Web curations – quotable Tweets (1 Mar)

Twitter often seems like an ever-clanging cymbal for narcissists. But the medium does produce spontaneous, pithy moments.

 

Redefining the term “hymnal”

WLMag Jan-Feb 2013

Quite a thought-provoking opening paragraph (and rest of article) from WLMag’s Feb issue:

“Worship leaders are hymnal editors. Whoever chooses the people’s song for their congregation is not only a hymnal editor but also is a primary shaper of the way their congregation understands and expresses faith.” – C Michael Lawn

The author never gives a straight definition of the term, but in the way he describes it, he seems to view a hymnal as simply a shared collection of songs of faith, and not necessarily in book form:

Each song is in its initial form a personal testimony of how the composer views God at work in her/his life and in the world. While every testimony may be a valid witness of God’s grace, not every sung testimony should become the church’s song. Editors, pastors, and worship leaders are part of the process of deciding whose individual witness might become part of the common sung faith of the church. A hymnal–whether in print or in an electronic form–is a record of the witness of the Church throughout the ages–past, present, and even the future.

While I tend to think of it as a book, a Christian’s collection of songs today could reside in numerous places – in a music folder, on their iTunes/Spotify playlist, Youtube favourites, and so on. The challenge here is that because the songs that inform my faith are scattered across these sources, it’s now more difficult to share a collection with others (where in the past you could just hand a hymnbook over to someone).

Hymnals in whatever form they appear (printed, projected, digital) are usually carefully considered efforts by a denomination or publisher to bear witness to our faith throughout the ages, express our faith within the world we live, and sing ourselves into the church we may become. To this end, most of us do not have the skills to do this alone. We risk singing only what is familiar, easily learned, or comes up first on a Google search.

In fairness, we could also just call what he terms a hymnal a music library. Though I agree with his six-step challenge to consider purposely curating a collection of worship music for one’s church.

You can read the full article here.

CCLI’s latest Top 25 List released – what it tells (and doesn’t tell) us

CCLI

 

CCLI (the copyright administration company that most churches deal with) have released the top 25 worship songs that churches reported using between April – September 2012.

On their website there are lists for the US, UK, Australia and NZ. Comparing between them will reveal some interesting differences (e.g. the UK list has UK-based songwriters higher up the list, the Australian list has more Hillsong-published numbers).

Here’s the ranking of songs as reported by New Zealand churches in 2012:

Rank Song Title Author/s Year Catalogue
1 How Great Is Our God Chris Tomlin, Jesse Reeves, Ed Cash 2004 Sixsteps
2 Our God Matt Redman, Chris Tomlin, Jonas Myrin, Jesse Reeves 2010 Sixsteps
3 Blessed Be Your Name Beth Redman, Matt Redman 2002 Thankyou
4 10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord) Matt Redman, Jonas Myrin 2011 Sixsteps
5 Glorified Shaun Griffiths 2007 Integrity/Parachute
6 In Christ Alone Stuart Townend, Keith Getty 2001 Thankyou
7 Here I Am To Worship Tim Hughes 2000 Thankyou
8 Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) Chris Tomlin, Louie Giglio, John Newton 2006 Sixsteps
9 Come Now Is The Time To Worship Brian Doerkson 1998 Vineyard
10 Mighty To Save Ben Fielding, Reuben Morgan 2006 Hillsong
11 Hosanna Brooke Ligertwood 2006 Hillsong
12 Shout To The Lord Darlene Zschech 1993 Hillsong
13 The Stand Joel Houston 2005 Hillsong
14 Revelation Song Jennie Lee Riddle 2004 Gateway
15 The Servant Song Richard Gillard 1977 Scripture in Song
16 Cornerstone Eric Liljero, Reuben Morgan, Jonas Myrin, Edward Mote, William Batchelder 2011 Hillsong
17 Happy Day Ben Cantelon, Tim Hughes 2006 Thankyou
18 The Power Of Your Love Geoff Bullock 1992 Hillsong
19 God Is Able Reuben Morgan, Ben Fielding 2010 Hillsong
20 How Deep The Father’s Love For Us Stuart Townend 1995 Thankyou
21 Be Still David J. Evans 1986 Thankyou
22 This Is Our God Reuben Morgan 2008 Hillsong
23 I Give You My Heart Reuben Morgan 1995 Hillsong
24 Lord I Lift Your Name On High Rick Founds 1989 Maranatha
25 There Is A Redeemer Melody Green-Sievright 1982 Birdwing Music

