Songs, Hymns & Music for Proper 18C / Ordinary 23C / Pentecost +15 (September 7th 2025)

Looking for Season of Creation Resources? There are a few suggestions on this page if you are following the 2025 theme of "Peace for Creation" I have highlighted songs that are particularly appropriate within the Lectionary with a globe of the earth 🌏. If you are using the earlier version of Season of Creation, or if you're looking for additional Creation-themed songs click here for Season of Creation 1C- Ocean Sunday!  

 

Jeremiah 18:1-11
God as the potter who can break down Israel; it's quite a threatening image. Repentence called for.

• GWA029 In ages past the mighty Lord by prophets spoke the word (Michael Morgan, USA) This is a song with very many verses; choose at least verses 1 and 3 this week, and you can sing other verses when you want to sing about other prophets. Set to the common tune KINGSFOLD. Some lyrics (not the Jeremiah verse!). New words to old tunes.  
• 🌏Iona (Sent By the Lord) / MV066 Senzenina? / What have we done? (South African) This beautiful chant from South Africa asks the question that we often ask when things go wrong beyond belief. It's important to know what the song means when singing it. If you have some part-singers in your congregation, this would be particularly good. It's good to let people ask this question. It is also on the soundtrack for "The Power of One" so you could also play the recorded music if appropriate. Lyrics and story.Good for kids.
• TiS 409 / AHB 322 / CH595 / UMH543 / VU202 / StJ / SLW43 / W&R328 / Cha250 / StF391 / MP488 O Breath of life come sweeping through us (Elizabeth Porter Head) This is a really good older style hymn with inclusive lyrics. Lyrics and sheet music. Not all verses are in all hymnals. Oldy-but-a-goody.
• 🌏Tune In / NCYC '07 / Online Resource Forgive us now (Dave Brown). “As we forgive may we be healed, as we reach out….” An excellent ballad seeking forgiveness in a sinful world. Lyrics and sound sample and free songbook.
• Online Resource / Brunswick Song Project Broken (Elaine Loukes) This simple song would fit well this week as it talks about being broken (like that pot!) and leads into communion, which we'll be celebrating. It's probably not too hard to be sung the first time, particularly if the congregation are just invited to join in the chorus. Lyrics, sound sample, and free sheet music.
• Online Resource We are clay (Bruce Harding) A simple chorus which could be used prayerfully or in an upbeat style. Free sheet music. Recording. Good for kids.
• CH252 / VU578 / GA481 / SFFS 2237 / G(II)471 / GC663 / GC(II)643 / G(3)744 / W&R551 / Lau828 As a Fire Is Meant for Burning (Ruth Duck) Excellent lyrics of unity across all nations set to the familiar tune BEACH SPRING. Sheet music samples. New words to old tunes.
• NCH263 / UMH539 O Spirit of the living God (Henry Hallam Tweedy) Excellent words of hope for a church that needs to turn to God and do things right. The tune in NCH (ST MATTHEW) is not one I'm familiar with, but it's pretty straightforward. UMH uses FOREST GREEN which is much better konwn. Lyrics and sound sample. New words to old tunes.
• ATOK 354 / ELW801 / SFFS 2152 / GtG695 / SP&P128 / W&R373 / PfAS051A / ZSS178 / Srce95 / MP069 / SiS482 Change my heart O God / Cambiame Senor (Eddie Espinosa) "You are the potter, I am the clay". A mushy old favourite. Lyrics. Oldy-but-a-goody.
• Recorded music Mended (Matthew West) A song of healing and hope. This is not really a congregational song, but the lyrics could be good for a reflection, and the congregation could easily join in the chorus after hearing the first one: "When you see wounded, I see mended". You could also get your musicians to play it for the congregation. Thanks to Dean Spalding for this suggestion. Youtube. Chords and lyrics.

Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18
God knows us better than we know ourselves. We cannot hide.

