Tag: hymn

25th anniversary of women’s priestly ministry in the C of E

church resources, hymns, worship

This was written for the service in York Minster on 17th May 2014, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of women priests in the Church of England – anyone is welcome to use it, and it may be useful for those now celebrating 25 years.

The tune is Londonderry Air.

Glory to God, the mother of creation,

in love you brought the universe to birth,

then gave your life to purchase the salvation

of all the sons and daughters of the earth.

Glory to you, for love that’s shown through history:

the warp and weft that patterns time and space.

By grace you’re known, yet known to be a mystery,

and we can touch eternity in your embrace.

Glory to you for calling us to service,

shepherds and stewards, messengers and priests,

we give ourselves in gratitude and gladness

as guests and hosts at your thanksgiving feast.

Our hearts exult in loving affirmation,

We sing with joy, your greatness we proclaim.

Your praise resounds in every generation,

Our souls with Mary magnify your holy name.

We are united, in Christ’s body dwelling,

one in the Spirit: wind and fire and dove;

one in the grace and hope of every calling,

to lift the ways of earth to heav’n above.

Through all our lives your power is ever flowing,

To show your work of love is underway;

Stir up your gift in us, your grace bestowing,

so we may speak and live your Word afresh today.

 

Ash Wednesday and Lent

art, ash wednesday, church resources, clipart, hymns, lent

Some stuff here – help yourselves 🙂

Lent sonnet

These forty days of prayer and discipline
are given for us to slowly grow in grace
and learn to be your people once again,
to find our truest home in your embrace.
In pilgrimage, through hours and days and weeks
of changing who we are and what we do,
the human heart may find that which it seeks:
ourselves, once restless, find their rest in you,
our mother hen, whose chicks at last come home
to find the safest place where they may cling;
we need not face the wilderness alone,
but nestle in shadow of your wing.
Oh, forty days of learning how to be
what you have promised us eternally.

Ash Wednesday hymn (tune: Picardy) – slightly revised

Dust to dust, we mark our repentance,
entering a guilty plea,
Ash to ash, we face our sentence,
Sin writ large for all to see:
Now these signs of all our falls from grace,
mark us for divine embrace.

Dust of earth once shaped and moulded
into this, our human frame,
Body, mind and soul enfolded,
given life and called by name.
Now O Lord remake our damaged form,
Hold us till our hearts grow warm.

Dust that fuels the lights of heaven,
Stars and planets passing by,
Atoms of creation’s splendour,
Earth to earth and sky to sky,
Now our dust, redeemed, sings loud and long
in that universal song.

Lent hymn / song (tune: slane)
the ten commandments verse can be omitted if that’s not your focus

Lord of our life, our beginning and end,
Our Father, our shepherd, our Saviour and friend,
We look to your teaching in each fresh new day
To lead us and guide us and show us your way.

Ten laws to teach us to live in your love,
Ten ways to make earth more like heaven above,
Ten rules to inspire all we think, say and do,
To help us be faithful in following you.

You are our safety, our great mother hen,
Whenever we wander you call us again,
We’ll always be drawn to your loving embrace
To nestle beneath the soft wings of your grace.

This is our story, and this is our song:
For we are your people, to you we belong,
Wherever life takes us, in all that we do,
Our hearts will find peace when we’re resting in you.

Songs for advent and Christmas

advent, all age, children's ministry, christingle, christmas, church resources, hymns, worship

Here are all the songs I’ve written for:
– The Lighting of the Advent Wreath
– Christingle (whenever it’s held)
– Advent generally
– Christmas

We’ll kindle a flame (Tune: Colours of Day) – for Christingles held in Advent

Jesus, you’re coming, bringing the love
That draws the earth near to heaven above,
We’ll wait as the darkness covers the earth,
And long for the joy of remembering your birth.

We’ll kindle a flame to shine through the night,
Living our lives to shine with your light,
And sharing your love in all that we do,
your wonderful story is our story too.

Fruit of the seasons, blessings to share,
This wondrous creation placed in our care,
The city and forest, ocean and land,
The whole world is treasured in God’s gentle hand.

