Psalm 29 rjg
Give to the Lord, you heavenly hosts,
The glory due his name,
Sing of his awesome holiness,
His majesty acclaim.
Wild waters heed his powerful word
His thunderous voice obey
Great towering cedars crash to earth,
As soft as new-mown hay.
2 Flashes of lightening cleave the skies,
When God his silence breaks,
Proud nations jump like new born calves,
The untamed desert quakes;
Oaks quickstep to their master’s call,
Great forests shrink unclad,
And in the temple one and all
Cry “Glory“, and are glad.
3 Lord God enthroned above the flood
You sit in sovereign power
King of the universe, you reign
All glorious evermore.
Strong in the strength that works for peace
Lord strengthen those, by whom
Your voice is hallowed in their lives
And grant them your shalom.
Psalm 42, 43
Why are you full of sorrow and heaviness
why
so disquieted within
Trust
in your God for he will deliver you
sing
songs of praise have faith in him.
I am so thirsty like a deer in the desert
I long for refreshment O life-giving God,
Enemies mock me - denying your presence;
all
feasting forgotten - salt tears are my food.
This I remember - the temple so splendid
processions
of triumph - those glad hymns of praise
now
they are past - all their glory long vanished
like
dreams half forgotten, my hopes all betrayed.
Once in the mountains, where cataracts
thunder,
your
power overcame me like torrents in spate
Drowned in your mercy dark nights shone like
morning.
Why have you forgotten - left me to my fate?
God,
you're my refuge, don't leave me to perish;
outside
your safe keeping - I've nowhere to hide.
Bring me back to you, all banishment ended,
Lord, send forth your light, let your truth be
my guide.
hymn psalm 104 rjg
O bless the Lord my soul
enthroned in heaven’s height
bedecked in majesty and awe
your very robes are light.
2 The starry skies above
to you are but a tent
the clouds your car - your messages
on tongues of fire are sent,
3 Beneath the ocean depths
you sculpted all the land
then sent the waters foaming back
and fringed the seas with sand.
4 The silver throated stream,
the plangent sapphire pool,
the tumbling torrent, slake our thirst
with living waters cool.
5 Tall trees give storks
their homes
wild crags, the marmots holes;
the jungle heeds the lions= roar
and zebras guard their foals.
6 Our people rise to work
as sun announces day
while beasts seek shadows, deep and soft
to snooze the heat away.
7 From crocodile to flea
blue whale and humming bird
your hand sustains earth’s teeming life
no creature dies unheard.
8 For everything that
breathes
inhales its life from you
your spirit is the breath of life
creating worlds anew.
9 All glory be to God
while I have breath I sing
for he who fills the earth with good
is Lord of everything.
Psalm 118 bicentenary hymn words
rjg, tune © John Barnard
O give thanks to the Lord,
his mercy endures for ever,
O give thanks to the Lord,
his righteousness wins the
day.
Let all of the peoples on
earth proclaim,
his mercy endures for ever,
though princes and
presidents shame his name:
his faithfulness never
fails.
When swarming like bees with
their deadly sting,
the powers of evil muster,
we trust in the Lord and
defiantly sing,
his faithfulness never
fails.
The stone that was dumped at the back of the yard
now has the place of honour
Christ comes to save in the
name of the Lord:
his faithfulness never
fails.
With shouts of salvation and
waving of palms
we celebrate his triumph;
death’s evil dominions have
been disarmed:
his faithfulness never
fails.
For this is the day that the Lord has made
we celebrate its splendours:
God’s justice - the answer
for all that we’ve prayed,
has proved that it never
fails.
From
the latin of St Thomas Aquinas
O hidden God, I worship and adore you
Concealed beneath these earthly shades of
truth
To you I give, in faith, my life, my being
My hopes, my will, my mind and attitude.
Sight, touch and taste will surely fail to
find you,
Yet faith can open ears to hear your word,
that word expressed in God’s own Son, so
truly,
its truth and beauty shone though all we
heard.
