This Sunday worship music set list from Sojourn Community Church in Louisville is one of many church set lists you can visit from the Blog Carnival at fredmckinnon.com. Photos here (from the evening services) provided by Sojourn’s Dan Canales.
We began the service with a greeting and a challenge to remember that we are a people with a deep history that connects us with Christians all over the world, and with the faithful from all generations. We heard and read a Call To Worship from Hebrews 12:1-4, 12-13 before beginning to sing:
1. Oh Church, Arise, written by the contemporary Irish hymn writers Keith Getty and Stuart Townend. When Keith and wife Kristyn Getty performed and gave a songwriting workshop here for us at our home, The 930 Art Center, he talked a bit about the martial nature of the melody for “Oh Church Arise.” He remarked that nearly all Irish songs have “fight” melodies.
This one is a good call to worship as well:
Oh Church arise, and put your armour on
hear the call of Christ our captain
We then prayed and read a public confession together based on Lamentations 3:39-40. Sojourn Worship & Arts Pastor Mike Cosper publishes many of our readings on the website he founded with Nathan Bierma of the Calvin Institute For Christian Worship, theopensourcebook.org. The site features a growing collection of readings, free for your church or ministry to use in public worship.
2. O Help My Unbelief, written by Isaac Watts, with a new melody by Justin Smith of Indelible Grace, recorded on their Wake Thy Slumbering Children record. Indelible Grace has put out a lot of good music, and their founder Kevin Twit has given Sojourn good advice and support concerning Over The Grave and our music ministry.
Following “O Help My Unbelief,” we read together words of assurance from Psalm 145:8 and pronounced “In Christ we are forgiven.”
3. May Your Power Rest On Me, written by Sojourn’s Joel Gerdis and Neil Robins. This one is on our upcoming CD Over The Grave: The Hymns Of Isaac Watts, Volume One. Neil’s wife Kate sings it on the album. You can hear Neil and Kate together as part of their band Dirt Poor Robins.
In many ways this song builds to a high point on the CD, as we move from verse to chorus:
Let me know my Savior’s face
Let my hope be secure
Then I’ll rejoice in my weakness
As I lean on your grace … As I lean on your grace —
May Your power rest on me.
You are strong when I am weak.
I can bear all things when temptation springs
for You sustain me all my days.
Following this and the Passing Of The Peace, Pastor Daniel Montgomery taught on “Sacrifice,” from Leviticus 1-6 (the sacrificial offerings) and 16 (the Day of Atonement), focusing on Jesus Christ, of which these things were a shadow. Speaking of Leviticus, Pastor Daniel recently asked blog readers for their song ideas for his “Leviticus Playlist” — songs you’d think appropriate for a modern “soundtrack for Leviticus.” You can read this, and volunteer your song ideas, on The B.C. Blog, our pastors’ blog for the 2009 Sojourn sermon series on the Old Testament. It’s part of our online magazine, TravelBlog.
4. Holy, Holy, Holy, the classic by Reginald Heber and John B. Dykes. We use the “Holy, Holy, Holy” arrangement by Sufjan Stevens from his Songs For Christmas album. This week, we sang it as our hymn for the Lord’s Supper.
After this we engaged in a corporate reading, asking the Spirit to let us live and work in the righteousness of Christ. The reading was based on a Puritan prayer.
5. Only Your Blood Is Enough, another new one by Neil Robins, who is also the producer of our new album and the crazy dancing man in the Over The Grave promo video. Most of you have probably seen it by now, but if not, hear a snippet of our new CD and take a gander at this (seriously) former Pepsi team breakdancing sensation:
Neil adapted “Only Your Blood Is Enough” from “Psalm 51, Part 2” by Isaac Watts. Like Watts’ writing in general, it is firmly centered on the cross:
No running brook, no flood, no sea
can wash away this stain from me …
For only Your blood is enough to cover my sin
Only Your blood is enough to cover me
6. Clean (My God Has Rescued Me), written by Michael J. Pritzl of The Violet Burning. A couple Sojourners have played with The Violet Burning, and Michael is a good friend to Sojourn Music. This is a simple but dramatic song, and a good lead in to the benediction. The verse:
My God has rescued me
Taken my life and made me clean
Opened my eyes so I can see
My God has rescued me.
Worship band for 9:30 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. services:
Kate Robins — vocals
Neil Robins — vocals, electric guitar
Mike Cosper — bass guitar
Daniel LaChance — keyboard
Smitty Smith — drums
Lachlan Coffey — liturgy readings
Worship band for 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. services:
Katie Vaughn — vocals
Jamie Barnes — vocals, guitar, keyboard
Bryon Shrock — bass guitar
Matt Harris — drums
Brandon Rogers — liturgical readings
