More of The Blessing

Recordings of “The Blessing” have continued to pop up as communities of Christians all over the world have recorded virtual choir versions.

 Christianity Today has a thoughtful article about how the text is translated into different languages. We tend to overuse the word “blessing” in English; “Be blessed,” “bless your heart,” various hashtags, etc. Our worship and knowledge of God can be deepened by hearing how He is praised in other languages. The article contains a link to over 100 Youtube versions of “The Blessing.”

Blessed by “The Blessing”

A dialect from the Philippines translates the word “blessing” to “caused to be pierced by words causing grace.” How lovely; how sobering.

To Be a Pilgrim

This is an obvious post and long overdue. The title of this blog comes from this song!

To Be a Pilgrim - Maddy Prior

Don’t you love the exuberance of the Renaissance instruments? I used to cover a Maddy Prior version of “Poor Little Jesus” that I’ll post sometime. She is a fun singer.

This is the only hymn John Bunyan wrote. Wikipedia has two versions of the lyrics listed - Bunyan’s original and the 1904 version that is probably more familiar. The original text is more fanciful and forceful at the same time. Bunyan spent time in jail for his beliefs...he understood firsthand how discouragement and “dismal stories” meant to deter a Christian could end up strengthening him. May it be so with us!

John Bunyan's Original Version	1906 The English HymnalVersion
1. Who would true valour see,	1. He who would valiant be
Let him come hither;	′Gainst all disaster,
One here will constant be,	Let him in constancy
Come wind, come weather	Follow the Master.
There’s no discouragement	There’s no discouragement
Shall make him once relent	Shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent	His first avowed intent
To be a pilgrim.	To be a pilgrim.
2. Whoso beset him round	2. Who so beset him round
With dismal stories,	With dismal stories,
Do but themselves confound;	Do but themselves confound——
His strength the more is.	His strength the more is.
No lion can him fright,	No foes shall stay his might,
He’ll with a giant fight,	Though he with giants fight:
But he will have a right	He will make good his right
To be a pilgrim.	To be a pilgrim.
3.  Hobgoblin, nor foul fiend[,]	3. Since, Lord, thou dost defend
Can daunt his spirit;	Us with thy Spirit,
He knows he at the end	We know we at the end
Shall life inherit.	Shall life inherit.
Then fancies fly away,	Then fancies flee away!
He’ll fear not what men say,	I’ll fear not what men say,
He’ll labour night and day	I’ll labour night and day
To be a pilgrim.[4]	To be a pilgrim.[5]

Family Hymn Sing

Here is another of the Getty Family Hymn Sings, this one with the added pleasure of Sandra McCracken and Tim Nicholson. It is a simple porch singalong, not a concert, though the musicians have certainly performed in front of large audiences.

Getty Hymn Sing

The comments below the video are almost as enjoyable as the music. People from all over the world are blessed and encouraged by these sings.

It is fun to see and hear three of the Getty little girls join in, though one of them gets past her bedtime...

Someone does persuade her off-camera eventually. Maybe they will move the rocking chair before the next porch sing. 

Joy in the Journey

There is a joy in the journey.

There’s a light we can love on the way.

There is a wonder and wildness to life,

And freedom for those who obey.

All those who seek it shall find it;

A pardon for all who believe,

Hope for the hopeless and sight for the blind.

To all who’ve been born of the Spirit,

And who share incarnation with Him,

Who belong to eternity, stranded in time, 

And weary of struggling with sin.

Forget not the hope that’s before you, 

And never stop counting the cost,

Remember the hopelessness when you were lost?

Joy in the Journey - Michael Card

Wonderful poet, deep-thinking theologian, and gifted musician. All those terms describe Michael Card. The link above is to a live performance with just Michael, the piano, and a cellist. So beautiful! 

I remember sweeping a house in Decatur while waltzing to this music, truly feeling “a wonder and wildness to life.” Our little church plant met in that house, and we were preparing for a wedding. It was around 1989, and the song was new to me then. Different phrases have been more meaningful at different seasons. Sometimes “who belong to eternity, stranded in time, and weary of struggling with sin” resonates the most. (“That’s right, I don’t quite belong here...”) Other times I need to be reminded to press on - “Forget not the hope that’s before you.” It is all a journey, and there is always joy in some measure.

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need - Thompson

Click the link above to enjoy one of the loveliest choral arrangements ever. The Washington Cathedral Choir does a wonderful job with it, though no one could match Ross Magoulas conducting the Berry Singers back in the day. Magoo (our nickname for him) would vary the tempo of the verses in a way that gave the song more energy.

Mack Wilberg has a lush, beautiful arrangement of the same words and basic tune. Enjoy this performance by the Baylor A Cappella Choir conducted by my conducting mentor, Alan Raines.

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need - Wilberg

No one conducts singers better than Alan Raines at his best. We sang this song at a tour through Finland, Estonia, and Russia just as I completed my Master’s in Choral Conducting at Georgia State University in 2004. Dr. Raines asked me to play flute while Katie Baughman played the violin. Mostly due to my lack of technique as a flutist, as well as having an instrument in need of an overhaul, I felt the flute was too shrill and pitchy to work well with the violin. I ended up playing the Yamaha recorder that I always kept in my flute case. It just worked better.

Katie Baughman has gone on to earn a PhD in voice and is now a cantor at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception as well as having done a stint in the Army as one of the Singing Sergeants. Well done, Katie!

My trip down memory lane with this song was actually a distraction. Music can be that way sometimes. The text came to mind as I was out walking today. These are sobering, sad times. No choirs are singing, much less performing international tours. Parents of school-aged children are being asked to make decisions based on the shifting sand of scientific recommendations. Our politics have gotten so toxic that the average person is rightfully suspicious of anything that comes out of the mouth of an elected official.

