Tag: hymn

New communion hymn

church resources, holy communion, hymns, worship

I was procrastinating, and this happened. Tune is ‘Slane’.
As ever, help yourself if you would like to use it. 

Come to God’s table! for all is prepared,
The bread we have offered is broken and shared,
Christ’s presence among us is food for the soul,
reviving, renewing, and making us whole.

Come to God’s table! and drink of the wine,
the blood of the Saviour, both real and a sign,
The cup of salvation both priceless and free,
transforming God’s people into all we can be.

Come to God’s table! we come as we are,
we bring all the burdens we’ve carried so far,
in body, in spirit, in soul, mind and heart,
to feed on the grace which God alone can impart.

Come to God’s table! then go in that grace
to hold all the earth in a heav’nly embrace,
Sent out in the Spirit to tend and to care
in thought, word and action, our life is our prayer.

Hymn about giving / money etc

church resources, hymns, love

That reading about paying tax to the Emperor sort of felt like it needed a new hymn (at least, someone suggested it did). So here is one, to the tune Bunessan (Morning has broken). 

Here we are giving,
out of our plenty
fruit of thanksgiving,
tribute of love.
Hearts overflowing
cannot stand empty,
constantly growing
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:
wondrously giv’n.
Made in your likeness,
imaged and fashioned,
life that is priceless,
valued in heaven.

A hymn for the Queen’s birthday

church resources, hymns, worship

A little something for the Queen’s birthday. The tune is Praise my soul, the king of heaven.
You are welcome to use this hymn, attributing it as follows:
“Edited by Ally Barrett, with contributions from Julie Bacon, Gill Robertson, Leah Vasey-Saunders, Sheridan James and Cate Williams. Used by permission.” 

Praise the Lord for faithful service,
offered through each passing year,
Steadfast prayer, ‘May God preserve us’
Through the times of joy and fear.
Bless our Queen and bless her people,
Give us strength to persevere.

Praise the Lord for faithful vision,
keep life’s journey fixed in sight,
seek God’s will in each decision
Pray to choose the good and right.
Bless our Queen and bless her people,
In God’s way our shared delight.

Praise the Lord for faithful duty,
God has called: to this we cling,
live it out with grace and beauty,
in the tasks each day may bring.
Bless our Queen and bless her people,
As we seek to serve the King.

Praise the Lord for faithful living:
Seeking peace and just accord,
Trusting, hoping, still believing,
sharing faith in deed and word.
Bless our Queen and bless her people,
Fellow servants of One Lord.

This feels like we might be finished – I’ve been loving the collaborative approach. Thank you so much!

New hymn for godparent Sunday

baptism, church resources, hymns, worship

Godparent Sunday falls on 1st May 2016 – it’s the first time that the Church of England has set aside a particular day for godparents, so it deserves a hymn all of its own. tune: Slane aka Lord of all hopefulness

Thank you, O Lord, for the gift of this day:
a time to count blessings, to think and to pray,
support us, inspire us, and call us anew,
help us to be faithful in following you.

Bless us in keeping our promise to care,
our loving commitment to always be there,
we’ll smile at each moment of joy and success,
and when life is bitter, our love is no less.

Bless us with patience, with care and with time
to listen, to challenge, to open our mind,
exploring life’s questions in wonder and awe,
and sharing the wisdom that loves to learn more.

Guide us, O Lord, as we walk on life’s way,
Discov’ring together fresh blessings each day,
O Lord of our journey, we ask you to show
the paths we might follow, the ways we may go.

 

Bible Sunday hymn (reposted as it’s almost Bible Sunday)

church resources, hymns

I once commented to someone much smarter than me that there aren’t huge numbers of hymns about the Bible – they replied that this was because our faith is in the Word more than it is in the word – in other words, hymns are songs of praise and our praise is directed at God rather than at the scriptures themselves.

Having said that, one still needs hymns for Bible Sunday (last after Trinity, I think) so if you find yourself flicking through a hymn book and not quite finding anything, there is this:

A hymn for Bible Sunday.
Tune: Regent Square, or other compatible 878787 tunes.

Word of life! Such transformation!
bringing light to darkest space;
loving mother of creation,
forging life in every place.
Shine that light on every nation,
gather us in your embrace.

Word of truth! You spoke though history,
prophets knew you as their friend;
As you shared with earth the mystery
of your love that knows no end.
Yet your fullest glory must be
More than words can comprehend.

Word made flesh! You came to meet us,
pitched your tent among our own,
Born on earth so heaven could greet us:
God in human heart and bone.
Teach us, lead us, tend us, feed us
with the life that’s yours alone.

Words of scripture, here you teach us,
All you speak is here received.
Shared by print and voice to reach us:
written, read and now believed;
Speak again to all and  each, as
faith is grown and life is lived.