Songs for Season of Creation 4A - River Sunday (September 24 2023)

Genesis 8:20-22; 9:12-17  

God establishes a covenant with Noah, leaving a rainbow as a sign

• Unknown source Remember the rainbow, God’s promise in the sky I know this is not very helpful, but I know that at Brunswick we have a copy of the words and chords in our folders. Maybe your church has it filed away somewhere too. Good for kids.
• Online Resource After the flood (David Bjorlin / Mark Miller) Gosh. A beautiful, meditative and healing song, specifically about recovery from a flood. I would use a soloist for the verses, and invite the congregation to join on the chorus, which is a Kyrie (you might need to play it a little more quickly perhaps). Sheet music and sound sample and purchasing options.  
  
• NCH032 / UMH122 / VU229 / HPP32 / GtG022 / PH272 / CP414 / W&R29 / Cha070 God of the sparrow God of the whale (Jaroslav Vajda) This is a beautiful song, but for some reason it sounds kind of odd with an Australian accent. Works especially well this week with the lyric: “God of the rainbow, God of the cross, God of the empty grave”. Lyrics.
• Tune In / Online Resource Tune in (Natalie Sims) A simple kid’s song. “Tune in, tune in, there’s a message coming in.” Encourages kids to look for signs of God’s love. Lyrics, sample (feel free to use for online worship!), songbook. Good for kids.
• Online resource It’s a sign of God’s love (Richard Bruxvoort-Colligan) Not a congregational song – needs someone to sing this to the kids, really. Sample and lyrics Good for kids.
• MV135 Called by earth and sky (Pat Mayberry) Gentle song about the blessings of water, air, soil and fire. While it doesn't explicitly mention baptism, it is really beautiful and would work well. 
• Recorded Music "Just look up" (Eric Bibb / Michael Jerome Browne) On Eric Bibb's album "Friends" and on Putumayo's "Folk Playground". "There's a rainbow waiting for you, just look up". Sound sample. Good for kids.
• NCH391 / GtG315 / SFFS 2238 / Cha458 In the midst of new dimensions (Julian Rush) "Now and ever, now and ever, now and evermore". I quite like this one. Good for this week: "God of rainbow, fiery pillar". Hymnals vary in which verses they include.
• TiS 418 / AoV2-075 / Iona (EoA, Common Ground) / CH593 / GA372 / A&M259 / Cha255 / SP94 / URW165 / StF393 / Lau305 She sits like a bird brooding on the waters (John Bell) My favourite Holy Spirit song. Beautiful words and very easy to sing, provided it is not played too quickly The Iona recordings are generally very quick, but there are a lot of words to fit in, so keep it elegantly moderate in speed! Lyrics (scroll down). 
• ATA 142 / UMH134 / Traditional If I could I surely would / O Mary don’t you weep (Traditional) Lots of fun, and good for kids, but I’m not quite sure where Mary weeping fits into Pharoah’s army getting (clap) drowned dead… Here's Bruce Springsteen's version, which I love. I've suggested it this week because of the verse "God gave Noah the rainbow sign - no more water but fire next time". Good for kids.

Psalm 104:27-33
All the great multitudes of the earth point to God's glory

• TiS 135 / AHB 70 / AoVK-110 / NCH31 / A&M533 / CH137 / UMH147 / VU291 / WoV767 / HPP35 / PH267 / GtG020 / CP415/6 / CP(E) 251 / W&R30 / Cha061 / Srce21 / StF100 / Lau685 / MP023 All things bright and beautiful (Cecil Frances Alexander) The TiS version has beautiful Australian imagery. If you are in Australia and your congregation only has the AHB or other versions of the music, it is worth making copies of the TiS lyrics; the congregation will know the tune. Verse 2 and 5 have masculine language for God. Oldy-but-a-goody
  
