Listening through Lent

with James C. Howell and The Upper Room

Do you love hymns? Songs of faith shape our understanding of spiritual truths; they remind us who God is. When we listen to hymns, the music awakens our auditory imagination and embeds the words into our memories. Lingering in our hearts and minds, hymns offer a regular reminder of God’s loving and compassionate presence with us. This artful combination of music and lyric is a great gift.

Our Lenten eCourse, featuring James C. Howell’s Unrevealed Until Its Season: A Lenten Journey with Hymns, centers on key phrases of well-loved hymns. “Take My Moments,” “One Little Word Shall Fell Him,” “Mystic Sweet Communion,” and “Wonderful Words”—phrases like these become the rich subject matter for daily readings from Ash Wednesday through Easter Sunday. Join us for this Lenten reflection of hymns as we explore these themes:

  • Merciful and Mighty: Hymns Praising God
  • Beautiful Savior: Hymns About Jesus
  • Prone to Wander: Hymns of Forgiveness
  • Thy Presence My Light: Hymns of Vision
  • With Joy Surround You: Hymns of Beauty
  • Stony the Road: Hymns of Holy Week
  • Love’s Redeeming Work: Hymns of Easter

Our eCourse includes:

  • A daily meditation (reading) for each of the 40 days of Lent
  • Weekly recorded videos with author James C. Howell
  • The recording of a webinar with author Rev. Dr. James C. Howell (from Tuesday, February 15, 2022)


To purchase a print version of Unrevealed Until Its Season, visit The Upper Room online store.

Interested in online learning options based on your favorite Upper Room books? Look for this graphic and click it to learn more as you explore The Upper Room online store.



Your Instructor


James C. Howell
James C. Howell

Dr. James C. Howell has been senior pastor of Myers Park United Methodist Church since 2003, and has served churches in the Charlotte area for 36 years. He is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and Duke Divinity School, and has a Ph.D. from Duke. He has published 21 books, the most recent being Unrevealed Until Its Season: A Lenten Journey with Hymns. He serves on numerous nonprofit boards in the community, speaks frequently in Charlotte and around the country, and is an adjunct professor of preaching at Duke Divinity School.

Quotable Quote: "I love to preach, and try to think a lot about the intersection between God's story and what's going on in the lives of people and our community and world."

Fun Facts: Dr. Howell grew up in Columbia. He and Lisa Stockton Howell (her dad, Tom, pastored Myers Park United Methodist) have three children: Sarah, Grace and Noah. He bikes, loves books and movies, plays piano and played Captain von Trapp in a community theater production of The Sound of Music.


Course Content


  Recordings
Available in days
days after you enroll

Frequently Asked Questions


When does the eCourse start and finish?
The eCourse is intended to start with Lent and continue for six weeks, from Ash Wednesday through Easter. But it will remain open indefinitely. It’s self-paced, so you can decide when to start and when to finish.
How long do I have access to the eCourse?
How does lifetime access sound? After enrolling, you have unlimited access to this eCourse for as long as you like—across any and all devices you own. We’ll give you plenty of notice should we need to close the eCourse.
What if I am unhappy with the eCourse?
We would never want you to be unhappy! If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, contact us within the first 30 days and we will give you a full refund.
Who sponsors these eCourses?
This eCourse is brought to you by The Upper Room.

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