years after his death, "What
A Wonderful World" is considered a go-to song for many a sentimental
situation.
"What A Wonderful World" seems to be a list for which the
writers were expressing thankfulness. Given the tumultuous state of
world affairs at the time, Louis Armstrong's delivery of "What A
Wonderful World" provided a perspective of hopefulness and gratitude.
As we enter the holiday season, it is so easy to speed up to Christmas and totally miss Thanksgiving, a
holiday that was established by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 as a
day to give thanks to God for our great nation. It was as trying a time
in our nation's history since the Revolutionary War. During the 3rd
year of the Civil War, President Lincoln gave this Proclamation:
Thanksgiving Day Proclamation President Abraham Lincoln
President
Lincoln saw the blessings and gave thanks for them "in the midst of a
civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity".... and I said to
myself.....what a wonderful world.
The spirit of gratitude during hard times would be one that
Christians should never forget. It shows to a lost world the
"peculiarity" of Christians, the ability to express gratefulness in times of trouble. King
David of Israel understood this intense ideology of gratitude during
hard times. When you search the Psalms of the Bible, you see time and
again David's thankfulness for God's grace and mercy. One particular
time, David initiated a Thanksgiving day for Israel. The ark of God was
about to return to Jerusalem. This event was a joyous time in the
nation of Israel after many years of intense civil and foreign wars of
their own. Please take a moment and read King David's Thanksgiving Day
Proclamation:
Thanksgiving Day Proclamation King David
"Search for the Lord and for His strength; seek His face always. Remember the wonderful works He has done,
His wonders, and the judgments He has pronounced" This line from
King David's proclamation seems to remind us to whom our thankfulness
should flow. So as we enter this season which will doubtless include
plans for Black Friday, watching the Razorbacks and LSU, and enjoying
some time off with family and friends, let's be intentional about being
thankful....
and I think to myself.....what a wonderful world.
'Til Tuesday,
Loving HIM by loving you,
Randy
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