• STB114 Come holy spirit (I-to Loh) A lovely 3 part chant. The congregation can sing one part, while a soprano and tenor cantor (or groups) sing the other two parts, or you could split an adventurous congregation into 3 parts. Will need to be taught.  
• TiS 175 / GtB Did you ever see a kookaburra laugh (Marion Lemin) A fun kid's song. "Where do all the good things come from?" Good for kids.
• GtG323 / URW171 Sound a mystic bamboo song / Dong dong ay si dong ilay (Bill Wallace) Great multicultural words, celebrating God in all people. 
• TiS 163 / AHB 112 / NCH556 / UMH150 / LBW463 / ELW771 / GtG024  / PH268 / W&R644 / Cha651 / URW084 / 82Hml-580 God who stretched the spangled heavens (Catherine Cameron) Good words of creation of nature and cities and creative possibilities for the future. AHB has a Father and old language, but it works okay; TiS and other sources are better. There are many possible tunes. I like it best to HOLY MANNA as in the link. Lyrics and sound sample.
• TiS 706 / Taize / AoV2-142 / A&M600 / SFFS 2013 / GtG544 / PH224 / GC(II)576 / G(3)620 / CP360 / PfAS103C / SP194 / Src79 / URW377 / Lau813  Bless the Lord my soul (Batastini / Taize) A beautiful and very well known Taize chant. Sound samples, sheet music. Good for kids.
• MV015 / GA186 Holy Sacred Spirit (Monica Brown) Gentle chant. Can be used without the cantor part. "Holy Sacred Spirit, breathe your breath on us. Very slow version. 
• UMH438 / VU416 / A&M476 / CP467 / CP(E) 430 / W&R718 / StF550 / Lau861 / MP159 Forth in thy name O Lord I go (Charles Wesley) Timeless words about committing all our works to God. I like this hymn best played lightly and joyfully with a simple drum beat as a kind of minstrel tune, rather than a hymn. The old fashioned words seem to make a lot more sense to me that way. Some hymnals (including TiS) have sensitively modernised the words. Older lyrics.  Oldy-but-a-goody.
• TiS 188 Where wide sky rolls down and touches red sand (Elizabeth Smith) Great Australian imagery sung to a familiar hymn tune. Lyrics (scroll down). Video with sound sample and lyrics.
• TiS 152 / NCH4 / UMH89 / VU232 / LBW551 / ELW836 / HPP22 / GtG611 / PH464 / GC529 / GC(II)520 / G(3)614 / CP425 / W&R59 / Cha002 / URW065 / 82Hml-376 Joyful joyful we adore thee (Henry van Dyke) Note that this hymn is not always very inclusive. I prefer more modern translations (e.g. TiS, VU, NCH, GC(II) ). Lyrics and tune sample.
• TiS 187 / AoV2-130 / CH149 / StS122 / A&M539 / SP247 Let all creation dance (Brian Wren) I just love the imagery of this one, and it's a very joyous and familiar hymn tune too. Lyrics and sheet music.
• G(II)90 / GC101 / GC(II)60 / G(3)076 Lord Send Out Your Spirit (Paul Lisicky) Could be fun to use just the refrain as a round. I would sing it much quicker than the sample. Sheet music sample. Sound sample.
• AoVK-123 / NCH3 / Iona (M&G) / UMH148 / VU308 / WoV794 / ELW837 / GtG021 / PH271 / G(II)338 / GC499 / G(3)911 / CP407 / W&R26 / Cha58 / URW232 / 82Hml-385 Many and Great O God are your works / Wakantanka Taku Nitawa (Joesph Renville) Good words. Simple tune. Sounds great accompanied by a good Native American-style drum beat, which is a great way to get people involved in music-making. Lyrics here. Good for kids, if you get the drums out.
• TiS 65 Send forth your spirit O Lord and renew the face of the earth (Gregory Murray) Cantored Psalm. Refrain is simple and inclusive. Verses do not use inclusive language for God.
• TiS 166 / AHB 102 / GA398 / StB035 Sing a new song sing a new song (James McAuley) Excellent inclusive words. The last verse annoys me a bit, but the rest is excellent. Lyrics.
• AoVK-113 Thank you O Lord for this world of ours (Barr) A good kids song in two parts.
• AoV2-051 / G(II)325 / GC463 / GC(II)481 / G(3)555 Spirit Blowing through Creation (Marty Haugen) Excellent. Don't rush or it's hard to get all the words out.
• NCH056 Breath of the living God / Soplo de Dios viviente (Osvaldo Catena) A joyful song in Spanish or English, set to a traditional Norwegian folk tune. The chorus is particularly great "Come now an dlive within us, come let your gifts enrich us, Breath of the living God, our Creator Spirit, Eternal Source". 
• VU826 Bless O my soul / Hallelujah (Stralsund Gesangbuch / Melchior Vulpius) A responsive Psalm, with two possible responses, both to familiar traditional tunes. Joyful! One is "Bless O my soul the Almighty who rules all creation". The other is simply "Hallelujah! (x3)".

Revelation 22:1-5
The river of life and the tree of life

• AoV2-006 / The tide has turned Deeper River / There's a river running deep within the silence of our souls (Digby Hannah). An excellent song of restoration for tired desert-like souls. Lyrics.
• FFS27 God of unexplored tomorrows (Beverly Jones) The tune will need to be taught, but is quite lovely (CROMWELL). Imagery of "God of rock and flowing river", "strong foundation" "cleansing, quenching water".
• Sounds of Living Water 77 There's a river of life flowing out from me (L Casebolt) I have found the lyrics to this, but I can't remember the second part at all. I think I only know the chorus. Maybe it's in a scripture in song book too. It's a happy clappy. Good for kids.
• MV160 There's a river of life that's flowing from God's throne (Jonathan Maracle) This simple chorus will need to be taught as it is Native American (Mohawk) and makes use of vocables (!). It would work best with some percussion.
• STB045 We Believe Maranatha (Francisco Feliciano) This is a good spoken creed with sung responses. The response is a simple two part fugue with a simple sung (almost) drone for the bass. The creed is one developed by the Asian Institute for Liturgy and Music.  The refrain could be used for any creed, really.
• AoVNG138 Tune our hearts / Tree of Life (Aaron Thompson) A lovely chant for the chorus, which would work with or without the verses. I'm not sure of all the lyrics for this as I don't have a copy. 
• Protest and Praise / Online Resource Two trees rose from the garden ground (David Bjorlin / Benjamin Brody) A reflection on trees which starts with the choice of the tree of good and tree of evil, leads to the tree on which Jesus dies, and ends with the restoration of Eden. Lyrics, sheet music sample and purchasing options. 
• FFS51 O spring in the desert (David Adam) Christ's presence in water and light; Christ as guide. Excellent imagery, good tune.
• NCH576 / CH706 / UMH428 / VU678 / A&M635 / GtG346 / GA513 / GC719 / GC(II)712 / G(3)803 / CP576 / CP(E) 427 / W&R621 / Cha668 / Lau886 / StF696 For the healing of the nations (FredKaan) Excellent words seeking peaceful coexistence of the nations. Can be sung to a range of tunes including the very familiar WESTMINSTER ABBEY. Lyrics.New words to old tunes.