I started Life Without Lack by Dallas Willard right about the time the pandemic struck the US. I’m going slowly, savoring every sentence. It is a study of the 23rd Psalm, which the above songs are based on. What do we mean when we say “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want?” It means that in God we have everything we need; we can truly live a life without lack. We don’t need assurances about how and when things will be more normal, he is our shepherd. He’s got it. We are already part of his flock, his kingdom, and that will not be shaken, even by death.

I need to spend more time in that book.

Home

We are nearing the end of a 14 day quarantine after being exposed to Covid. Sunday is a little too close for me to sit inside a room with other folks. The sanctuary is capacious, but I want to be a few days past the minimum to safely be with others.

I’ll miss hearing our friend Michael Boyd sing special music “I Need Thee Every Hour.” I don’t have a recording of him singing, but I did write about the song a few weeks ago. You can read background and listen to some recordings Here.

Psalm 13

Psalm 13 is the text of my pastor’s sermon this week.

In searching for a song that would go with that text, I came across this gem.

Psalm 13 - Alisa Turner

I had never heard of Alisa Turner. She has had many opportunities to lament in her life - the loss of her father at a young age, a debilitating illness, and the tragic loss of a baby who lived little more than an hour after his birth.

Alisa reveals her psalmist‘s heart as quoted in “The Heartbreaking, Hopeful Story of Alisa Turner”

“I think the Lord created me this way, drawn in by the emotion that comes with music,” she says. “When I sit down at the piano, He always uses it to draw me back, to awaken the dreamer, and I always leave different than when I came. I leave different knowing He sees me, He is with me, He is my hope.”


If all goes as planned, a little group of us will gather at Sardis UMC in the Chastain Park neighborhood of Atlanta on Sunday, June 28, for the first in-person worship service in almost four months.

We will sit outside, and instead of leading singing I’ll use my trusty iPhone to play music. Three of the four songs are ones I picked that  blessed and encouraged me as I blogged about music during the fifty days of Easter. You can find out more about them by checking on the links below.

O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing

Jesus Paid It All

Way Maker

Silence

Much of great music is silence - knowing when to rest.

Many scriptures are instructions to be quiet, to “be still and know that I am God,” yet we tend to rush past them.

Some years ago I found myself drawn more and more to Christian traditions of quiet and listening and began to take steps to slow life down a bit. It has been an uneven process. 

Ken and I are taking an Emotionally Healthy Spirituality course with a couple of old friends. Taking intentional time to listen to God is part of the course. Watching this video is a suggested part.

https://youtu.be/e5_vOr6mPCA

I loved it. It was such a relief to not have to listen to a sound track while watching a video! Christians have a bad habit of using sentimental chord progressions to manipulate emotions. There, I said it. It is kinder to say that the music sets a mood, but chord progressions - the order of the chords - can evoke a response in many people.  Play certain chords with a particular backbeat and watch a room full of people raise their hands. Play another set of chords and watch them bow their heads. Play music under the pastor giving an invitation to ...give it emotional emphasis? (I’ve never understood that one, but it is the constant habit in some churches.)

Music is a very effective way to move a service along. I say with complete sincerity that almost anyone in the church can step in and do my job of song leading on Sunday morning, many people can preach a sermon if the pastor needs to be out, but it is a complicated thing to replace our pianist/organist. The music cues the congregation to stand, sit, return from the congregational greeting, open their wallets at offertory...and we don’t have nearly as music-driven a service as many churches. A smooth wedding ceremony is usually due to musicians paying attention to the flow of the service and pastors paying attention to the musicians. 

But I digress. Silence is a wonderful thing, if you can find it. It is worth seeking out.

Pentecost!

We made it!

Fifty days of Easter, not quite fifty songs unless we count Holy Week.

We cap off this liturgical journey with a hymn more suited to Ascension Day than Pentecost, but it leaves us with a joyous picture of the Lamb upon his throne, suffering over, victory complete.

Crown Him With Many Crowns - Norton Hall Band

Crown Him With Many Crowns - Westminster Abbey

The first selection is performed by a joyous group of young people associated with Southern Seminary, the second is from a Commonwealth Day service in 2017.

The body of Christ is truly the most diverse, beautiful community in the world. You don’t have to look hard to see it, it cannot help being what it is.

My exercise in (almost) daily blogging is complete for now, but I’ve enjoyed it, learned from it, and will now switch over to blogging on an occasional basis. Thanks for reading and listening!

49th Day of Easter - Way Maker

To be only five years old, this song has an impressive history!

Here is the song performed live by the songwriter - Way Maker - Sinach

Sinach is derived from the name Osinachi Joseph. She is from Nigeria, and I believe the video was shot at a mega church in Lagos.

It has been recorded by multiple Christian artists. Here it is, with the text,
Way Maker - Leeland

And here it is in a hospital parking lot in Cartersville, GA. Folks are singing for the staff as well as the patients. Way Maker

You can find other parking lot videos of it as it has become an anthem of hope during the pandemic season.

48th Day of Easter - Where Can I Go From Your Spirit?

This tune was not what I was looking for when I had Psalm 139 in my head, but what a find! Enjoy this treasure -

Where Can I Go From Your Spirit - Jocelyn B. Smith

The song is only the first three minutes or so of the Youtube. There is some dead space, then another song begins around 6.25 which is based on Psalm 148:1-4.