Upon the cross your
deity lay hidden
But here humanity seems absent too,
Yet I believe, bear witness to your presence,
And like the dying thief beg hope of you.
Not privileged with sights of wounds like
Thomas,
Yet would I make his testimony mine
That ever, Lord my God, my faith increasing
May grow in me fresh hope and love divine.
O rich memorials of
the death of Jesus
The living bread with breath my life restore
Grant me this life, that I may live to please
him
And your rich sweetness savour evermore.
Lord Jesus, fabled
pelican of mercy
So wash me wholly with your cleansing blood
Of which one precious drop can bring salvation
Can change the whole wide world from bad to
good.
Jesus, thus veiled,
yet now by faith appearing
I pray you grant my ardent suppliant cry
That when at last I may behold your glory
Complete, before you I may stand in joy.
Translated
rjg
Easter hymn
This is a day of joy:
a day to spend
in glorious celebration;
for Christ has
risen on high,
the living
guarantee of our salvation.
Let Easter
bells peal out -
repeat earth's
greatest story;
cast off all
anxious doubt;
Christ Jesus
shines in glory,
in glory, in
glory, in glory.
2 This is a day
of life:
death's icy
fingers melt in Easter sunlight;
the Lord has
healed our strife,
his
resurrection life dispels hell's midnight.
God's love
casts out all fears
transfigures
all our sadness;
he wipes away
all tears
and turns
despair to gladness,
to gladness, to
gladness, to gladness.
3 This is a day
of hope:
Now God in love
brings forth his new creation;
When human
strength can't cope
His spirit
drives us on in expectation;
for Christ has
burst through death
destroying
hell's bleak prison;
so sing with
all your breath
"Lord Jesus
Christ is risen, is risen, is risen is risen!" RJG
rewriting of Jesu
lover of my soul
Lord in whom
all love is found
Cuddle me in your embrace
While the raging waters pound,
Wave on wave in frenzied race.
Hide me, loving Saviour, hide,
till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide;
Then receive me home at last.
Other refuge have I none,
All my hope in you I place
Never leave me lost alone
Still support me in your grace.
All my trust on you is laid,
all my help from you I bring;
Cover my defenceless head
with the shadow of your wing.
Will you not
regard my call?
Will you not accept my prayer?
See, I sink, I faint, I fall—
Going
under in despair
Reach me out your gracious hand!
your great strength let me receive,
Hoping against hope I stand,
in the midst of death to live.
You O Christ, are all I want,
more than all in you I find;
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint,
heal the sick, and lead the blind.
Just and holy is your Name;
I am fraught with weaknesses
frail of faith and steeped in shame;
You are full of truth and grace
Grace abundant, rich and free,
grace to cover all my sin;
Let its streams pour into me
make and keep me pure within.
Source of
life, creative Word,
fill me
freely with your love;
Rise again within me Lord;
till I reign
with you above
commissioned
by Baptist Peace Fellowship
Great God of
justice, mercy, peace
Who rules the world in matchless grace
How could it be your sovereign will
That evil men should take and nail
Your son upon a cross of wood
Shatter his body, drain his blood
Release a terrorist instead
Happy to see your Jesus dead?
Is this the
way you punish sin
Condemn to death earth’s greatest man?
Leave him, rejected with the poor
Naked, unloved, alone, unsure
Forsaken by his Father God
To die in darkness like a dog?
Surely our sins were multiplied
As yet another good man died.
Or was it you we killed that day,
Your blood we coldly poured away?
Slaying in hate like Cain of old
Our brother sent to love and hold;
Holding the world in terror’s thrall
By bomb and bullet, loveless law,
Condemning millions to your fate
Seeking to strangle love with spite.
Was it not
nails but love that tore
Open your body, like a door
Through which, by faith, we see your way?