We’ll kindle a flame to shine through the night,
Living our lives to shine with your light,
And sharing your love in all that we do,
your wonderful story is our story too. 

Love like a circle, love never ends,
The love of a God who calls us your friends,
A love without price, a free gift of grace,
That holds all the world in a heavenly embrace.

We’ll kindle a flame to shine through the night,
Living our lives to shine with your light,
And sharing your love in all that we do,
Your wonderful story is our story too. 

An extra verse to ‘This little light of mine’ for use with the sparkly Christingle talk:

When I am feeling dull and grey,
and sunshine seems so far away,
when I don’t know quite where to start,
I remember the stardust in my heart:
all it needs is a tiny spark
to get me shining in the dark,
So Jesus, give me your fire divine
to let my little light shine!

Advent Wreath Song (to the tune ‘Father we place into your hands’)

Mothers and fathers of the faith, who lived in times of old,
Leaders and judges, kings and queens were faithful, true and bold,
Travelers, heroes, shepherds, all with stories to be told:
Still they show us how to follow you.

Prophets and seers who spoke the truth in answer to your call,
finding new ways to bring your word to people great and small,
living their lives to show your love was meant for one and all,
still they show us how to follow you.

John, in the desert calling out, ‘The Kingdom has come near.’
‘Come and repent, and be baptised, there’s nothing then to fear.’
‘Jesus is coming now, the One you’re waiting for is here.’
Still he shows us how to follow you.

Mother of Jesus, angels called her favoured, full of grace,
Holding the Son of God, the Prince of Peace, in her embrace,
She is the one whose ‘yes’ helped God to save the human race,
still she shows us how to follow you.

And this last verse, for Christmas day, is by my friend and colleague Gill Robertson:

Jesus our Saviour, born a king, we welcome you today,
Lord of all time, Immanuel, with joyful hearts we say:
You are the Christ who came to earth for us; and now we pray,
Help us all to daily follow you.

Advent Sunday song (Tune: Sing hosanna)

There’s a story to tell of creation,
And the patriarchs’ faith of old,
There are stories of prophets and sages,
We’ll repeat them ‘til the world’s been told:

Sing together! sing together!
Sing to welcome in the King of Kings.
Sing together! Sing together!
Sing to welcome in the King.

There are stories of sin and forgiveness,
Of a Kingdom of truth and love.
Of a girl who gave birth to a baby,
To fulfil God’s promise from above:

As God’s people prepare for his coming,
And remember those days long gone,
Our own stories are yet to be written,
As we live to make God’s kingdom come:

We will patiently wait for the morning,
Through the night we will watch and pray,
As we look for the light that is dawning,
We’ll be ready at the break of day:

Advent Hymn (Tune: Picardy)

Longing for a hope-filled morning,
Kingdom of the Son, draw near!
Waiting for the day soon dawning,
Light of love that casts out fear.
Dayspring, come from heav’n, in lowly birth,
Come to warm this cold, dark earth.

Sorrow through the world is sweeping,
Bitter conflict rages still,
Heaven hears its children weeping:
cost of humankind’s freewill.
Come, O Price* of Peace, in lowly birth,
Come to mend this broken earth.

Pattern of the world’s salvation,
God and human side by side.
Colour, language, creed or nation,
No more should the world divide:
Come, Emmanuel, in lowly birth,
Show how heav’n embraces earth.

*This word started off as a typo, but I quite like it, as it echoes the ‘cost’ of the previous line…  If you use the hymn, you can choose whether to use Price or Prince

Little baby (Tune: The Sugar Plum Fairy)

Little baby, sweetly slumbering,
Cradled and cuddled in Mary’s loving arms.
In the sky are angels gathering,
but for now, here below, all is still and calm.

Little baby, our Emmanuel,
God with us, one of us, born to be our king.
Little baby, while you slumber,
Far above you angels sing.

We know you came to save us all…
But how can God become so small…?
For God so loved all he had made
He sent his Son the world to save……

Little baby…

Here we are giving (Tune: Bunessan) – Christingle song for Christmas/Epiphany

Here we are giving
Out of our plenty,
Fruit of thanksgiving,
Tribute of love.
Hearts overflowing
Cannot stand empty
Constantly growing
With grace from above.