And this is a good place to share one of my favorite songs ever - With My Maker - Eric Bibb

“After all is said and done, with my Maker I’m one” can be taken a variety of ways, but I hear it in light of Psalm 139 - there is no place on earth, heaven or hell where we can be away from God.
It also brings to mind Romans 8:38,39 -

For I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Death can’t, and life can’t. The angels won’t, and all the powers of hell itself cannot keep God’s love away. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, or where we are —high above the sky, or in the deepest ocean — nothing will ever be able to separate us from the love of God demonstrated by our Lord Jesus Christ when he died for us.  (The Living Bible)

47th Day of Easter - Christ Be In My Waking

Stuart Townend is the other half of the duo who wrote “In Christ Alone.” Townend and Keith Getty have had a huge positive influence on congregational singing in this century.

My church choir would have sung a choral arrangement of this song this spring, if all had gone as I planned for the Easter season. It will keep until another day. In the meantime, enjoy hearing the songwriter perform it along with a fun little video.

Christ Be In My Waking

46th Day of Easter - O Love That Will Not Let Me Go

This song isn’t sung very often because the tune it is set to in hymnals sounds very dated — the overly-sentimental style of the late 19th century is a bit syrupy for most congregations these days.

If you want to listen to the lyrics sung in a spirit of worship, I suggest this lovely choral arrangement, though it oddly leaves out the last verse. That is a shame.  I suspect the composer wanted it to be more palatable for public school choruses, so she left out the reference to the cross.

O Love - Elaine Hagenberg

If you want to sing along with a tune that works well with the text, try this one.

O Love That Will Not Let Me Go - Indelible Grace

(I wish the singable version above didn’t have such a country hoedown feel, but it is a wonderful tune for congregational singing.)

And if you enjoy over-the-top sentimentality done well, look no further than this version of the traditional ST. MARGARET tune.

O Love That Will Not Let Me Go - Bill Gaither TV

The words were written by George Matheson, a Scottish clergyman who became the pastor of a 2,000 member church - a mega-church even by modern standards. The accomplishment was particularly notable in that Matheson had very poor vision in his youth and went totally blind as a young adult. He never married, having had a youthful engagement broken by a fiancée who decided she didn’t want to live her life with a blind man. Though this song was written some twenty years after the engagement, it is not hard to imagine that Matheson may have still felt a sense of loss and rejection. Whatever the cause of his suffering, God met him in it and gave him”dayspring from on high.”

The site Hymnal.net includes Matheson’s account of writing the song:

My hymn was composed in the manse of Innellan on the evening of June 6th, 1882. I was at the time alone. It was the day of my sister’s marriage, and the rest of the family were staying overnight in Glasgow. Something happened to me, which was known only to myself, and which caused me the most severe mental suffering. The hymn was the fruit of that suffering. It was the quickest bit of work I ever did in my life. I had the impression rather of having it dictated to me by some inward voice than of working it out myself. I am quite sure that the whole work was completed in five minutes, and equally sure that it never received at my hands any retouching or correction. I have no natural gift of rhythm. All the other verses I have ever written are manufactured articles; this one came like a dayspring from on high. I have never been able to gain once more the same fervor in verse. ”


And here is the inspired text:

O love that will not let me go,I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
that in thine ocean depths its flow
may richer, fuller be.

O light that foll’west all my way,I yield my flick’ring torch to thee;
my heart restores its borrowed ray,
that in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
may brighter, fairer be.

O joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
and feel the promise is not vain
that morn shall tearless be.

O cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
and from the ground there blossoms red
life that shall endless be.

45th Day of Easter - Before the Throne of God Above

I thought I posted this song earlier; it is one of my favorites. The words were written in 1863 by Charitie Lees Smith, an Irish pastor’s daughter. Not much is known about her life, other than that she wrote devotional poetry and was widowed once or twice.

I had never heard the song until the late 90s or so and thought it was a new composition. 

Here is a sparse, socially distance version. Before the Throne - Bradshaw and McCracken

If you want to sing along, go with this one. Before the Throne - Congregational

I love the text change at the end of verse one from “No tongue can bid me thence depart” to “No power can force me to depart” in the congregational version. Here is the text most of us know.

Before the Throne

Before the throne of God above 
I have a strong and perfect plea 
A great High Priest whose name is love 
Who ever lives and pleads for me 
My name is graven on His hands 
My name is written on His heart 
I know that while in heav’n He stands 
No tongue can bid me thence depart 
No tongue can bid me thence depart 

When Satan tempts me to despair 
And tells me of the guilt within 
Upward I look and see Him there 
Who made an end of all my sin 
Because the sinless Savior died 
My sinful soul is counted free 
For God the Just is satisfied 
To look on Him and pardon me 
To look on Him and pardon me 

Behold Him there, the risen Lamb 
My perfect, spotless Righteousness 
The great unchangeable I AM 
The King of glory and of grace 
One with Himself, I cannot die 
My soul is purchased by His blood 
My life is hid with Christ on high 
With Christ my Savior and my God 
With Christ my Savior and my God 

44th Day of Easter - Sicut Cervus and the man who saved polyphony

For a long time, church music sounded like this - Pascha Nostrum Organum - Leonin

Beautiful and worshipful in its way, but hard to dance to. One part gets a little movement, but the bottom voices are static. (Our word “tenor” comes from the Latin teneo which means “to hold.” You can see that the tenor line holds the text, while the top line gets to move around a bit.)

Then polyphony developed - lines of music moving in different directions, little independent melodies that are incredibly satisfying to sing for those willing to work at it a little.
Here is a 12th century example - O Primus Homo Coruit

But church musicians started doing what church musicians are still prone to doing, using their position to indulge their musical tastes, push the boundaries, focus on jamming with their musician friends more than serving the church, and generally showing off. Those lovely independent lines of music are very fun to sing, but the text, already in a language different than the vernacular of the poor peasants, get obscured.

