.Contemporary Hymns
Tim Challies
10/25/10
23
One of the happier musical developments in the Christian world over the past few years has been the resurgence of hymns. Though there are many contemporary worship songs that have excellent content and are ideal for congregational worship, we just can’t afford to lose the hymn.

There are two different kinds of contemporary hymn. In the first place, we have artists writing new hymns that come complete with new tunes. Alongside that we have artists who are finding old hymns and setting them to new music—either completely new melodies or contemporary adaptations of the traditional ones. In the list I’ve offered below, the first two seem to specialize in new hymns and new music while the others focus on the new music.

(Yes, there are many, many other artists writing new hymns or adapting old ones. I am focusing here on artists whose albums are predominantly composed of contemporary hymns)

Getty Music
Keith Getty grew frustrated with the songs his church was singing. He met up with Stuart Townend and together they decided to try to write something better. They ended up with “In Christ Alone.” The rest, as they say, is history. Keith got married to Kristyn, moved to America (he’s Irish by birth), toured the world, wrote many more great hymns, and recorded a handful of albums, most of which have a distinctly Irish feel. And the Christian world has been so much better for it. The most recent collection of hymns is titled Awaken the Dawn. Many of these songs are perfectly suited to congregational worship (already at Grace Fellowship Church we sing “By Faith,” “Creation Sings the Father’s Song” and “Communion Hymn.”).

If you want to learn more, it may be worth beginning with their YouTube channel. There you’ll be able to hear some of their best songs and hear them at their best through videos of their live performances. And trust me when I say it’s absolutely worth trying to catch their shows—their band is amazingly talented and they put on a very enjoyable, worshipful show (though somehow show doesn’t seem like the proper descriptor). If you want to learn about their tour schedule (try to catch one of their Christmas shows!) or buy one of their albums, visit gettymusic.com. I suggest you begin with Awaken the Dawn if you like albums, and each of the songs I’ve already mentioned if you prefer individual tracks.



Stuart Townend
Stuart Townend is the other half of the writing duo that has produced some of Keith Getty’s most popular hymns (including “In Christ Alone” and “The Power of the Cross”) but he has also written many without Keith’s help, including “How Deep the Father’s Love” and “Beautiful Savior.” Keith releases albums under his own name but also appears on other albums (such as Keswick Live, one I quite enjoy).

To learn more about Townend, it’s probably best to visit his web site (stuarttownend.co.uk). The site remains just a little bit underdeveloped, but still has lots of useful information, including a tour schedule and a blog. I’d recommend buying Keswick Live (if you can find it and if you enjoy live worship music) or Creation Sings if you prefer a studio album. If you prefer to just buy songs, go with “In Christ Alone,” “How Deep the Father’s Love,” “Speak, O Lord” and “The Power of the Cross.”


Indelible Grace
Indelible Grace is probably the granddaddy of these artists that write new tunes for old hymns. They have revisited such old favorites as “Abide with Me” and “For All the Saints” and have largely done so very well. They’ve also introduced us to old and long-forgotten hymns, drawing them out of obscurity. They have recorded 6 albums to this point and along the way have featured songs by a great group of artists including Sandra McCracken, Derek Webb, Jars of Clay, Matthew Perryman Jones and many others.

I have enjoyed each of their albums, but if I had to choose just one to recommend, I’d probably send you to Indelible Grace 3: For All the Saints. Jars of Clays’ adaptation of “For All the Saints” is just so good.

You’ll also want to take a look at the music of Matthew Smith who helped found Indelible Grace but who has recorded several independent projects as well.



Red Mountain Church
Red Mountain Church specializes in writing new tunes for old and all-but-forgotten hymns. They have released 6 albums to this point, many of them relating to a particular theme: Christmas, Heaven, the hymns originally collected in the hymnal of William Gadsby.

My favorite of the albums is The Gadsby Project. Be sure to listen right to the end to catch the song “Come Boldly to the Throne of Grace.” You can find one of their other albums, “Help My Unbelief” at NoiseTrade if you want to try it for free or trade some information for it.



Page CXVI
Page CXVI could probably use a catchier name (it’s taken from page 116 of a copy of The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis). But don’t let the name drive you off. They are a little bit more like Indelible Grace, writing new tunes for much-loved hymns (or creating slightly adapted but contemporary versions of the traditional tunes).

You can learn more and buy their 2 albums at pagecxvi.com. You’ll also find a tour schedule there in case you’d like to catch one of their forthcoming shows in CO, KS, OK or TX.



