Blessing of a Child

I found out late one Saturday night that we would be having a blessing for a newborn in the church the next day.  I wrote this for the occasion.  This recording was made at night, trying to keep quiet enough to not disturb any of the sleeping people in the house.  It’s rough, but you’ll get the point.

 

Download the chord chart here: Blessing of a Child.pdf

Psalm 1

Psalm 1
@2014 Stephen G Brown

 

This was written as a “first fruits” offering for a songwriting group I participate in.  I have an alternate section for the section beginning “He will be like a tree”, but I haven’t recorded that version yet.

Psalm 1

D
How blessed is the man who does not walk
       C
In the counsel of the wicked,
    G                    D
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
    C
Nor sit in the seat
G                           D
Lord like I do, the seat of scoffers!

D
Blessed the man whose delight is
       C
In the law of the Lord,
    G                 D
And in His law he meditates  (both night and day)

D
He will be like a tree planted by the water
G
A tree that gives good fruit when it’s time comes
D
All its leaves stay green, you will not see them wither;
G
And all his does, finds victory.

D
The wicked, my Lord, they are not so,
         C
They are lost like the chaff
G                              D
Lost like the chaff and blown away.

D
The wicked will not stand in the judgment,
C
And sinners have no place among
  G                       D
Among your righteous assembly

        D
For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
        C
But the ways of the wicked
    G                       D
The ways of the wicked will perish

Quiet

Quiet
©2012 Stephen G Brown

 

Lyrics:

Keep watch with me while I grieve, while I grieve, while I grieve
Peter, sons of Zebedee, Zebedee, sons of Zebedee

Sleep, while you sleep
The hour is at hand
Keep watch with me
While I grieve

Father, take this cup from me
Take this cup, take this cup from me

Sleep, while you sleep
The hour is at hand
Keep watch with me
While I grieve

You can get a PDF of the sheet music here

Grace

Grace
©2013 Stephen G Brown

I woke up Saturday morning from a dream. In the dream, either I, or someone else, was singing grace before a meal at a table with some other folks. The second line of this song was the second line of the grace that was sung. It’s all I was able to reassemble from the dream.

Lyrics:

Come and join us at this table
Were we all share in God’s finest
Ponder sacrifice divine
As we break bread and drink wine

Down On Your Knees

Wrote this during a practice with my band “Thumper and Smash”.Credits:

  • Smash: Drums
  • Thumper: Bass

 Down On Your Knees
© 2013 Stephen G Brown

Think about a time when you didn’t want stand up
Think about a time when you wanted to go
Counted on a friend and he didn’t even show up
Stepped on the gas but it still went slow

Down on your knees, down on your knees, son
Face to the ground, lift up your please
Look to the Father for an answer
Just get down on your knees

Raining on a day when you wanted it sunny
Not enough change to get another pop
Want to get a drink but you haven’t got the money
Neighbor’s playing music and you want him to stop

Down on your knees, down on your knees, son
Face to the ground, lift up your please
Look to the Father for an answer
Just get down on your knees

Our Father which art in heaven
Hallowed be thy name
Forgive us our debts as we forgive those
Who sin against us Amen

Think about a time when you didn’t want stand up
Think about a time when you wanted to go
Counted on a friend and he didn’t even show up
Stepped on the gas but it still went slow

Down on your knees, down on your knees, son
Face to the ground, lift up your please
Look to the Father for an answer
Just get down on your knees

Raise Your Hands

Raise Your Hands
Lyric ©2011 Colin Gordon-Farleigh
Music ©2012 Stephen G Brown

So this is a long one, with more characters than most of my stories.  Here’s how it happened.  I started writing a hymn on the piano perhaps back in 2010 or so.  Although I liked the music, I just couldn’t come up with any lyrics.  “As we humbly bow before you” was all I could do.  So I wrote to my friend Greg Scheer, asking for advice.  Greg is a fantastic composer and an even better person.  You should visit his sight and at least get to know him through his music and musings.