I’m not sure if this piece by Guillaume Dufay counts as overly-busy polyphony - I find it lovely - but probably couldn’t follow the text. Dufay  (Side note - it is very hard to follow choral text no matter how simple it is. The phenomena of multiple voices singing. But I digress from an already lengthy digression)

Enter Martin Luther and the Protestant reformation in 1517 and an emphasis on understandable text when singing. Then the generation-long Council of Trent (1545-1563) and the Catholic Counter-Reformation. How could polyphony continue as a valid part of music when it so obscured the text? Some of the reformers wanted to do away with it completely - get that rock and roll out of the church! - and return to simple chant-like music.

Legend has it that Palestrina was asked to compose a mass that was beautiful and worshipful while it retained polyphony, showing that the style of music could be reformed. So he set the mass text to lovely, restrained polyphony and, to make it even more acceptable, named it after the pope.

Pope Marcellus Mass - Kyrie

Polyphony was preserved! And now I add the song that I intended to put at the top, Sicut Cervus by Palestrina, along with a brief note that this is the text of Psalm 42, “As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs after you.” I posted several songs set to that text a few days ago. But the Palestrina story is too fun not to share, even though it is probably exaggerated.

Sicut Cervus

43rd Day of Easter - “The Blessing” Update

Last weekend I posted “The Blessing” from several places - Pittsburgh, the UK, Latin America, and South Africa.

Here are a few more - The Malaysia Blessing

From Down Under - Australia and Papua New Guinea

The Canadians! - The Blessing - Canada

And don’t miss this lovely version, in English and Hebrew, recorded by a couple in Israel -

The Blessing - Sarah Liberman

42nd Day of Easter - His Mercy is More

Praise the Lord! His mercy is more! 

Stronger than darkness, new every morn, 

Our sins they are many, His mercy is more.

This is a nice one to play over and over in one’s head. You can read the text as you sing along here

 - His Mercy is More - Sovereign Grace Music

Enjoy a shortened version while you sing along with the Gettys. All four little girls make it through this one - His Mercy is More - Getty Family

And here is one of the composers, Matt Boswell, singing it along with the Boyce College Choir.

His Mercy is More - Mark Boswell

Matt Papa is a co-writer of this song. 

And a last minute addition for those of us who love energetic choral singing - The A Cappella Company - His Mercy is More

41st Day of Easter - Psalm 42

Enjoy this Welsh children’s choir singing a familiar version of Psalm 42 in both English and Welsh.

As the Deer-Cor Ysgol Y Strade

When I was a high school choral director, one of the most powerful pieces of music I ever heard or conducted was a version of Psalm 42 in Hebrew by Andrew Bleckner. Here are The University of Memphis Singers performing the piece, accompanied by video of their visit to Dachau.

Psalm 42 - Bleckner

Here is the text and translation of what the students are singing. It is magnificent text setting.

K'ayal ta'arog al afikei mayim
Kein nafshi ta'arog eilecha, Elohim.
Tsamah nafshi leilohim l'eil chai,
Matai avo v'eiraýeh p'nei Elohim?

Ma tishtochachi, nafshi?
Ooma tehemi alai?
Hochili leilohim!
Ki od odenu,
Yeshuot panav, Elohai.

As a deer longs for flowing streams
So my soul longs for you O Beloved, the living God.
My soul thirsts for you O Beloved, the living God.
When Shall we meet face to face?

Why are you so desolate, my soul?
Why so distraught within me?
Hope in the divine source of all!
For I shall praise the Holy One.
My ever present saviour, My God

40th Day of Easter - Simple Gifts

It is refreshing to my soul to listen to instrumental music that I can sing along with in my head. I grow weary of watching singers’s faces. It can be an awkward thing, singing.

Simple Gifts - William Coulter and Barry Philips

What do you hear in your head - “Simple Gifts” or “Lord of the Dance?”

Here is a simple, exquisite version by Yo-Yo Ma and Alison Krauss

The song was written in 1848 by Joseph Brackett, a Shaker living in Maine. Sydney Carter wrote the “Lord of the Dance” lyrics in the 1960s.

Aaron Copland is probably the person most responsible for popularizing the tune. He used it as the basis for Appalachian Spring, a ballet by Martha Graham. You can find the entire ballet on Youtube, with or without dancers, as well as videos of the Simple Gifts segment set to lovely nature pictures. Most of the pictures appear to be the Rockies, but keep looking...

Michael Flatley exploded on the dance concert scene with Lord of the Dance in the 90’s. While my daughters and I loved the Celtic sound combined with the wonderful Irish dancing, I would occasionally ponder the irony of the original text set to such a lavish, ego-centric production.

For years I would have mentally heard “Lord of the Dance” lyrics and still appreciate the truth of those words, but the original lyrics speak to me of humility, of paring life down to its essence, and still having joy. The tune is always associated with dancing -“to turn” probably has a double meaning - repent and come round right as you turn in a circle with other dancers. Lovely image both ways.

Simple Gifts

‘Tis a gift to be simple, ‘tis a gift to be free,
‘Tis a gift to come round where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gained,
To bow and to bend we shan’t be ashamed,
To turn, turn, will be our delight,
Till by turning, turning we come ‘round right.

39th Day of Easter - Love Theory

This makes me want to get up and move - a sort of gospel exercise video.

Love Theory - Kirk Franklin

“I don’t wanna love no body but you...” is not a bad chorus to have stuck in one’s head.

A young Kirk Franklin performed with the huge gospel choir that sang at the opening ceremonies of the 1996 ParaOlympic Games. I still have the flashy gold sash I wore as I stood with around 5,000 other volunteer singers from the area. We couldn’t afford tickets to any of the Olympic events, but I got to sit in the stadium for the opening ceremonies because I sang in the choir. Good times!

38th Day of Easter - Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

When I shut my eyes and pondered posting a song for today, this one popped into mind.