To turn earth’s hells to heavenly day
Renouncing violence, hate and war
To walk more humbly, finding power
In patience, kindness, loving care
Till justice makes this sad world fair.
Hymn for Good
Friday vigil
How long O Father must
your Jesus suffer?
How long must violence keep the upper hand?
The rich grow fat while millions die of hunger
and cynical Pontius Pilates rule our lands?
Why do you wait? Come
quickly to his rescue
You promised that your love would never cease.
Don't let him die in pain, betrayed, forsaken,
Come down and save your son, our prince of
peace.
So where on earth's
salvation, God of heaven?
Where can we find your justice, Lord of Lords?
Our deep-held hopes expire on cruel crosses.
When will your saving actions match your words?
The weary world still waits
in lonely anguish
for the deliverance, Lord God you vowed.
Is death the only end of all our loving,
our wounded bodies crushed, our spirits cowed?
RJG
RJG (on a prayer by Stepen Brown))
The tale is told, the deed was done,
the Christ was killed, but rose again.
And now we know the words to say,
Christ is the truth, the life, the way.
2 Eternal God, we crave that life,
living in hunger for that truth
in all we think, or do, or say
to follow you, you are the way.
3 Cross-shadow, resurrection-light,
the pain, the purpose, cost and gift,
our love, our hope, for this we pray
Christ be the truth, the life, the way
4 Our faith embracing all you send
grace upon grace, life without end
we follow on, trust and obey
for you’re the life, the truth, the way.
Elizabeth Clephane. altd
RJG
|
Beneath the cross of Jesus
is where I take my stand
the shadow of a mighty rock
within a weary land!
a home within the wilderness
a rest beside the way,
from the burning of the noontide heat
and the burden of the day.
3 There lies beneath its shadow
but on the other side,
the darkness of the vale of death
that yawns both deep and wide
and there between us stands the cross
two arms outstretched to save
like a watchman set to guard the way
from that eternal grave.
|
Oasis cool and sweet!
The place of peace where God’s
great grace
and God’s pure justice meet!
As to young Jacob, guilty, lost,
that wondrous dream was given,
so seems my Saviour’s cross to me
a ladder up to heaven.
4
Upon that cross of Jesus,
my eyes, at times, can see
the very dying form of him
who suffered there for me.
And from my heavy heart with tears
two wonders I confess:
the wonder of his glorious love
and my own sinfulness.
|
Beneath the cross of Jesus
I make my dwelling place,
I ask no other sunshine than
the sunshine of his face;
content to let the world go by
to know no gain nor loss;
my selfishness my only shame
my glory – all the cross.
Cool living water (words RJG
music A Wilson Dickson)
Cool living waters flow over
my head,
cleansing, refreshing me,
washing me through;
as Jesus was raised to new
life from the dead,
come, living spirit, my nature
renew.
As cloth that is normal
becomes something royal
washed in my purple so
precious and rare,
seep into my
being, transforming my soul
indelibly dyed in your beauty
so fair.
Make me like Jesus,
compassionate, strong,
his faithful servant, a child
of his grace,
my Lord's humble daughter, to
him I belong,
living
his gospel, revealing his face.
tune St
Botolph 557 bhb
Though being in the form of
God
he did not seize the throne
but stripped himself of all
but love
to take our flesh and bone;
A normal man in all respects
as man he lived and died;
and as a slave he humbly bore
our cross - was crucified.
So God has raised him up on
high
and given him such a name
that far outshines the stars
of heaven
and sets our hearts aflame;
For Jesus reigns as Christ the
Lord,
to him all knees shall bow
and every power in heaven and
hell
tells forth his glory now. RJG Church in Wales
To tune 650
(bpw)
O Lord who made this world in grace
and launched it on its way:
whose love commands through earth and space
and over all holds sway:
deliver us, lest we should choose
to please ourselves, your world misuse.
O Lord, revealed in flesh and blood
who taught us what is love
and died in pain to make us good
now glorified above:
deliver us lest we should live
as unforgiv’n and not forgive.