Well Greg said “Why don’t you ask my friend Colin if he would write something”.  I was familiar with Colin Gordon-Farleigh through the songs he and Greg have written together and Greg posts on his music blog.  I wrote off to Colin asking if he would be interested, and to my immense pleasure, he agreed.  Shortly thereafter I had lyrics to my hymn, so I put the whole thing together, and before you know it, Colin had it published on his site.

Here is where Raise Your Hands beings: Colin wrote back with lyrics, and asked me to put music to it.  Being the putz that I am, I started, but never got it finished.  I think part of the reason is that I had written a song called Raise Your Hands just a few days earlier, and it just kind of freeked me out.  But I also had a bit of time away from writing due to other pressing matters in my life.  I’ve had this nagging guilt for the past year.  Then last week Colin wrote to me and asked if I’d ever gotten it done.  “No, but I’ll do it by next weekend”.  Earlier this week I started over entirely with a more folky-tune on the guitar.  But being unsure how Colin felt about that sort of music, I dug back in and finished up the original.

Download the sheet music: Raise Your Hands

Lyric ©2011 Colin Gordon-Farleigh
Music ©2012 Stephen G Brown

Forest for the Trees

Forest for the Trees
© 2011 Stephen Brown

Like the forest for the trees
Can’t distinguish which of these
My soul for the sin, but He’s
Washing me within
Can’t stay up on my knees
So I fall down on my face
Before him

Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah

David is chosen to be king
Giving his heart to the Lord, never ashamed to sing
The praises to our God he brings
Like incense on an altar
But David is known to falter
This king is not the one we need, we need a savior

Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah

Only man can atone for man’s great sin
Jesus is God and man within
A body broken, on a tree He’s pinned
Blood poured on the ground
Therein salvation’s found
Salvation.  Hallellujah.

Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah
Glory Hallelujah

Psalm 23

Psalm 23
© 2012 Stephen Brown

My shepherd is the Lord my God
I shall not be in need
He makes me lie down and take my rest
In fields that are so green

He leads me by the quiet streams
And He restores my soul
He guides my path to righteousness
For His name’s sake, oh oh.

You prepare a table before me
In the presence of my enemies
You anoint my head with oil
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing

Even though I walk through the valley
of death, I have no fear
Lord you’re with me, and my comfort
Is Your staff and Your shield

You prepare a table before me
In the presence of my enemies
You anoint my head with oil
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing

INSTRUMENTAL

You prepare a table before me
In the presence of my enemies
You anoint my head with oil
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing
And my cup is overflowing

Lord I know Your goodness, Your lovingkindness
Will follow me for all of my days,
I know Your goodness, Your lovingkindness
Will follow me for all of my days,

And I will dwell in Your house
And I will dwell in Your house
And I will dwell in Your house
And I will dwell in Your house forever

Washed Me Clean

Washed Me Clean
© 2011 Stephen G Brown


Jesus died and he saved my soul
Buried my sins in a great big hole
To tell the truth – he washed them all away
He’ll do the same if you ask him to
Wash those sins all away from you
And brother, it’s good to be clean

Now I’ve been bad and I’ve been good
Sometimes do the things I should
But nothing I can do can fix this ragged soul
It’s something of a mystery
When Jesus gave his life for you and me
Ours souls – he made them whole

Jesus washed my sins away
When on that cross He died that day
Then from the grave He rose again
He won the victory over sin

Now you ask me why, tell you “I don’t know
why sin get’s it’s teeth so deep in our soul”
Brother Paul wrote many years ago
He does the things that he don’t want to
And what he wants is what he just don’t do
But Jesus, he makes us whole

Jesus washed my sins away
When on that cross He died that day
Then from the grave He rose again
He won the victory over sin

Jesus died and he saved my soul
Buried my sins in a great big hole
To tell the truth – he washed them all away
He’ll do the same if you ask him to
Wash those sins all away from you
And brother, it’s good to be clean

Jesus washed my sins away
When on that cross He died that day
Then from the grave He rose again
He won the victory over sin

Jesus washed my sins away
When on that cross He died that day
Then from the grave He rose again
He won the victory over sin