I like this a cappella version by a men’s choir - Praise to the Lord-Altar of Praise

It is fun to see the wide variety of churches that have recorded this hymn. Here it is sung in St. Andrew’s in Glasgow:  Praise to the Lord - congregational

Several comments underneath the St. Andrew’s video complain that the song is sung too fast, and one writer objects to the “twiddling.” I prefer a quick tempo as I hear the song as a dance, but I understand about the organ twiddles between verses. They aren’t needed, but they aren’t as egregious here as the strummy guitar interludes inserted in worship choruses or long organ flourishes inserted between verses of hymns. It is a buzzkill for singers to have to wait for the twiddling to finish before they can continue singing.

German composer Joachim Neander published this song in 1680, setting the text to a likely folk tune. J. S. Bach used it as the basis for a chorale, Lobe den Herren. There is some criticism that our English translation by Catherine Winkworth “updates” the text to suit her 19th century notions. She is responsible for inserting the reference to “health,” which has always felt oddly out-of-place to me. I always want to sing “He is my help and salvation.” The original German, as I understand it, may reference a psaltery and harp in that verse.

It is a wonderful, worshipful song to sing no matter how many ways translators and musicians mess with it.

37th Day of Easter - Evolution of Worship Music

David Wesley describes himself as a “self-producing artist creating multi-track magic in [his] basement to share the gospel and have a little fun on the side :)”

I’d say he achieves those goals with this medley he calls The Evolution of Worship Music.

I love his little touches...burdens are LIFTED at Calvary..the lighter held aloft during “Pass It On.”

Speaking of “Burdens Lifted at Calvary,” that is the only song up until the 1990s that I don’t know very well.

I can sing multiple verses of all the other songs until the mid-90s, then I can barely hum along. I’ve spent the last 15 years in a church that sings almost exclusively from the hymnal, so I’m sorry that I may have missed some very good songs. I wonder if churches still sing many songs written over a dozen years ago? It seems that we sing songs composed in the last decade, or we jump back a century or two. Nothing sounds as dated as the worship music of people half a generation older than us, does it?

Either way, enjoy this talent and heart of this charming young man.

34-36th Days of Easter - “The Blessing” to date

A few days ago I posted The Blessing - UK, a wonderful “virtual” musical production of a song based on the traditional blessing in Numbers 6:24-26.

I didn’t realize that video was just one part of a global viral sensation...the good kind of viral.

I since watched this extended interview about the making of the video - When worship goes viral - Tim Hughes

Curious about Hughes’s reference to someone “in the States” who wrote the song, I searched and found what I think is the first version of the song, recorded by the couple who wrote it, in early March of this year. It tugs my heart a bit that this was one of the last times a group this size came together for worship, or anything else, in months.

The Blessing with Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes

While their recording is powerful, worship as an emotional music event is not something that all Christians appreciate. I can enjoy it on some levels but balk when it feels more like a rock concert than a worship event. People have very different ideas of where to draw the line between worship and emotionalism.

But the song takes on an whole new meaning when performed by different singers in different locations. It becomes greater than the sum of its parts, and art is created as well as a unique, worshipful experience for the observer/participant.

The earliest community I’ve found who recorded the song this way is in Pittsburg.

The Pittsburgh Blessing

Then South Africa,
The Blessing - South Africa

Latin America!
La Bendicion Latino America

There are more that I will add in a future post, but this already has so many links that it will cover three days of Easter.

33rd Day of Easter - Jesus Paid It All

Some artists create deep reservoirs of good work we can return to again and again. Fernando Ortega is such an artist. By keeping his arrangements simple, he avoids rooting them in a specific decade.

Jesus Paid It All- Fernando Ortega

According to a story on Christianity.com, Elvira Hall wrote the words to this song in the fly leaf of her hymnal while sitting in the choir loft of Monument Street Methodist Church in Baltimore on a Sunday morning In 1865. She showed them to her pastor, who realized they would work well with a tune that the church organist, John Grape, had recently created. Hall and Grape finished the song together, sent it off to a publisher, and it has been a congregational favorite in many churches ever since.

If you enjoy a country sound, here it is by Joey and Rory. Joey was featured here a few days ago singing “Softly and Tenderly.”

Jesus Paid It All - Joey and Rory

32nd Day of Easter - O For aThousand Tongues to Sing

This is not the tune most Americans expect to hear. After searching for good recordings of the more familiar AZMON melody, I gave in and fell in love with this version.

O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing - Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band

It is toe-tapping wonderful. Here is a large congregational choir singing the same LYNGHAM tune:

LYNGHAM - O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing

Charles Wesley wrote the hymn, “Glory to God, and praise and love, be ever, ever given” in 1739 to commemorate the one year anniversary of his Christian renewal. It was published in 1740 and has been sung since then, in some form or another, by Methodists and most other Protestants. In subsequent years it has been shortened to verses 7-10 or so. Some of the words sounds insensitive to our ears, but they probably wouldn’t have in Wesley’s day.

I first learned the song when I was in high school, singing in the Billy Graham Evangelistic Choir. Graham came to Atlanta in 1973, and I was a new Christian and just old enough to join other members of my church in volunteering with the choir and counseling teams. The pastor of that church, Jim Swilley, passed away last week. He shepherded Faith Memorial Assembly of God through some tough, lean times, but it was an exciting time to a new Christian. Thank you, Brother Swilley. May you Rest In Peace, eternally in the memory of Christ.

1. Glory to God, and praise and love,
Be ever, ever given;
By saints below and saints above,
The Church in earth and heaven.