• GWA111 / HiOS038 God come now to explore my heart (Marnie Barrell, New Zealand) An honest and moving call for God to help us see within ourselves. Sung to a lovely hymnlike tune. Sound sample (tune only).
• Online Resource God speaks us into being / Fearfully and wonderfully (Gabi Caidenhead) New for 2024! Powerful words. This is wonderfully positive and healing, with beautiful nonbinary Trinitarian imagery. I'm not sure how to get sheet music for this, so you may wish to simply play the music, provide the words, and invite the congregation to join in the two refrains: "We are fearfully and wonderfully made, we are lovingly and intricately made, we are knit together in each other's wombs. We are fearfully and wonderfully made" and "Scarred and holy" when they occur. Youtube. Sheet music.
• Online Resource / AoV2-031 / ATW 424 / CH97 / A&M747 / GtG029 / GC(II)509 / SP301 / StF728 / Lau779 O God, you search me and you know me (Bernadette Farrell). My favourite version of Psalm 139, which fits this reading too. The tune flows effortlessly and it has a nice little hook at the end of each verse. Sound sample and music for purchase. Lyrics.
• TiS 87 / CH096 / VU862 / GtG028 / PH248 / PfAS139D You are before me, Lord, you are behind (Ian Pitt-Watson) Excellent words, set either to the chant-like tune SURSUM CORDA or the Scottish tune HIGHLAND CATHEDRAL. The words are directly from the Psalm and are very beautiful. Sound sample. New words to old tunes.
• CH145 God made me as I am (Bernadette Farrell) A lovely little song.  "God made me as I am, part of creation's plan. No-one else can ever be the part of God's plan that's me". Good for kids. Youtube with gestures (maybe American sign language?).
• PfAS139C Lord you have searched me and you know (Hal Hopson) A very simple refrain for a responsive reading or chanted reading of this Psalm. 
• NCH Psalter 139 (Jane Marshall) is a very simple refrain for this Psalm which is worth a look.
• ATOK 320 / NCH351 / VU645 / StJ / WoV770 / ELW740 / SFFS 2051 / GtG488 / HPP516 / W&R680 / Cha075 I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry (John Ylvisaker) A song of God’s presence in all stages of life. Very simple tune to sing. Lyrics, and a nice (slow) sound sample. 
• SP&P084 You know my words before they’re said / All My Days (Laurie Zelman) A good contemporary version of this Psalm. It would be good sung by a soloist at first.  Youtube recording.  
• Worldmaking.net God of My Breathing (Richard Bruxvoort-Colligan). Excellent words to a well-known hymn tune. Sample and lyrics.  New words to old tunes.
• ATW 487 Make your home in me (Fay White) A simple beautiful invitation by Melbourne songwriter and teacher. “If you fly to the point of the day’s sunrise or westward across the sea, if you travel to the uttermost ends of the earth, there I will be; Make your home in me as I make my home in you. I am everywhere that you can be. Make your home in me”. This is quite different to the Vineyard / Josh Young version you can find all over the internet. Sound sample.
• Taizé / TiS 725 / ATE 275 / AoV2-167 / ATE 275 / StJ / GA538 / GtG678 / G(II)553 / GC763 / URW391 In our darkness there is no darkness in your sight, the deepest night is clear as the daylight (La tenebre) (Jacques Berthier) Also translated as "Our darkness is never darkness". Sample music and lyrics.
• ACS948 / NCH274 / CH118 / SFFS 2046 / GtG003 / CP390 / Cha014 Womb of Life and source of being (Ruth Duck) Feminine trinitarian imagery. An easier tune, listed in some hymnals is IN BABILONE. Others have LADUE CHAPEL which is a little less intuitive. Lyrics. New words to old tunes.
• STB008 Come Lord Jesus Christ / Esho hae Probhu (Bangladesh) (Bart Shaha) A good chant to sing in times of darkness. It has words in English and Bengali. The tune will need to be taught. Midi sample (very quick!) (search for Shaha).
• URW349 Search me O God (Jane Marshall) A good and simple Psalm refrain. Great if you can add some additional parts
• Online Resource / ATOK 394 Search me O God (Leigh Newton) Set to Beethoven's Sonata Pathetique, this is really beautiful, and has wonderful words. Thank you Tanya for this suggestion! Free music and sound sample.
• 🌏 StF109 In the darkness of the still night (Margaret Rizza) Good words connecting God's creative love with our own lives and concerns. The tune is gentle, but not simple. I suggest encouraging the congregation to join in on the line "Creator God you are there" during the verses for the first time it is used (but let them know that the tune is a little bit different in the middle of the verse, compared to the end of the verse). Lyrics. 
• 🌏 URW416 Listen to the song of the wind (Thomas Turner) This is quite lovely, and you could choose whichever verses are most appropriate for any service. Lyrics. Good for kids.
• 🌏 VU623 Dear weaver of our lives' design (Nancy Dorian) Beautiful imagery of God as the Weaver. Sung to the familiar tune REPTON. New words to old tunes. Lyrics.
• VU384 / SFFS 2052 / HPP229 / PH320 The Lone Wild Bird in lofty flight (Marty Haugen) Familiar tune and excellent words. First 3 verses and tune sample. New words to old tunes.
• 🌏 Online Resource / Resounding Voices / VT044 We long to know her the maker of heaven (Jacque Jones) Rich feminine imagery of God as creator, wisdom and bringer of justice. Sung to a tune that may be familiar (STAR OF THE EAST). Free book download here. New words to old tunes.
• Online Resource / AoV2-079 / GA081 How Rich Are The Depths (Christopher Willcock) A good Cantor and refrain version of the Psalm. Sound sample, sheet music sample and purchasing options.
• Music by Heart 15 Darkness is not dark (Eric Law) A simple round, with optional cantor part. Good to teach to your congregation without lyric sheets or projections. Would be appreciated by kids, as it is simple. Good for kids.
• Worldmaking.net Open unto me light for my darkness (Richard Bruxvoort-Colligan). This is really lovely and meditative. Sample here.
• MV131 You, Creator God, have searched me (George Mulrain) Get out the maracas for this one! This joyous calypso chorus for this Psalm is so refreshing. I think it’s really good fun, and very catchy! Good fun for kids. Lyrics. Good for kids.
• Online Resource / ATE 224 Lord you've searched me / Where could I run from you? (Paul Gioia) So here's a funny story. The first time I looked at this song the lyrics gave me a bit of a creepy stalker vibe, but a member of our congregation (Hi Ruth Sandy!) mentioned how much fun it is and how much she loves it. So I'm listing it now because really, it is a lot of fun and very catchy, and it's not really creepy, it's just based on the Psalm; a good reminder that everyone responds differently! Lyrics and purchasing options.
• ATW 423 Examine my heart, explore my mind (Robin Mann) This is a bit tricky, but if familiar to your congregation would be great to sing. Lyrics.
• Online Resource Search me O God (David MacGregor) A simple devotional song. It works well with the verses, or just use the chorus as a reflective refrain on its own. Sheet music.