 

I’m aware of the many limitations of reviewing a list like this (self-reporting bias, sample size, whether the report is representative of all NZ churches or favours some denominations). And  other writers  (e.g. here, here  , here and here) have done more detailed analysis of these lists.

But here are some things I learnt from considering this list.

 

1. Hillsong, Sixsteps and Thankyou Music are the three biggest sources for today’s Christian worship music.

Hands in the air - in concert (CC) by Martin Fisch

First, a fly-by view of each of these labels and artists:

  • Kingsway’s Thankyou Music includes Matt Redman, Stuart Townend, Tim Hughes, Vicky Beeching and Brenton Brown.
  • Sixstepsrecords includes Chris Tomlin, David Crowder, Charlie Hall, Matt Redman, Kristian Stanfill and other artists linked to Passion Church in Atlanta, Georgia.
  • Hillsong Music includes Darlene Zschech, Reuben Morgan, Brooke Ligertwood (neé Fraser) and Joel Houston and other artists linked to the Hillsong network of churches.

Songs from these catalogues dominate this CCLI top 25 list, while the artists read like a  who’s who of worship music for the past 20 years. Granted, there are one or two songs that disrupt this hegemony (e.g. “Revelation Song” by Jennie Lee Riddle).  But once you add the global marketing reach of these publishers, I think these  labels and the songwriters and artists signed to them will continue to set much of the direction of worship music in New Zealand churches that use contemporary music.

Even if you never sing any of these songs at your church, I think pastors and those responsible for choosing songs would benefit from having at least an awareness of what the wider body of Christ is singing from Sunday to Sunday.

 

2. New Zealand songwriters make only a small dent in the song-writing scene.

The Lonely Church by Trey Ratcliff

The list shows that only one NZ song (“Glorified” by Parachute Band’s Shaun Griffiths) is listed in the top 25. While  there’s no biblical warrant that mandates local songs for local churches, I’d like to see more worship songs written by New Zealanders, from NZ ministry contexts.

It’s worth noting that songwriters in the past often wrote songs for their local congregations in local contexts.

For example, Henry Lyte wrote “Abide With Me” as he was dying of tuberculosis, in order to encourage the church he pastored to “to pre ­pare for that sol ­emn hour which must come to all, by a time ­ly ac ­quaint ­ance with the death of Christ.”

And John Newton wrote “Amazing Grace” not to accompany a theatrical release or as a response to a lightning bolt moment, but to accompany a sermon based on the text of 1 Chronicles 17:16-17 that he  preached to his local church as they celebrated a new year.

Putting God’s Word to music is certainly a weighty task, which perhaps puts some of us off. Bobby Giles says it bluntly:

“We put words in people’s mouths, which they will sing in church services as well as their homes, cars and other places throughout the week as they worship God. If you don’t feel the weight of this responsibility, you should. You must.”

Despite how daunting it is, these are questions worth asking: what does your church need to sing? What about God, what about Jesus do they need to be reminded of? Where will these songs come from, and who will write them?

 

3. We aren’t “missing out” if we haven’t sung the top 25 in our churches.

Fear of Missing Out on Etsy

When someone lets you know about the latest viral hit or top-selling album, it’s tempting to feel out of the loop if you didn’t know about it (I have yet to investigate this Harlem Shake thing, don’t tempt me…).

For example, the way worship leaders  at our church choose songs  is mainly driven by the preaching themes, the contours of the gospel message, and a desire to apply Colossians 3:16’s “sing the Word” principle.

So our church music library only has half of these top 25 songs (italicised  in the list above). As a result, we’ve only sung five of them in 2012 (in  bold), and at most 10 of them in the past two years.