The Songs We Sing
While we are on the subject of hymns, here are some good words from J.C. Ryle (drawn from J.C. Ryle Quotes):

Good hymns are an immense blessing to the Church of Christ. I believe the last day alone will show the world the real amount of good they have done. They suit all, both rich and poor. There is an elevating, stirring, soothing, spiritualizing, effect about a thoroughly good hymn, which nothing else can produce. It sticks in men’s memories when texts are forgotten. It trains men for heaven, where praise is one of the principal occupations. Preaching and praying shall one day cease for ever; but praise shall never die. The makers of good ballads are said to sway national opinion. The writers of good hymns, in like manner, are those who leave the deepest marks on the face of the Church.

But really good hymns are exceedingly rare. There are only a few men in any age who can write them. You may name hundreds of first-rate preachers for one first-rate writer of hymns. Hundreds of so-called hymns fill up our collections of congregational psalmody, which are really not hymns at all. They are very sound, very scriptural, very proper, very correct, very tolerably rhymed; but they are not real, live, genuine hymns. There is no life about them. At best they are tame, pointless, weak, and milk-and-watery.
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My friend Cliff shared this with me. Are you an Idol worshiper?

Paul has done it again!! Great song!

Andrew Peterson - Dancing in the Minefields (Official Video)

This is Fantastic!

Death In His Grave (Performance Video) from john mark mcmillan on Vimeo.

Here are the lyrics:

Though the Earth cried out for blood
Satisfied her hunger was
Her billows calmed on raging seas
for the souls on men she craved

Sun and moon from balcony
Turned their head in disbelief
Their precious Love would taste the sting
disfigured and disdained

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke with keys
Of Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

So three days in darkness slept
The Morning Sun of righteousness
But rose to shame the throes of death
And over turn his rule

Now daughters and the sons of men
Would pay not their dues again
The debt of blood they owed was rent
When the day rolled a new

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke holding keys
To Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke with keys
Of Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

He has cheated
Hell and seated
Us above the fall
In desperate places
He paid our wages
One time once and for all

Hey everyone!
Below are some links to some of the music we are doing at New Life Church. I have also shown the CD’s that I personally have and would recommend, but all the music you will find on these sites are great. There is a link to RUF.com that will have a lot of the actual sheet music to the songs we are doing in church, if anyone is interested.
I pray you will be blessed by God as you listen and go deeper in your faith.
Tom


www.igracemusic.com/

www.igracemusic.com/hymnbook/home.html

www.sovereigngracemusic.org/

www.sojournmusic.com/albums

www.andrew-peterson.com

www.leadworship.com/GloriousCD/Glorious.html

www.worshipmusic.com/paulbaloche.html

Andrew Peterson Talks About Counting Stars - Part 1

One of my most favorite artist! Can't wait to get this!!!

Why Your Church Doesn't Feel Like A Family

This is dead on!!

What Is the Philosophy of Worship that Unites Us?

Download:

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By John Piper April 1, 1994

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God-centeredness: A high priority of the vertical focus of our Sunday morning service. The ultimate aim is to so experience God that he is glorified in our affections.

Expecting the powerful presence of God: We do not just direct ourselves toward him. We earnestly seek his drawing near according to the promise of James4:8. We believe that in worship God draws near to us in power, and makes himself known and felt for our good and for the salvation of unbelievers in the midst.

Bible based and Bible saturated: The content of our singing and praying and welcoming and preaching and poetry will always conform to the truth of Scripture. The content of God's Word will be woven through all we do in worship and will be the ground of all our appeal to authority.

Head and heart: Worship that aims at kindling and carrying deep, strong, real emotions toward God, but does not manipulate people's emotions by failing to appeal to clear thinking about spiritual things based on shareable evidences outside ourselves.

Earnestness and intensity: Avoiding a trite, flippant, superficial, frivolous atmosphere, but instead setting an example of reverence and passion and wonder.

Authentic communication: The utter renunciation of all sham and deceit and hypocrisy and pretense and affectation and posturing. Not the atmosphere of artistic or oratorical performance but the atmosphere of a radically personal encounter with God truth..

The manifestation of God and the common good: We expect and hope and pray (according to 1 Cor. 12:7) that our focus on the manifesting of God is good for people and that therefore a spirit of love for each other is not incompatible with, but necessary to authentic worship.

Undistracting excellence: We will try to sing and play and pray and preach in such a way that people's attention will not be diverted from the substance by shoddy ministry nor by excessive finesse, elegance or refinement. Natural, undistracting excellence will let the truth and beauty of God shine through.