Alternative Hebrew Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:15-20 
Love God, follow God's commandments and hold fast to God - it's the best way, really.

• God Gives 1 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind and love all humankind as you would love yourselves and…  (Graeme Stewart, Australia) I really like this old Sunday School round, with a groovy 50s feel to it. Lyrics, chords and lead sheet and lots of videos. Great for kids.
• Iona (We walk his way) / G(3)517 / StF775 We walk his way / Ewe Thina (Unkonwn, South Africa) A joyful, simple South African song. Sound sample.
• 🌏 VU250 / GA415 / G(II)372 / GC546 O God of Matchless Glory (Ruth Duck, USA) Good song, simple tune (HASTINGS). Lyrics and sheet music. Sound sample.
• TiS 430 / AHB 337 / Cha324 / StF164 Your words to me are life and health (George Currie Martin, England) I really like this old hymn. It’s a bit old fashioned, but it still works, I think. Lyrics and sheet music. Oldy-but-a-goody.
• CP447 / W&R671 Lord we hear your word with gladness (Margaret Clarkson, Canada) Good words honouring the word and the Word of God, set to a well known hymn tune (NETTLETON). Lyrics and sheet music. New words to old tunes
  
• CH115 / MV089 / Iona (Love from Below) / A&M722 / SP292 Love is the touch of intangible joy (Alison Robertson, Scotland) Great words and a simple tune. "God is where love is, for love is of God". Lyrics (scroll). Lovely sound sample. 
• NCH350 Now in the days of youth (Walter Mathams, England) Sung to the familiar tune DIADEMATA, this song has great words for young people, including those being confirmed, asking for knowledge to use their lives wisely and to love truthfully. Lyrics.  New words to old tunes.

Psalm for the Deuteronomy reading: Psalm 1 
They who trust in the Lord shall be like a tree planted by the water with roots in the stream and will fruit even in drought.