2. On this glad day the glorious Sun
Of righteousness arose,
On my benighted soul he shone,
And filled it with repose.

3. Sudden expired the legal strife;
'Twas then I ceased to grieve.
My second, real, living life,
I then began to live.

4. Then with my heart I first believed,
Believed with faith divine;
Power with the Holy Ghost received
To call the Saviour mine.

5. I felt my Lord's atoning blood
Close to my soul applied;
Me, me he loved - the Son of God
For me, for me he died!

6. I found and owned his promise true,
Ascertained of my part,
My pardon passed in heaven I know,
When written on my heart.

7. O For a thousand tongues to sing
My dear Redeemer's praise!
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!

8. My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread through all the world abroad
The honors of Thy name.

9. Jesus! the Name that charms our fears,
That bids our sorrows cease;
'Tis music in the sinner's ears,
'Tis life, and health, and peace.

10. He breaks the power of cancell'd sin,
He sets the prisoner free;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood avail'd for me.

11. He speaks, - and, listening to his voice,
New life the dead receive;
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice;
The humble poor believe.

12. Hear him, ye deaf; his praise, ye dumb,
Your loosen'd tongues employ;
Ye blind, behold your Saviour come,
And leap, ye lame, for joy.

13. Look unto him, ye nations; own
Your God, ye fallen race;
Look, and be saved through faith alone,
Be justified by grace.

14. See all your sins on Jesus laid;
The Lamb of God was slain;
His soul was once an offering made
For every soul of man.

15. Harlots, and publicans, and thieves,
In holy triumph join!
Saved is the sinner that believes,
From crimes as great as mine.

16. Murderers, and all ye hellish crew,
Ye sons of lust and pride,
Believe the Savior died for you;
For me the Saviour died.

17. Awake from guilty nature's sleep,
And Christ shall give you light,
Cast all your sins into the deep,
And wash the AEthiop white.

18. With me, your chief, ye then shall know,
Shall feel your sins forgiven;
Anticipate your heaven below,
And own that love is heaven.

31st Day of Easter - Needed Time

My friend Gail sent me this song. It was familiar but I had not paid attention to the words, “Right now is the needed time...I’m down on my bended knees, prayin’ won’t you come by here...” A simple, profound prayer, but the words take on special significance as we are in a most unusual period of time now.

Needed Time - Eric Bibb

Here is an earlier version that part of the soundtrack to the movie Sounder.

Needed Time - Lightnin Hopkins

Thanks, Gail!

30th Day of Easter - The UK Blessing

This is wonderful! Even if you are getting tired of watching compilation music videos like this, take the time to watch and listen to this diverse group of Christians in the UK singing words of blessing from the book of Numbers.

The UK Blessing

(Did anyone else get teary-eyed when the Salvation Army guys started singing?)

29th Day of Easter - Softly and Tenderly

I had not heard of Joey Feek  until I saw this video going around on Facebook, a little over four years ago, asking for prayers for this young mother who was dying of cervical cancer. Joey was an established country singer who performed with her husband, Rory Feek. They had a precious daughter together who appears in the video. The video is unforgettable - the song takes on a whole new meaning, less about repentance and more about a weary soul going home to be with Jesus in death.

Softly and Tenderly - Joey Feek

It is worth taking a few minutes to search Joey’s name and read about her. I was able to read some of her last blog posts years ago and was struck by her sweet faith as she faced death with courage and grace. I regretted not knowing about her sooner.

28th Day of Easter - Mother’s Day Sing

People use this “sheltering at home” season in different ways. This family has used it to create uplifting, encouraging, God-honoring, and laugh-out-loud funny music videos. The girls need a word or two before the next video or they may knock dad right off the piano stool!

This is the Getty’s Mother’s Day Sing.

You can watch them stream live on Tuesday evenings at 7:15 Central Time. The girls are watching “likes,” and hearts and such float up the screen as they perform.

This Tuesday, May 12, they will have a bluegrass singalong. For more info about that, check their Getty Music website.

27th Day of Easter - When They Ring Those Golden Bells

The unbelievably low voice which begins this song belongs to the bass in a group called The Acappella Company.  The singers appear to be comfy, standing round rehearsing in someone’s basement. Take a listen.

When They Ring Those Golden Bells

This song has the sentimentality typical of mid-19th century poetry, but it has a sweetness as well. The songwriter was a young immigrant named Daniel de Marbelle. It is unclear if de Marbelle came from France or Spain as a young child, and as an adult he lived in various places and had many occupations from working a whaling ship, serving as a drummer or drum major in both the Mexican-American war and for the Union in the Civil War. He eventually found work as a musician and clown in the James Anthony Bailey Circus which later became part of the P.T. Barnum circus. Along the way, de Marbelle wrote “When They Ring Those Golden Bells,” but he supposedly was cheated out of the copyright and died without receiving any payment for the song, which went on to become quite popular.

26th Day of Easter - Sweetest Song I Know

This makes me happy every time I hear it. It is a delight to the eyes as well.

Sweetest Song I Know-Armor Music Ministry

You can follow the group on Facebook under the name Advent Euphony Zimbabwe.

They have such impeccable harmonies to go along with their joyous singing! Their diction is so precise that there is no need to write out the text. Enjoy!

25th Day of Easter - As the Ruins Fall

As the Ruins Fall - text by C. S. Lewis. Music and performance by Phil Keaggy

It occurred to me when this song came to mind yesterday that there is probably no other song I can think of that has influenced my life and theology as much as this one. I memorized all the words as I listened in my college dorm room, but certain lines pop...”All this is flashy rhetoric about loving you, I’ve never had a selfless thought since I was born...Peace, reassurance, pleasures are the goals I seek, I cannot crawl one inch outside my proper skin. I talk of love - a scholar’s parrot may talk Greek - but self-imprisoned always end where I begin.”  Those words remind me of my need for Christ and  the utter failure of my own righteousness. No trite platitudes here!

