How not to say the same old thing...

I recently posted about almost finishing a song called "Victorious"... I was pretty pleased with my efforts and forwarded it onto some trusted colleagues at the church to see their thoughts.

One of the responses was that I was potentially saying nothing particularly ground-breaking nor thought provoking with what i had written.

A stinging response for any songwriter but as i dwelt on this, I knew that I could attempt better.

It's a battle to find "fresh" ways of saying things, but one worth preserving for...

Here are a few songs that are doing just what i'm aiming to do:


"and in that moment you opened up the heavens, to the broken, the beggar, and the thief, lifted out of the wreckage, i found hope in the aftermath"


"his love is fierce, his love is strong, it is furious"


"we raise our white flag, we surrender all to you, all for You, we raise our white flag: the war is over, love has come, Your love has won"

Victorious

So songwriting continues in earnest this year. I had one song that needed finishing and with the help of my trusty friend Pete Coggan, potentially cracked what had proved to be a hard nut...

The song is now called "Victorious"

Lyrics are:

--
Verse 1:

You came to a world far from you
You carried our sin
You paid our great cost
You died so death's hold would be lost
Creator was slain
To beckon us home

PreC:
In the grave your body lay
Creation waited for the third day
From the grave you rose again
Bursting out on the third day

Chorus:
Victorious, victorious
Victorious You are
Your kingdom come, Your will be done
Forever, forever

Verse 2:
No longer condemned for/by our sin
Your spirit now dwells
In those you've redeemed
Now all that we boast of is Christ
Of him crucified
To give us new life

PreC 2:
Now we see an empty grave
It's been empty since that third day
Now we're chosen, found in Christ
For you rose up on the third day
--

Just trying to figure out if there's a catchy little tag that could be added and if the chorus melody lifts enough when you're singing "Victorious You are" & "Forever, Forever"

Hopefully will be finished with it in the next few days, ready for a bit of a spin on a Sunday.

I'm excited, hope all who hear it will like it!

Grace (Jesus Author Perfecter of Faith)

So i have a few songs on the go which are in the unfortunate limbo position (i.e. frustratingly close to being finished but can't figure out as few lines)...

One such song is this one called "Grace" or "Jesus author perfecter of faith. I started writing it possibly last year after looking at the passage Hebs 12:2. I then started to incorporate the idea of adoption and how because of what Jesus has done we can now enter into God's family. Pete Coggan helped me shape a great tune for the chorus though unfortunately i still can't figure out a second half to the chorus... there are some other frustrating lines and i've pondered trying to write a simply Trinitarian tag... but so far my efforts haven't resulted in a finished song... anyways here are the lyrics i have so far...

---
Jesus Author Perfecter of Faith/Grace 

Verse 1:
Jesus author perfecter of faith
You have lifted me from the grave
By Your spirit I’m found in You
Now my soul will sing Your praise

By no merit or work could I boast
Simply Jesus and your great worth
My salvation secure in you
Now my soul will sing Your praise

Chorus:
Grace has freed me
Grace now leads me To the open arms of my Father 
---
???
???
???
---

Verse 2:
Was a sinner and far from you Yet you chose me, (maybe: said I am yours or “You are mine”)

Irresistible grace you showed
Caused my soul to sing Your praise

Now this orphan’s a child of God
And my sonship forever stands
For my Saviour has called me home
Caused my soul to sing Your praise

Bridge ???


So hopefully with a bit of prayer, inspiration, some elbow grease and a lot of thinking i may get this song finished and hopefully it'll get a play at RFC at some point in the future! I'll share some of the "other songs in waiting" soon

And Can It Be (redone)

So last year was a fairly fruitful year for me for song writing, not that it's about numbers, but i've enjoyed seeing songs develop and being used at church and hopefully helping people fix their gaze on Jesus better.

The song that people seemed to connect to best is one that I can't even take all the credit for. The hymn "And Can It Be" has always been a bit of a favourite song of mine. There is great depth to the song and I love how the gospel seems to flow through every verse.

One night I felt a melody pop into my head and I quickly grabbed the nearest guitar to see how it fitted. It seemed to work well with the lines of "And Can It Be" so I mulled it over for a few days and then played it to a few people. I thought there were are few lines that people might not understand as well - e.g. "Thine eye diffused a quickening ray" (or maybe I just don't get a very obvious meaning) and so I rewrote a few lines to make things more clear (this involved combining verse 2 & 3). Another addition was a progression of "And now..." where I tried to create a journey of what has now happened culminating in "And now my soul complete". Lastly I added a little riff to begin to the song as well which hopefully is catchy-tastic!

