Harvest thanksgiving a week on Sunday. We are using the BMS Higher Ground pack as the basis for the service but have also someone coming to share with us her experience of working as a counsellor in Indonesia post tsunami. I found talking to her entertaining as she's an ex-Pentecostal who speaks the language of Pentecostalism despite now being a Anglican most of the time! (See, Philip Richter was right in what he said about denominational cultures!). Now I am choosing songs - and not over inspired by the BMS suggestions or hymnbooks.
Ploughing fields and scattering good seed (not suggested) - well my people would love it but it doesn't really relate to our experience even in a semi-rural location.
So how's about this one for a change - well known in some circles already - which is a hymny type thing, utterly biblical and up to date: -
From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathomIndescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Laura Storey and Jesses Reeves (c) sixsteps music/gleaning publications/EMI CMG
Not sure we'll manage to learn it (I know it already) but is a good starter for a service.
(My next challenge is to find a book it's published in as a legal download for single use costs about £2.50 - which I paid but gets pricey over time and several items)
Comments
it's in - Various Artists: WOW Worship Aqua Songbook, which is available in the states (not sure about the UK yet - the CD is out not sure about the songbook). Stored under the name 'Indescribable'. Some details are here:
http://www.wordmusic.com/products/book.cfm?upc=080689511288
Also seems to be in a book called indescribable.
http://wordmusic.com/products/book.cfm?UPC=080689494284
Wesley Owen have a songbook of this title for sale.
Thanks Andy -you are clearly the fount of all knowledge on these things!
Had a quick look on Amazon and they seem to have lots of colours apart from aqua.
What is scary is that the colour scheme has echoes of some US imported literacy/English comprehension scheme of the mid 1970's called SRA which used similar colours to rank your ability - I have vague recollections of the desire to get onto "Gold Power Builders" as quickly as possible to have done with the stupid things! Guess I should be glad my skills were pretty good so I didn't have to start on 'tan' or some other very earthy colour.
No problem. I can generally find where the hymns/songs are - the only problem is that my complete lack of musical ability means that I don't know what to do with them once I've got them. I do like the words of indescribable though.
Anyway, what sort of colour is aqua anyway. Why can't they stick to simple colours like red, blue, yellow, etc. Queue rant on Christian marketing ...
Tell me how you get on with this year's material. I found aspects of it difficult to use (apart from the fact that our DVD player packed up on the morning of the service, but that's just a standard occurrence - last time the telly blew up just as I was about to build an evening service around this year's Christian Aid appeal. So we talked instead...).
Probably just me.
From the highest of heights (Indescribable) is in Spring Harvest Praise 07/08 and also Spring Harvest Praise 2006/07. also recorded on SH 'Our God Reigns' and SH 'One God'
Several copies available to loan from Dibley + 100
Thanks Rob H. I've been looking for the words and music to this since this May and now you've just pointed out that I've had it on my bookshelves since April!
All I have to do now is find someone in my church who can play it.
Hey, finally this blog serves a useful purpose!
I got a legal single print copy of the music for 'personal enjoyment and musical fulfillment' from musicnotes.com for about £2.50. I'm not sure if this is covered by 'my' CCLI though. Anyone got any ideas?
Not sure. I understand that there is now an option/upgrade to CCLI which enables you to copy sheet music. I would think that this would be covered by that but probably not otherwise.
CCLI do separate licences for copying music (Music Reproduction Licence?). Logically if you've got one of those, it should cover sheet music provided by participating publishers, but this is the law we're talking about, which sometimes follows its own logic.
Safest to check with CCLI.