C. S. Lewis’s text (full poem below)  is as meaningful  today as it was back in the 70s, but the tune may not have held up as well to contemporary listeners. Phil Keaggy is an amazing guitarist and one of the giants of the Jesus Movement. His Wikipedia entry is worth reading if you have the time. I actually enjoy this rough recording of a live performance more than album recording I learned in my dorm because, though as a flutist it pains me to say it, the flute part gets a little long.

As the Ruins Fall - Love Broke Through album (1977)

As the Ruins Fall - Live Performance 2010

As The Ruin Falls

C. S. Lewis

All this is flashy rhetoric about loving you.
I never had a selfless thought since I was born.
I am mercenary and self-seeking through and through:
I want God, you, all friends, merely to serve my turn.

Peace, re-assurance, pleasure, are the goals I seek,
I cannot crawl one inch outside my proper skin:
I talk of love—a scholar’s parrot may talk Greek—
But, self-imprisoned, always end where I begin.

Only that now you have taught me (but how late) my lack.
I see the chasm. And everything you are was making
My heart into a bridge by which I might get back
From exile, and grow man. And now the bridge is breaking.

For this I bless you as the ruin falls. The pains
You give me are more precious than all other gains.

24th Day of Easter - Reckless Love

This song can be very moving to sing along with.  I love the imagery of Jesus kicking down doors and tearing down lies “coming after me.” The walls and lies are of my own making, after all.

It was written by Cory Asbury and you can enjoy hearing him in several places on YouTube, but in my musical minimalism I enjoy this young lady and her guitarist friend.

Reckless Love - Leanna Crawford

And because the body of Christ is a beautiful, unique, dynamic, living body of believers, here is
a young man at West Point singing it while he plays the piano - Reckless Love - Caleb McKee and last, and very much least musically, but interesting none the less, is
Reckless Love - Justin Bieber

(And I should include the songwriter’s version Reckless Love - Cory Asbury)

Reckless Love

Before I spoke a word, You were singing over me
You have been so, so good to me
Before I took a breath, You breathed Your life in me
You have been so, so kind to me

Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn't earn it, and I don't deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God, yeah

When I was Your foe, still Your love fought for me
You have been so, so good to me
When I felt no worth, You paid it all for me
You have been so, so kind to me

And oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine
And I couldn't earn it, and I don't deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God, yeah

There's no shadow You won't light up
Mountain You won't climb up
Coming after me
There's no wall You won't kick down
Lie You won't tear down
Coming after me
There's no shadow You won't light up
Mountain You won't climb up
Coming after me
There's no wall You won't kick down
Lie You won't tear down
Coming after me
There's no shadow You won't light up
Mountain You won't climb up
Coming after me
There's no wall You won't kick down
Lie You won't tear down
Coming after me
There's no shadow You won't light up
Mountain You won't climb up
Coming after me
There's no wall You won't kick down
Lie You won't tear down
Coming after me

Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine
And I couldn't earn it, I don't deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God, yeah

23rd Day of Easter - How Deep the Father’s Love for Us

A sweet, pretty song - How Deep the Father’s Love for Us is composed by Stuart Townsend, the other half of the songwriting team the includes Keith Getty.
The words are a devotional all by themselves.



How deep the Father’s love for us,
How vast beyond all measure,
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure.
How great the pain of searing loss –
The Father turns His face away,
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory.
Behold, the man upon the cross,
My sin upon His shoulders;
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers.
It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished;
His dying breath has brought me life –
I know that it is finished.
I will not boast in anything;
No gifts, no power, no wisdom;
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,
His death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer;
But this I know with all my heart –
His wounds have paid my ransom.

22 Day of Easter - Up From the Grave He Arose

Isn’t it wonderful that a group of Indian gentlemen are singing a hymn in barbershop harmony with a gospel-like piano accompaniment?

Up From The Grave - Voice of Eden

Isn’t it interesting that the little video clips included show such an Anglo Jesus? It appears to be an official video of the group, not added by someone who posted the song. India was evangelized by the British and certainly influenced by European art aesthetics, but it makes me a little sad that the Bible scenes weren’t acted out by Indians. The Bible characters in my head tend to look like southern Italians or, if I’m honest, like the most recent video version I’ve seen in which Jesus looks at least a little bit Jewish. Blue eyes rarely appear in my imagination, even among the Romans. But we get used to imagining what we see in pictures, and Jesus looks very Northern European in most stained-glass windows.

While teaching English to high school students at The Bridge Academy two years ago, I showed the students a scene from Franco Zeffirelli’s  Jesus of Nazareth. We were reading through the book of John, and as I set up the scene I told them that Zeffirelli wanted the movie to look like classical depictions of Bible scenes from European art. He wasn’t going for realism, so the actors wouldn’t look like folks who lived on the edges of the Mediterranean.

As soon as Jesus appeared on the screen, it was apparent that at least one student hadn’t absorbed my introductory statement.

“Mrs. Evans, hold up, hold up, hold up. Are you saying that Jesus had blue eyes?”

“Didn’t you listen? She said it would look like European paintings, not real life,” chimed in another student.
 But I stopped the tape and we talked about it. All of the students in the small class were African-American boys, and we had a thoughtful discussion about realism. But that student was bothered, and it was understandable. Jesus was a real Jewish man, and the student and I like him to look that way in modern depictions that are striving for a degree of realism.

But Zeffirelli’s movie is a masterpiece, and you can watch the clip I showed the students Here.