• 🌏 Online Resource You grow like the moss draping soft sodden logs (Hannah Brown) Gentle words about God as growing moss, moving mountain and ebbing ocean, and a call to slow down and trust. Sung to an old shape note tune which will not be familiar but is very simple. Lyrics, sheet music sample and purchasing options. New words to old tunes.
• Online resource Blessed are those who trust in God / By the stream (Christopher Grundy) Oh my... this is just gorgeous! Best sung by a soloist for the verses. The recording is so beautiful - it's easy to pull my heartstrings with a cello and a mandolin... Youtube. Purchasing options.
• NCH Psalter001 My delight is in the law of God (Judy Hunnicutt) A very simple refrain and chanted Psalm.
• Online resource Blessed be (David MacGregor, Australia) A simple, reflective song. Sound sample. Lyrics. Sheet music.
• 🌏 Linnea Good Strong as living Trees  (Linnea Good, Canada) A lovely haunting chant. Good for kids and adults alike.
• 🌏 Online Resource / GWA203 May this church be like a tree / Que esta iglesia sea un árbol (Pablo Sosa, Argentina) This has lovely words about a the church having the qualities of a backyard tree, a city tree, and Christ as the tree of life. It will need to be taught. Sound sample, sheet music sample and purchasing options (complex arrangement). Sheet music (Spanish language only, melody and chords).    
• 🌏 StS116 I saw a tree by the riverside / The Tree Song (Ken Medema) A great kid’s song about roots growing down to the water, and leaves growing up to the sunshine, and bearing fruit, and all that great stuff. Good for kids. Lyrics and chords.
• 🌏 Online resource Like a tree by the flowing water (Richard Bruxvoort-Colligan) Part of a series of songs based on Psalm 1, I think the chorus of this is probably my favourite. In Australia, you might want to use only the chorus because the word "rooted" means something quite different over here. Sound samples, lyrics and purchasing options. Good for kids.
• 🌏 NCH313 Like a tree beside the waters (James Martin) Good congregational words of richness from the waters. Tune is a little bit tricky, so will need to be introduced. It can also be sung to the more familiar HYFRYDOL. Sound recording. New words to old tunes.
• 🌏 CP462 The hidden stream that feeds (Thomas Troeger) Good for the end of the service "We leave this watered place to work on rocky ground, Yet even there the streams of grace sustain our daily round. Lord, through our lives may others hear your living waters drawing near." Lyrics (scroll through document).
• TiS 607 / AoV2-126 / ATN 95 / CH528 / VU684 / StJ / A&M725 / SFFS 2171 / HPP406 / GtG753 / G(II)524 / GC726 / GC(II)721 / G(3)828 / CP(E)519/ W&R587 / Srce 462 / Lau898 / StF707 / MP456 Make me a channel of your peace (Sebastian Temple). Lovely. Nice if you can just start a capella... Youtube video of Sinead O'Connor singing it and lyrics.
• URW223 Happy are they who delight (Hal Hopson) A responsively read Psalm with an African-American spiritual refrain "Like a tree that's planted by the water, we shall not be moved". I like it. New words to old tunes.
• 🌏 NCH438 / UMH377 / LBW346 / ELW785 / HPP390 / GtG840 / W&R428 / Cha561 / Srce784 / MP757 When peace like a river / It is well with my soul (Horatio Spafford) An older American hymn. Hymnals vary in how old fashioned the lyrics are, and only some include the chorus. Lyrics and tune.A nice recording by Audrey Assad.
• 🌏 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 and sound sample.
• PfAS001B Happy are they who trust (Robert Thompson) A simple psalm response that can also be used as a round. Good for kids.
• PfAS001E How blest the people / Feliz la gente (Juan Espinosa) This will take a little while to learn, but the chorus is very simple, so perhaps use a cantor to sing the verses. Sound sample (in Spanish).
• TiS 1 / PfAS001C Happy are they who walk in God's wise way (Erik Routley) Excellent tune from Thailand. Words are a reasonable paraphrase and slightly old fashioned but quite fine. Sound sample.
• PfAS001F / URW224 Happy is the one (John Bell) Quite straightforward and good hymnlike paraphrase of the Psalm. Youtube. 
• Public Domain Well I'm on my way to heaven / I shall not be moved / We shall not be moved  Standard old folk song. You may also like this Johnny Cash version. History. Lyrics & chords. Thanks to Mark Kleiner for this suggestion!
• Online resource Blessed poor and shattered spirits / Heaven shall be yours (Michael Mangan, Australia) A folksy song; not so easy for a congregation to sing the verses, but might be good to listen to, and invite the congregation to join in the joyous chorus. Sound sample. Hard copy book available to purchase here.

Philemon 1:1-21
Paul's words of greetings and words on Onesimus' return, no longer a slave.