The first morning I played it, I expected an outcry at the sheer audacity of changing a beloved hymn yet people seemed to receive it well... So here are lyrics (i've highlighted in red the changed lyrics) and I've put a very rough acoustic recording at the bottom (excuse poor sound quality/singing) and hopefully I'll be able to post the full studio recording of it soon!

And Can It Be - Words - Charles Wesley, Additional lyrics & Music Josh John

Verse 1:
And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Saviour’s blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain—
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, should die for me?
And now my soul is well
All because of his amazing love

Verse 2 (original verse 2 & 3 combined):
‘Tis Mystery all: th’Immortal dies
Who can explain this grace divine
He left His Father’s throne above
And bled for Adam’s helpless race
Tis mercy all, immense and free
For O my God, it found out me
And now my heart must bow
All because of his amazing love

Verse 3:
Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin, in death and shame
But God himself, He heard my cry
My Saviour came, gave me new life
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
And now my spirit sings
All because of his amazing love

Verse 4:
No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
And now my soul complete
All because of his amazing love

Listen here 

Hopefully those at RFC are still enjoying singing the song and hopefully if you haven't heard it before you'll enjoy this acoustic version (or at least it doesn't put you off til we get the CD done and you can hear how it should sound!)

Co-Songwriting session...

Tomorrow I'll be engaging in a songwriting sess with, none other than, the fantastic Pete Coggan who is doing FP at the same training base as me. It's going to be great chatting through stuff, hearing each others ideas and getting a chance to just have a bit of a worship time as well. I love learning from others who are on the same journey of song craftsmanship as me and seeing creativity spark from going through stuff.

He's also in what seems to be a rather cool band called "Forerunner" (website ) who are soon releasing a hotly anticipated EP.

Hopefully those from Reading might see the fruit from our labours tomorrow at some point!

Reasons not to write songs for your church

An amusing post about reasons why perhaps I should hang up my guitar... my neighbour would be happy...

http://youngglory.blogspot.com/2010/06/top-10-reasons-not-to-write-songs-for.html

To The Cross we gaze/Yes Jesus Loves Us (working title)

So I've been working on this song for about 3+months. I've tried to really step up my game in terms of content and hopefully am making progress with it. As you may notice the chorus is inspired by the classic song "Yes Jesus loves me" and hopefully it fits the rest of the song. The last line of the chorus has been a struggle and I'm still trying to think of something that has a real hook to it. For all the times of frustration and feeling like I'm hitting a brick wall, I absolutely love writing songs and I like how the song is taking form. This blog has no real reason to it, I'm just sharing my journey! Maybe this song may be heard soon by those who are RFCers... For my limited readership, if you have any ideas or thoughts I'm always happy for comments

TO THE CROSS WE GAZE

Verse 1:

To the cross we gaze in wonder

All our stains washed by His blood

Crushed and broken, bruised and beaten

By His stripes we have been healed 

The cross before us, sin behind us

Mercy poured incessantly

Love we don’t deserve has found us

Grace now overwhelms our souls

Chorus:

Yes Jesus loves us

Yes Jesus loves us

Yes Jesus loves us

*possible line* - By grace we have been saved/Hallelujah for the cross/Hallelujah we are saved…

Verse 2:

Father’s love shines through the Saviour/ Father turns His face in sorrow

Son of God died once for all

In the grave His body lay there

But the grave would not prevail

Up He rose, in glorious splendour

Spirit raised Him from the dead

It is finished, He has conquered

Death O where now is Your sting

Verse 3:

Rugged cross we boldly cling to

Boast of only Jesus Christ

Heaven beckons for we’re ransomed

We are His and He is ours

One day we will see our Saviour

Face to face, He’ll call our names

But for now His work, our mission

Tell the lost of saving grace

Wrestling with God

Genesis 32:24-31


So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.
Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak."
But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."

The man asked him, "What is your name?"
"Jacob," he answered.
Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome."
Jacob said, "Please tell me your name."
But he replied, "Why do you ask my name?" Then he blessed him there.
So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."
The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip.