It’s tempting for some Christians to wonder if they’re missing out by not singing the songs that everyone else is singing, as if the wisdom of the crowds solely determined what was essential for growth as a Christian.

No – what we need the most in our songs are words and melodies to “let the word of Christ dwell richly in us, teaching and admonishing one another…” (Col 3:16). If it comes from well-crafted songs from the top 25, that’s fantastic. But if it comes from from less-popular songs, from hearing the Bible read and explained, and from sharing how God’s working in our lives – that’s fantastic too, and we’re not missing out at all.

 

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Here are some things that the CCLI top 25 list doesn’t tell us, but I wish we could have more insight on:

  • What kind of church uses all (or most) of the top 25 – a Hillsong-influenced one? A church that uses exclusively contemporary music? A church whose members are predominantly from a younger demographic?
  • How often are Christians singing public domain songs (e.g. traditional hymns)? Which ones have endured and which ones are not as well-known anymore? Why?
  • Are there songs, themes not on the list that Christians should be singing about more? Are there themes over-represented in the songs that NZ churches sing most frequently?

 

What are your thoughts on looking at this list?

Do you sing most of the songs on it or only a few?

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Thankful at the beach, all I have is Yours

image

It was such a peaceful evening at the beach yesterday.

I felt a fresh wave of thankfulness as we ate our fish and chips, watching the world go by.

I marvelled at the beauty of everything around me as we walked along the shore – the azureous sky, the balmy onshore wind, the waves at play.

I thought about the place we bought our dinner from, the takeaways that I grew up next to. I pondered on the boy I was while growing up there.

I remembered many of the sins of my youth which stubbornly cling to me even today. My propensity to lie and speak falsely. My sense of hurt when my way isn’t followed. Ultimately, my desire to elevate me above everyone else.

 

How did God transform me from self-absorbed music-obsessed child, into a husband and father, both for the Lord?

What did God do to my heart so that I would feel such love for the two ladies strolling ahead of me, rather than a love for my craft, gifts and possessions?

Is what’s been shown to me the same kindness that God meant when he said that “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give all?” Or is it more than that?

Will I feel this same joy and gratitude on the day he takes everything from me? If in His severe kindness left me nothing but His Spirit to cling to Christ?

Perhaps God is discussing with the Accuser right now about what to afflict so that I might grow.

Would I be ready? Could I freely say that all I have is Yours?

——————-

“When I was chained to greed and pride,
Tight-fisted, destined just to die,
You paid my debt and bought my life —
All I have is Yours.“

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Web curations (25 Feb)

'f' as in 'violin' by Gisela Giardino

Online writing that made me think:

#music

Can Asians save classical music? Michael Ahn Paarlberg paints sterotypes and generalisations all over the place: “Classical music is as Asian as tempura and Spam. Even if it eventually dies in the West, it will have an Asian afterlife, much in the way washed-up American rock bands can still pack stadiums in Manila.” I disagree with his premise that only a specific ethnicity will save symphony orchestras and classical recitals — it’s rarely that simplistic.

Heavy metal worship music – Helen Thorne reflects on what we could learn when considering a church in London where the music is solely heavy metal (complete with animal skull adorning the wall).

 

#society

The tyranny of ‘news’ – I know I find myself unhelpfully drawn each morning to recall the today’s news, rather than today (and every day)’s Good News. A helpful word from Tim Thornborough.

An LGBT activist comes out as a friend of Dan Cathy and Chick-fil-A – Shane Windmeyer: “How could I dare think to have a relationship with a man and a company that have advocated against who I am; who would take apart my family in the name of “traditional marriage”; whose voice and views represented exactly the opposite of those of the students for whom I advocate every day?” I enjoyed reading about how Dan, a commited Christian, used this opportunity to model humility, respect and love for his neighbour.

#fun

A retired Lego Mould

This moulding tool made 120 million Lego bricks – According to Zane Thorne, “retired brick molds are embedded into the foundations of public buildings to prevent them from falling into the hands of competitors as LEGOS are produced to an extremely high specification, with only a few microns of tolerance.”

#quoted

https://twitter.com/JeffersonBethke/status/241596823586865152