• TiS 670 / SiS569 / AoVK-138 / ATE 258 / CH692 / Srce385 / MP376 Jesus put this song into our hearts (Graham Kendrick, England) A fun Yiddish tune that gets even more fun if you get faster and faster as you go. Try teaching your congregation a simple side to side “dance” step; give them an excuse to join in! Good for kids. Youtube. 
• CH348 / StS001 / LBW196 / ELW843 / A&M762 / G(3)625 / CP397 / W&R93 / SP304 / URW090 Praise the One Who Breaks the Darkness (Rusty Edwards, USA) Good words of Christ's ministry to all. Can be sung to the familiar tune NETTLETON, or the less familiar and very lovely tune JOEL. Lyrics. New words to old tunes.
• AoV1-130 / SFFS 2223 / HPP495 / GtG300 / G(II)533 / GC735 / GC(II)728 / G(3)835 / W&R595 / Cha494 We are one in the Spirit / They’ll know we are Christians by our love (Peter Scholtes, USA) A classic 60's song of unity and being an example to others. It's still pretty groovy, I reckon. Older version are really masculine. We often syncopate it a bit at Brunswick. Lyrics and pretty silly sound sample. Good for kids. 
• Online Resource / AoVK-21 Weave one heart / Weave us as Ohana (Marty Haugen, USA) Excellent song with Hawaiian language interspersed (in the version available online), with call and response verses "many colours woven into one". Sound sample and purchasing options. Please watch this video which includes simple graceful hula dancing, and shows how you can effectively project sheet music.
• Recorded Music Sisters & Brothers (Malcolm Gordon, New Zealand) A song of change, surrender and the formation of a new family "Where slaves become brothers and love is discovered...". Sound sample and purchase options.  

Luke 14:25-33
In case you didn't hear him the first time, the gospel writer is reminding you that Jesus told his followers to give up their possessions.

• Online Resource / NCH590 / CH621 Spirit of Jesus, if I love my neighbour (Brian Wren) Challenging words of offering help from a position of privilege and seeking to be set free from the entrapment of possessions “If I am hugging safety or possessions, uncurl my spirit as your love prevails, to join my neighbours, work for liberation, and find my freedom at the mark of nails”. Could also be sung to the tune PERFECT LOVE if your congregation would have trouble with the newer tune. Lyrics & sheet music. New words to old tunes.
• Online Resource / NCH562 / AA127 / Cha381 Take my gifts and let me love you (Shirley Murray) Good words about giving God ourselves, our goods, our money. Can be sung either to the set tune by Colin Gibson (TALAVERA TERRACE) which is quite straightforward, or the more well known tune HOLY MANNA. A good offering song. Lyrics and sheet music. New words to old tunes
• Taizé / TiS 739 / AoV2-041 / ATOK 404 / VU290 / GA269 / SFFS 2054 / GtG820 / G(II)451 / GC639 / GC(II)626 / G(3)733 / CP568 / W&R421 / URW388 / Lau947 Nothing Can Trouble / Nada te turbe (Jacques Berthier) Excellent and quite well known Taizé chant. Spanish lyrics are not too hard for non-Spanish speakers. Sheet music, sound samples, lyrics and translations. Good for kids.
• Online Resource / AA087 Lift high the cross (Kitchin adapt Shirley Murray) This adaptation of this old hymn makes it very singable, while still challenging. New words to old tunes Lyrics and sheet music.
• Online Resource / NCYC ’93 / ATFG586 We will love / We will walk with you at the edges (Graeme Gardener) This is a good little rock number “We will walk with you at the edges, we will die with you at the cross roads, we will risk with you taking chances, we will love”. Or something like that. Jesus broke rules, and that's OK sometimes. Free sheet music and sound samples. Good for kids.
• ATOK 413 / Iona (HSNW) / CH533 / VU567 / StS039 / A&M510 / ELW798 / GA502 / SFFS 2130 / HPP317 / GtG726 / G(II)510 / GC700 / GC(II)687 / G(3)790 / CP430 / CP(E) 622 / W&R350 / URW060 / Lau877 / StF673 Will you come and follow me / The Summons (Iona) A classic. Don't sing it too slowly or it really drags and takes forever! Lyrics.
• TiS 583 / AHB 496 / NCH204 / CH402 / UMH415 / VU561 / LBW398 / ELW667 / A&M135 / GtG718 / PH393 / GC698 / GC(II)690 / G(3)801 / CP431 / CP(E) 582 / W&R351 / 82Hml-675 / MP935 Take up thy cross the Savior said (Charles Everest) You'll need to provide some context for this one, I think. An older hymn, and very masculine in some hymn books, so check your version! Lyrics and sheet music. Oldy-but-a-goody.

What other songs would work with these readings? Please join in and add a comment below.

 

Written in Fitzroy, updated 2022 in Salt Lake City Airport, updated 2025 back in Fitzroy.