O Lord whose spirit breathing life
into all living things;
who heals our wounded world of strife
and through all nature sings:
deliver us that we may dare
to work for peace by deed and prayer.
Amen (organ) RJG
To tune 429
bpw
Lord Jesus Christ you're waiting now
with outstretched arms and open heart;
I want to come but don't know how;
my doubts and fears keep us apart.
Lord Jesus is it really you
who thrills my soul and calls my name?
Can I resist a love so true?
Will my life ever be the same?
Lord Jesus Christ, I need your love;
I've lived too long for self alone.
Fill me with goodness from above:
release in me the love you've won.
Lord Jesus, Yes, I know it's you.
Embrace me with your nail-pierced hands;
cleanse me from sin, my life renew;
fulfil in me your kingdom's plans.
O Lord, what joys too deep to sing!
What peace too fathomless to plumb!
My Lord, my Life, my Saviour, King -
you're mine, I'm yours till kingdom come. RJG
the O antiphons for advent
Coming God,
coming in our Lord Jesus,
coming for outcasts,
coming to confound the proud,
coming to surprise with joy the sad.
Come amongst us now in the creative power and presence of
your Spirit,
as we come into your presence in praise.
O come
now wisdom from on high
whose word called forth both earth and sky
creating man from earthen clay
to us reveal salvation’s way.
Rejoice,
rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to you O Israel.
O Lord of Lords, and ruler of the House of Israel, you
appeared to
Moses in the fire of the burning bush, and gave him the
law on Sinai:
come with your outstretched arm and ransom us.
O
come, O come O Lord most high
who in your glorious majesty
from Sinai's mountain clothed in awe
gave to your people, love's pure law.
Rejoice.....
O shoot springing from the root of Jesse, sign of God’s
love for all people, the one before whom all the earth’s leaders will fall silent,
and all peoples bow, let nothing delay your coming to save us.
O
come green shoot of Jesse’s tree
those
gripped in wrong’s iron fist set free
from hell’s grim stranglehold release
and
lead us forth to paths of peace
Rejoice……..
O key of David and sceptre of the House of Israel; you
open and none
can shut; you shut and none can open; come and free the
captives from
prison and break down the walls of death.
O
come, the key of David, come
fling open wide our heavenly home,
safeguard for us the heaven-ward road
and
bar the way to death's abode.
Rejoice....
O morning star, splendour of the light eternal and bright
sun of
righteousness: come and bring light to those who dwell in
darkness and
walk in the shadow of death.
O
come, O come Lord, dayspring bright
bathe all who wait in healing
light
disperse the long nights lingering
gloom
dispel depression's shades of doom.
Rejoice……
O king of the nations, you alone can fulfil their desires;
cornerstone, binding us all together; come and save the
creature you
have fashioned from the dust of the earth.
O
come, desire of nations! show
your kingly reign on earth below.
one
cornerstone, uniting all
restore the ruin of our fall
Rejoice.........
O Emmanuel, our king and lawgiver, hope of the nations and
their
saviour; come and save us O Lord God.
O come O come Emmanuel!
Redeem your captive Israel
That mourns in exile, lost and lone,
far from the face of God's dear Son!
Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to you O Israel
( verses from O antiphons, trans. from latin by R.J. Gardiner.)
litany
for pentecost
Lord we are in need of your
reviving power:
we have become stale and unimaginative:
sometimes we are afraid of your
creativity and cower in the darkness because we fear the revolution of
your kingdom.
Visit us in the deepest parts of our being:
renew us with the sweetness of your grace,
you who are the source of all that lives.
Come Holy Spirit:
Come Holy Spirit from heaven's pure height;
scatter our darkness with your glorious light.
Come, father of poor
folk, great giver of all,
light of our being, the fire of our soul.
The Lord says, I shall make you a light to the nations so
that my salvation may reach the remotest parts of earth.