Matthew 28:1-10
The resurrection.
Just look at Easter Day, please!

General River-type songs

• Online Resource Meroo / Water seeping up outta the ground (Nelson Varcoe) The Dharug / Tharwal word "Meroo" means water. This is a song about the source of water. Simple chorus and good words about the importance of water, and a chorus about the rising of the Holy Spirit, carrying our prayers up to the sky. Book available here (BUC people, I have this book!).
  
• VU267 / W&R20 / A&M711 / SP288 / Lau897 / MP419 Like a mighty river flowing (Michael Perry) Lovely words of the presence of God in nature. Lyrics
• AoV2-058 Pulsing Spirit rippling river (Dolores Dufner) Excellent lyrics to the very familiar hymn tune BEACH SPRING. New words to old tunes. Lyrics and sound sample. 
• Online Resource / MV144 / SP&P073 Like a healing stream (Bruce Harding) Gentle folksy ballad with a lot of water imagery - healing stream, gentle rain, river strong and mighty sea. Would need to be introduced, but would catch on pretty quickly, I think. Sheet music.
• MV163 River running in you and me (Ian Macdonald / Gordon Light) Terrific words with lots of river imagery, a song of the spirit, and of challenge when times are hard. If this is not familiar, just get a soloist to sing it while the congregation joins in the last line "River run deep, river run free". The verses are not metrical, so it will take more time to sing them with confidence. Lyrics. 
• Online Resource Put your roots down put your feet on the ground (Unknown source) A simple call and response song that parallels the movement of water in a river to the blood in our bodies. Teaching video.
  
• MV117 By the well a thirsty woman (Elizabeth Stilborn) An excellent song that brings the story of the woman at the well to us, with words of Christ being our source of living water. The tune will probably need to be taught.
• GC728 / GC(II)725 / G(3)819 / URW419 / Lau902 / MP554 Peace Is Flowing Like a River (Unknown) A simple chorus. Great for kids and older people. You won't need to provide words for this after the first couple of verses, because only the first word changes. If you don't provide all the words, sometimes people look around them and notice each other.
• Traditional / StJ / GC(II)567 As I went down in the river to pray (African American Spiritual) The encouragement to pray together with each other is a good theme, and the song is a favourite in our congregation. Here's the clip from O Brother Where art thou, which made it so popular.
• AA085 Let justice roll down like a river (Colin Gibson) Excellent song, and very easy to sing. Lyrics and Sheet music. Good for kids.
• StS033 / GA515 / G(II)516 / GC716 / GC(II)709 Let Justice Roll Like a River (Marty Haugen) The song is quite simple, particularly if you use a soloist for the verses if this is new to you. Sound sample (I don't like this sample much) and sheet music sample and lyrics. 
• Online Resource As rivers flow from a distant spring (David Bjorlin / William Beckstrand) Beautiful words using imagery of creation to inspire us to lives based in God's love that care for others, including the earth. Sound sample. Book available to purchase and download here. 
  
• Recorded Music Let justice roll (Sojourn music) A good country rock song for listening - catchy chorus; good social justice lyrics! Sound sample and purchase options. 
• NCH438 / UMH377 / LBW346 / ELW785 / HPP390 / GtG840 / W&R428 / Cha561 / Srce784 / MP757 When peace like a river (Horatio Gates Spafford) An older American hymn. Hymnals vary in how old fashioned the lyrics are, and only some include the chorus. Older style lyrics (really terrible old lyrics).
• ATFG563 / NCYC'03 / The Red Book How long must we cry out? (Robin Mann) This is a big Brunswick favourite, great for young people in particular. "Teach me to do what is right, walk in the darkness, trust in the light and may love be the path I walk upon". Good for teenagers. Lyrics. Lyric video.
• NCH478 / VU577 / SFFS 2145 / HPP394 / PH368 / GGives1 / Cha530 / MP353 I've got peace like a river (African-American) I really like this old song! Good for kids.
• MV087 Water flowing From the mountains (Digby Hannah) A simple flowing song with lots of good water imagery. It's not specifically Christian, so could also be used in a multi-faith or secular gathering.
• SP&P092 Empty jar clear and clean (James Manley) A simple song, seeking the openness to receive God's spirit, like a river rushing through.
• FFS51 O spring in the desert (David Adam) Christ's presence in water and light; Christ as guide. Excellent imagery, good tune.