21st Day of Easter - Only in God (Psalm 62)

John Michael Talbot’s album “Come to the Quiet” has very special significance for me. I remember listening to it over and over during our first year of marriage...we both had good jobs and had just bought a home, why was my soul so restless? We left that life and moved to Texas so Ken could start seminary, and life got harder, deeper, poorer and richer all at the same time. When the pain of childbirth was too great for words,  I tapped Ken’s arm to start and restart this song during the longest part of labor with our first child.

Only in God - John Michael Talbot


The version above is from the album, and I love the stark simplicity of it. Talbot sounds so young! Ken and a high school buddy hitchhiked to a rock music festival in Charlotte in the early ‘70s where JMT and his brother, Terry Talbot, were in a band called Mason Profit. Both Talbots, as well as Ken and his hitchhiking companion, became Christians soon after that. Everything changed.

Here you can see JMT perform the song with a live audience. He has had an interesting ministry as the founder of the Brothers and Sisters of Charity, a Catholic monastic community.

Only in God - Live version

20th Day of Easter - Getty Family Sing

What a wonderful gift this family has given through these weekly live performances!

Getty Family Sing April 28

If you are pressed for time, move to 12 minutes or so and listen to the amazing story Keith tells of setting Psalm 91 to music. Just 18 months ago, there was concern that the words “plague and pestilence” had little meaning for modern listeners. It is a wonderful song that Kristyn sings while Keith plays guitar and the girls bang around in the kitchen. They end with a rollicking version of “Great is Thy Faithfulness.” They introduce a new song early on, so watch the whole thing when you can.

If you are interested in getting words and chords to their songs so you can join in live on Tuesday evenings (7:15 CT), their website is Here.

19th Day of Easter - Sweet, Sweet Spirit

This is an old favorite of the Sardis UMC congregation where I have served as music minister for 15 years. This wonderful recording is an Adventist Choir and a congregation in North London singing together.

Sweet, Sweet Spirit

I love the harmony they split into at the high part - “sweet Holy Spirit, sweet heavenly dove...” That is where congregations tend to lose singers, or they drop an octave. Harmony makes it possible for everyone to sing in their best voice, together. We just can’t all sing the melody at the same time. There is a life lesson in that, for sure.

Read this, if you have time, to learn about the composer and the wonderful way the song came about. Story behind the song

18th Day of Easter - I Need Thee Every Hour

(My apologies for not posting every day of the Easter season. There are plenty of great songs, but 50 days of continuous posting is a bit more than I can find the time to do well)

I woke up with the chorus of this song in my head. Here is the hymn page with all the verses and a recorded version with some fine guitar picking in it. 

I Need Thee Every Hour hymn page

I Need Thee - Chelsea Moon w/ Franz Brothers

If you want to just sing the chorus over and over, join along with this congregation. I Need Thee - Don Moen

Annie S. Hawks wrote the words to “I Need Thee” in 1872. Her pastor, Rev. Robert Lowry, composed the music and added the repeating chorus. I wonder if we would know the song without the chorus - it is the most powerful part. 

Wikipedia quotes Ms. Hawks about her mood when she wrote the song -  "For myself, the hymn was prophetic rather than expressive of my own experiences, for it was wafted out to the world on the wings of love and joy, instead of under the stress of personal sorrow."

15th Day of Easter - We Will Feast in the House of Zion

Based on promises in Psalm 42 and 62 as well as Isaiah 43, Sandra McCracken’s “We Will Feast in the House of Zion” is especially appropriate for the anxious times in our lives.

We Will Feast in the House of Zion

You can easily find excellent video and audio recordings of the composer singing the song, but something about this woman’s offering is especially sweet and touched me in a way that the professional productions of the songs didn’t. Thank you, Laura Anderson. I, too, have been a little bit stressed lately and found that I couldn’t come up with a song every day, even though all I do is post other people’s work. You took the time to learn the chords and had the courage to post yourself singing. I hoped to do that myself but haven’t made it happen. You did, and it cheered my heart and encouraged me which is what you wanted all along, isn’t it?

12th Day of Easter - Getty Family Sing

Some of you enjoyed hearing the Gettys sing “In Christ Alone”with Alison Krauss during Holy Week. Here the Gettys are singing in their home with their adorable little girls.

Getty Family Sing

The Gettys have posted several family videos during the shelter-in-place season.

Here is In Christ Alone in case you missed it.

9th Day of Easter - I Heard the Angels Singing

Eric Bibb has a unique drive to his music that makes it instantly distinguishable. If I had to pick a favorite musician at this stage of my life, it would be him.

There are studio versions of Bibb performing this song that can be found online, but I love the minimalism of just the man with his guitar -

I Heard the Angels Singing

The lyrics are traditional, perhaps a spiritual.

I went down in the valley one day
I heard the angels singing
I heard a voice, I saw no one
I heard the angels singing
What you reckon the angels said
I heard the angels singing
Your sins is forgiven and your soul is free
I heard the angels singing
I went down in the valley one day
I heard the angels singing to me
I seen an old devil walk down my way
I heard the angels singing
What you reckon the devil said
I heard the angels singing
He said that heaven's door is closed, go home don't pray
But I heard the angels singing
I said get back sit down, get out of my way
I heard the angels singing
I don't wanna hear another word you say
Oh I heard the angels singing
Oh yes, I heard the angels singing
Just when I thought my soul was lost
I heard the angels singing
My dungeon was shook, my chains dropped off
I heard them singing
The people come running, saying what's it all about
I heard the angels singing
The holy ghost hit me, I could not help but shout
I heard the angels singing
When I went down in the valley one day
I heard the angels singing to me
I seen an old devil walk down my way
I heard the angels singing
I said get back sit down, get out of my way
I heard the angels
I don't wanna hear another word you say
Woo! I heard 'em singing
In that great getting up morning
I heard the angels singing to me
In that great getting up morning and I, whoo!
You know I heard the angels, hallelujah!