Lord, we need the refreshment you alone can bring:
sick, we need healing, tired we need energy,
bereaved we need comfort:
sometimes we cry in desperation with Jeremiah, why is there no progress
in the cure of our people?
Come Holy Spirit
Of all who bring comfort, Lord,
you are the best,
to those admitting you, life's welcome guest;
in toil our refreshment, deliciously sweet,
solace in sorrow, cool shade in the heat.
The Lord says: I have seen their ways, but I will heal them, I will
repay them with comfort.
Lord we need peace:
In the words of your prophet Isaiah,
we are searching for peace in this world like those without eyes,
feeling our way along the walls, stumbling as though noon were twilight,
waiting for judgment that never comes,
for salvation that seems far away.
Come Holy Spirit.
Bereft of your presence, most blessed pure light,
bound in the darkness, we languish in night;
come, visit your faithful, our hearts fill with peace;
from sin's grim prison grant saving release.
The Lord says: Look I am going to send peace flowing like a
river, and like a stream in spate the glory of the nations.
Lord we need cleansing: we try to do better week by week but
we fail: we need you to forgive us; bend our stubborn wills
to your gentle purpose, melt our ice bound hearts with the
fire of your passion: Come Holy Spirit:
Cleanse all that is dirty, what's arid, refresh:.
heal wounds that fester with healthy new flesh:
make brittle minds supple, make frozen hearts warm:
guide the lost wanderers safely back home.
The Lord says: I shall pour clean water over you and you
shall be cleansed. I shall give you a new heart and put a
new spirit in you: I shall remove your heart of stone and
give you a heart of flesh instead.
Lord we need your life within us: we become discouraged so
easily; we wilt before the powers of evil in the world, we
willingly retreat into the obscurity of religion instead of
carrying your light to all people:
Come holy spirit
Please give to the faithful who serve in this place
your sev'nfold blessing, the gifts of your grace;
give goodness its prize,
give safe journeys at last,
life that is endless, a joy unsurpassed.
The Lord says I have loved you with an everlasting love and
so I still maintain my love for you. I shall build you up
once more, yes you will be rebuilt. RJG
verses trans from Stephen Langton
Singing in the rain
In the rain staccato rhythms on the
window panes
In the west winds’ howls and whines;
In the gentle breeze’s whisper through
the cornfield plains
And the lofty forest pines;
When the sun’s bright radiance tans
the sandy shore
And the sparkling sea is blue,
God sings to me and you.
In the grey-stained concrete deserts
of the tower blocks
Where man’s vandalism reigns;
In the multi-storey car parks and
redundant docks
Framed by giant rusted cranes;
In the springtime meadows decked with
fragrant flowers
And the clear, crisp mountain air,
We appreciate God’s care.
In the depths of desperation when our
life looks black
And we hide our heads in shame;
When we try to bear the whole world’s
sorrow on our back
And wallow in the blame,
Jesus stoops to lift us with his
radiant smile,
For he’s known depression’s hour -
It’s well within his power.
On a cross of unplaned timber in the
noontide heat,
Stripped bare and hung n high,
With three six-inch rivets hammered
through his hands and feet
Left to thirst, to bleed, to die,
There Christ Jesus suffered every
human pain,
Took all a man can know,
God’s love for man to show.
In the rain staccato rhythms on our
window panes
We will praise our Saviour’s love;
In the tower blocks, the car parks and
commuter trains
We will sing to God above;
And when life’s wild party swings our
days along
In happiness - we’ll sing
To God, our praise to bring!