So about 2 weeks ago I had the privilege of getting to attend Reading Fam's worship leaders meeting. Was a brilliant time in which those of us who lead and those who would like to lead met up, chatted about why we do what we do, were challenged in areas but also was a great time of encouragement. Towards the end Liz said that she planned for that we should pray for one another individually and practice stepping out in terms of hearing for God. To be honest alarm bells went off in my head, as i've never thought of myself as a particularly  strong prayer (an area to improve in) but also that I had said i wanted to step out in prophecy so I knew that now was the time!

Anyway so we got individuals to stand in the middle and we gathered and prayed for them. Some amazing words came out and people seemed really stirred and encouraged. As it came for my turn, I wondered what it would be... God delights in my songwriting?... God will bless me with even greater skill  (HA! i make myself laugh) with my guitar? etc... no God intended to challenge me deeply -> that I should be striving to "wrestle with God", that I need to push myself to grow a spiritually broader shoulders were 2 that stood out and this is so that I might become the man God intends me to be. The idea of wrestling with God is a terrifying one but I take refuge and delight in the passage from Genesis. Not only did Jacob do it, but he was blessed because of it.

So I decided to accept what God is saying, let Him humble me and choose to delight in Him. It's quite clear that I've gotten myself into a mindset where I think that I read the bible enough, or that I spend enough time with Him (which clearly isn't true) and so I've probably gotten very relaxed in my ways. The way I would usually spend my free time at the moment during this holiday would be to play some fifa (or some other game of sort), browse various football sites, listen to music or watch a film. I've decided to put the hunt for new music (that seems to be a constant one) on a bit of a hold and choose to listen to podcasts/sermons on my way to work as well as trying to read more and focusing on songwriting. I'm attempting to wrestle and take delight in my Saviour in my spare time and hopefully I won't be limping afterwards like Jacob... hopefully....

The One In Whom I Trust

I wrote a song not too long ago called "The One In Whom I Trust" it's based on Psalm 91. I wrote it while reflecting on how amazing it is to have a God who is completely faithful and trustworthy and knowing that there is nothing that is impossible for Him be it a massive life problem or a healing simple cold. Surprisingly I haven't fitted in a ridiculous amount of syllables per line so hopefully I'm getting better at writing songs. Its brilliant thinking of how it was just a thought back in September and now seeing people singing it corporately to glorify God like last Sunday. Took me quite awhile to get it finished but I'm really happy with how it sounds now.

The One In Whom I Trust

Verse 1:
I will dwell in the shelter of the most high
I will rest in the shadow of my Saviour
He will be my portion
Ever present help in need

Verse 2:
I will sing of my refuge and my fortress
I will call on the source of my salvation
He has never failed me
He will not forsake my soul

Chorus:
I will say of my God
You are more than enough for me
The One in whom I trust
I will say of my God

You are more than enough for me

The One in whom I trust

Verse 3:

Though the darkness seeks to overwhelm me

On this rock I will stand and not be shaken

Jesus He is stronger

All my faith is found in Him

Bridge:

Love was crucified to save

Hope conquered the grave

Nothing is impossible for You

copyright Josh John 2009 Reading Family Church

Rescued

Though i imagine there are few actually interested, here is a song which hopefully will be complete sooooooon (well it's complete in my mind though we'll see what others say!) been working on it for a bit and it seems to have come together nicely... lets see what people think!

Working title: RESCUED

Verse 1:
When I needed a saviour
In the depth of my sin You came for me,
Lead me out of the darkness
Your arm was not too short to save
When I needed redemption
Jesus You showed that love it knows no bounds
Lavish grace now my refuge
Your arm is not too short to save

Chorus:
I’m rescued
I’m found
You paid the price that I might live
I thank You Jesus my rescuer
It’s finished
You won
Death’s conquered through Your precious blood
I thank You Jesus my rescuer

Verse 2:
On the cross You were broken
Yet Your victory was there for all to see
The Father’s plan were accomplished
You were more than enough for me
Even death could not hold You
From the grave You were raised to heaven’s throne
My triumphant redeemer
You are more than enough for me

Bridge:
All I once held dear
I count it all as loss
For the sake of knowing You my King,
All the world holds dear
It never could compare
To the joy of being Yours my God,

copyright Josh John