Gathered as one, and
Thankfully bringing
All that we are and
All that we do.
Serving and caring,
Praying and singing,
Building and sharing,
Offered to you.

Love beyond measure,
Total compassion,
We are your treasure,
Wonderfully giv’n.
Made in your likeness,
Imaged and fashioned,
Life that is priceless,
Valued by heaven.

Star of wonder (Tune: Sing Hosanna) – Christingle song for Epiphany

We give gold for a king, keep us serving,
We give gold for a king today,
As we give, it is Christ we are serving,
We’ll keep serving Jesus every day.

Star of wonder! Lead us onwards,
Show the way to find the world’s true light.
Star of wonder! Lead us onwards,
Shine around us through the night.

We bring incense today, keep us praying,
We bring incense to him today.
For the needs of the world, keep us praying.
Keep us praying to him every day.

Star of wonder…

We bring myrrh to remember his passion,
As he shared in his people’s pain,
In our lives we will show his compassion,
As we live for Jesus every day.

Star of wonder…

Hope for God’s world (Tune: Favourite Things) – Christingle song for Candlemas

Earth is so small
in the whole of creation,
Continents, oceans
And each unique nation,
Cultures and languages,
All so diverse,
All on one planet
In one universe!

Thanks be to God
For a million reasons,
Food on our plates
From the fruit of the seasons,
All that we have
Is a gift from above,
Plenty for all
if we share it with love.

Light of the world
For a people in sorrow,
Faith that can give us
Real hope for tomorrow,
Since on the cross
Jesus bore the world’s pain,
Bringing new life
At his rising again:

When the world seems
Full of trouble,
God will hear our prayer:
Our mission is living as lights in the world
for everyone everywhere!

Random wedding hymn – On Ilkley Moor

church resources, hymns, marriage, weddings

I was asked to write a wedding hymn to the tune of ‘On Ilkley Moor’ and due to my complete inability to work out how to get a normal 8686 metre to fit to the tune, I wrote this instead. I now do understand how to get existing 8686 words to fit, but thought I might as well keep the words.

Jesus made water into wine
For joy and celebration,
Bless-ed abundance as a sign:
Foretaste of heaven, love divine!

In sickness or in health
In poverty or wealth
The greatest gift is love.

What God has joined we’ll not divide:
For love endures for ever.
Faith, hope and love will still abide,
Two lives entwined, lived side by side.

In sickness or in health
In poverty or wealth
The greatest gift is love.

Vows made this joyful, solemn day,
To honour, love and cherish.
This is love’s kind and patient way,
Living the wondrous words we say.

In sickness or in health
In poverty or wealth
The greatest gift is love.

Hymn: Christ the eternal priest

church resources, hymns, music, worship

I was asked to write a hymn, to the tune ‘Kingsfold’, on the theme of ‘Christ the eternal priest’, for a friend’s first mass. Here it is!  (I cheated slightly in that the last four lines are from another hymn I wrote earlier – if I can think of another ending I’ll replace them one day!)

O Christ, our Shepherd, brother, friend,
O Prophet, Priest and King,
Our Lord, our Way, our Truth, our Life,
It is for you we sing:
Accept this sacrifice of praise
from voice and heart and soul,
For only in your Love, dear Lord,
can we be truly whole.

“A priest for ever you shall be
Enthroned in heav’n above.”
Yet still we know on earth below
The blessings of your love.
You did not cling to heav’nly bliss
but chose to share our pain,
Your life and death and rising still
draws earth to heav’n again.

One sacrifice, made once for all
on Calvary’s blessèd tree,
You stooped to lift up all who fall,
were bound to set us free.
And still through you we make our prayers
and know that we are heard,
For you have opened heaven’s gate,
O loving, living Word.

Make us your holy people, Lord,
in this and every place,
that we, through word and sacrament
may know your saving grace.
You call us here as servants, guests,
as sisters, brothers, friends:
to gather and be richly blessed.
with life that never ends.