Tune Magnificat RJG
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
God's creative genius has changed my
life completely
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
Though I'm but a servant girl he's
blessed me beyond telling
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
For the Holy Lord of all has come to
us in mercy
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
His strong arm has put to rout the
devil's proud battalions
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
He has raised to heaven's throne the
lowly and the humble
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
Those who thought they owned the world
he's sent away with nothing
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
God has filled the hungry with his
choicest food from heaven
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
God's great promise is fulfilled - He
saves the world in Jesus
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
Solo: My soul magnifies the
Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour
Amen
Te Deum
Laudamus
We praise you 0 God, we worship you our Lord,
the everlasting Father, King by all the earth adored.
to you the shining hosts on high sing songs of endless praise,
they glorify your perfect love, and your majestic holiness;
We praise you 0 God, to you our hymns ascend,
with all the glorious saints in heaven our voices now we blend,
with martyrs brave and prophets bold, who triumphed in the fight,
your holy church throughout the world acknowledges your sovereign
might.
We praise you 0 Christ, the Son of God, our king,
you shared our flesh, were born like us, God’s saving grace to
bring,
endured the sufferings of the cross, and tasted death’s sharp
pain,
defeated hell’s enslaving power, now raised to glorious life you
reign.
We praise you 0 Christ, the righteous judge, our Lord,
we yearn to see your kingdom come, your sinful world restored,
so help us in our daily strife, may we your servants know
assurance of eternal life, heaven’s fellowship begun below.
We beg you 0 Lord, we call upon your name,
revive your people’s flagging hearts as we your grace proclaim.
Please send your holy spirit’s power to make us pure within,
to save us in temptation’s hour, and stop us giving in to sin.
Have mercy 0 Lord, in you alone we trust;
your mercy is our only hope, 0 God for ever just.
to tune Ack
saliga stunder (based on some ideas from Richard Bruxvoort)
O great story teller inventively writing
your poems of love in the depths of our hearts
creatively finding
new themes for our living
unravelling a mystery, each day a new start,
we welcome the call to be born of your giving
O author of faith still at work in our story!
2 O Great music maker, be strength in our weakness
renew weary lives with the chords of your song
transforming our tired routines with the sweetness
of joy’s richest melodies, breathed all day long.
we welcome the call to be part of your greatness
O Great music maker sing through us your glory!
3 O worker of tapestries, constantly weaving
the threads of our prayers into beautiful cloth
reveal to those tangled in dark disbelieving
your glorious kingdom obscured by the knots.
We welcome the call to be part of your living
so take us and weave us great God in your fabric.
4 O mover and shaker of everything living
the start and the end of humanity’s race
in Jesus you set out ahead pioneering
a path in the darkness, a light for our faith
We trust in your journey, step out persevering,
So Jesus our Way lead us forward to heaven.
RJG
(RJG rough trans. Il est ne le divin enfant - trad)
He is born, God’s baby son
sound the pipes to praise his greatness
he is born, God’s baby son
Join the party, all have fun.
For four
thousand years or more
prophets
have foretold his coming
patiently
they knelt to pray
now has
come this joyful day!
2 O what
beauty in his face
human form
in full perfection
O what
beauty in his face,
God’s own
son, his gift of grace.
3 Jesus,
king of all the earth,
tiny child
- yet Lord eternal,
Jesus king
of all the earth!
All acclaim
your glorious birth.
based on Martin Luther, von Himmel hoch da Komm ich her, suggested tune
Maryton
Take note,
pay heed, lift up your eyes,
What child
within that manger cries?
Why should
the angels stop and stare?
The Lord of
heaven’s lying there!
O Christ,
Creator of all things
for whom
the heavenly host now sings,
why have
you made yourself so small
- a baby in
a cattle stall?
Were earth
a thousand times more fair
bedecked
with gold and jewels rare,
yet would it be a tiny bed
for heaven’s
Lord to rest his head.
Ah, dearest
Jesus, Holy Lord,
who rules
the heavens with a word,
make soft
your bed within my heart
for you for
ever set apart.
And then my heart with joy shall leap
my lips no
more their silence keep
I too must
sing with joyful tongue
that
sweetest ancient cradle song:
Glory to
God in highest heaven,
who to the
world his Son has given
the Saviour
of the world to be
our peace
through all eternity.
RJG