The mingling of historic and contemporary music: And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old" Matt 13:52

New Life

Had a great time with New Life Church tonight. That's my church, New Life Church of Eads, Tennessee.
One of our dear families is having to leave our church and move to St Louis. It was our last home group with them in their home where we meet each week. This family has been a huge encouragement to me which has helped my ministry to the church greatly.
Being an encourager brings great things,sometimes it's the very thing that motivates them to continue pursuing what God has put on their hearts to do. The Anderson family is that kind of family; encouragers. I will miss seeing them and hearing them sing to the Glory of God!
God bless you guys!
Tom

Jesus Cast A Look On Me

Have you ever heard the phrase "Don't put words in my mouth"?
Well this song puts words in your mouth that you want to be there.
Let me explain. This song helps us express our longing and desire for Christ to be our all in all; no more me, all Christ. It gets to the heart of how we should live in every moment.
I challenge you to learn it and sing it to the Lord.
Here is a link to where you can listen to it.
Take time to check it out. You will be blessed.


http://igracemusic.com/ig3/







Jesus Cast a Look on Me
© MPJ Music. Words: John Berridge. Music: Matthew Perryman Jones.

1. Jesus cast a look on me,
Give me sweet simplicity
Make me poor and keep me low,
Seeking only Thee to know

2. All that feeds my busy pride,
Cast it evermore aside
Bid my will to Thine submit,
Lay me humbly at Thy feet

3. Make me like a little child,
Of my strength and wisdom spoiled
Seeing only in Thy light,
Walking only in Thy might

4. Leaning on Thy loving breast,
Where a weary soul can rest
Feeling well the peace of God,
Flowing from His precious blood

5. In this posture let me live,
And hosannas daily give
In this temper let me die,
And hosannas ever cry!

The importance of your passion for Christ in ministry.

I am a big Bob Kauflin fan and Spurgeon is one of my hero's of the Faith. So I thought I would pass this along from a post from Bob's Blog. It reminds us what our purpose is in what God has called us to do. Magnifying the glories of Christ.

Spurgeon on the Inexhaustibility of Jesus

Posted by: Bob Kauflin In: —Leading a Congregation| —Worship and Christ| —Worship and Music

Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) has few peers when it comes to stirring up biblically informed passion for Jesus Christ. My wife made me aware of one of his quotes today from The Daily Spurgeon. It’s from a sermon called “The Fulness Of Jesus, The Treasury Of Saints,” that Spurgeon delivered February 28, 1869.

Spurgeon describes how both preaching and music grow dull if they don’t magnify the greatness of the Savior in people’s minds and hearts. His words are just as relevant today as they were 140 years ago.

“Brethren, there is an abiding fullness of truth in Christ; after you have heard it for fifty years, you see more of its fullness than you did at first. Other truths weary the ear. I will defy any man to hold together a large congregation, year after year, with any other subject but Christ Jesus. He might do it for a time; he might charm the ear with the discoveries of science, or with the beauties of poetry, and his oratory might be of so high an order that he might attract the multitudes who have itching ears, but they would in time turn away and say, “This is no longer to be endured. We know it all.”

“All music becomes wearisome but that of heaven; but oh! if the minstrel doth but strike this celestial harp, though he keepeth his fingers always among its golden strings, and be but poor and unskilled upon an instrument so divine, yet the melody of Jesus’ name, and the sweet harmony of all his acts and attributes, will hold his listeners by the ears and thrill their hearts as nought beside can do. The theme of Jesus’ love is inexhaustible, though preachers may have dwelt upon it century after century, a freshness and fullness still remain.

I thought I would make my first post a review of one of my favorite Cd's from Sojourn Music.
The link is below if you want to sample some songs or even purchase it. I love this album. It has bolstered my faith and caused me to play some air guitar and drums as well:).
Enjoy!




http://www.sojournmusic.com/albums/over-the-grave/

Over the Grave

In the midst of the Reformation in England, Isaac Watts recognized that people needed to see the gospel in the psalms and hymns of the church, and they needed to sing them in language and metaphors that they understood. In this, he became not only the father of the modern hymn, but the pace-setter for contextualizing the gospel for the people of God.

As musicians, pastors and songwriters, our desire was to explore the hundreds of hymns that Watts wrote during his lifetime, to learn from the incredible range and depth of his lyrics, and to re-envision those songs with modern language and melodies. In particular, we gravitated towards themes that seem unfortunately absent in modern worship — themes about God’s wrath and judgment, His righteousness, and a dramatic vision of the cross and atonement of Christ.

This CD is the first installment of the Isaac Watts Project: songs inspired by and adapted from his hymns. The record was written and performed entirely by musicians from Sojourn Community Church — 35 in all. It is our hope that this project, like Watts’s hymns, will point us beyond the music and lyrics to see the glorious Savior who inspires them.