Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs: Sojourn’s Worship Music Set List For Sunday, August 10, 2008

 This week’s recap of songs is posted in collaboration with other worship leaders on the “Sunday Setlists” blog carnival at fredmckinnon.com.

1. King of Glory, by Chris Tomlin.  This song of praise based on Psalm 24:7-10 has become a modern standard at many churches, including Sojourn.  Using scripture in song has long been one of Tomlin’s strengths as a modern worship songwriter.

We followed this song with a spoken call to worship, leading into …

2. All Creatures of our God and King, hymn text by Francis of Assissi, music several hundred years later by Peter von Brachel.  This call for all of creation to praise our one Creator reminds us how unlimited his scope and power is.  Sun, moon, wind, “all things” were created by God, for His glory.

Following this hymn we prayed a corporate prayer of confession and repentance, leading into …

3. Nothing Without You, by Bebo Norman.  This is the essence of our confession: we have nothing apart from God:

Take my time here on earth

and let it glorify all that You are worth

for I am nothing, I am nothing, I am nothing without You.

Our liturgical reader led us to listen and recite Words of Assurance, and then we celebrated the assurance we have in Christ’s victory over sin with …

4. There is a Peace, by Sojourn’s own Charlie Richardson.  You can view the chord sheet from our Before the Throne page here on sojournmusic.com and listen to the mp3 on our Facebook fan page.  I’d also encourage you to read my interview with Charlie here on this site to catch a glimpse of the heart of this writer who gives us

You’ve been tempted and shaken — tested and failed

You’ve been so far from Jesus, and too close to hell

Your vision’s been clouded by this world’s delights

But I tell you, you’re not of this world, so stand up and fight

Following this song we entered into the “Giving of the Peace” portion of our corporate liturgy, greeting each other, making introductions to those we hadn’t met, and extending the peace we have in Christ to each other. 

Following this, Sojourn worship arts pastor Mike Cosper delivered a sermon on doxology from Romans 11:33-36, also journeying through Job and touching on Isaiah and the Psalms.

5. In Christ Alone, by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend.  Our communion hymn this week and a long-time staple of Sojourn worship services, we sang and meditated on the words as we filed in lines at various spots in our auditorium to take the bread and the cup, and then leave our financial offerings in baskets near the communion elements before returning to our seats:

‘till on that cross as Jesus died,

the wrath of God was satisfied —

for every sin on Him was laid;

Here in the death of Christ, I live.

6. You, by Tim Hughes.  I love the images Hughes uses to describe God, followed after each of his line-opening words in the first verse: Bigger, Deeper, Higher, Brighter, Louder, and Stronger.  I also love the use of irony in verse two:

Awesome God, humble king

You terrify, yet welcome in

7. How Great Thou Art, by Stuart K. Hine in 1953.  This song immediately became a staple of many churches, popularized by George Beverly Shea during the Billy Graham Crusades and recorded by artists from Elvis Presley to Alan Jackson.    It’s easy to see the strength of the song, beginning with the snapshot of the cosmos:

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

in the first verse, a trip through God’s “woods, the forest glades” and “the brook … the gentle breeze” in the second, before centering on Christ’s atoning work on the cross in verse three and the expectant, triumphant final verse:

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation

And take me home, what joy shall my heart ….

Following this song we all raised our hands for the benediction led by pastor-elder Robert Cheong, ready to continue worshiping in other ways throughout the week.

Worship band for 9:30 and 11:15 a.m. services:

Katie Vaughn — vocals

Charlie Richardson — vocals and guitar

Jamie Barnes — lead guitar

Neil Robins — bass guitar

Andy Hassler — piano

Sean Brooks — drums

Scott Daniel — liturgy readings

Worship band for 5 and 7 p.m. services:

Lindsey Lewis — vocals

Dave Moisan — vocals and guitar

Jamie Barnes — lead guitar

Dan Cassin — keyboard

Charlie Lucas — bass guitar

Matt Harris — drums

Dave Richards — liturgy readings