This page is provided so that you can hear the tunes of items which we use in church. Mostly they are written by the vicar. Please note that they are copyright - we are very happy to give permission to you to use them, but we would like to hear about it. Please include any use on your Christian Copyright Licence returns.
Down this page:
- the words,
- the story,
- the sheet music,
- media player.
God, the Lord of all creation
God, the Lord of all creation
God, the Lord of all creation,
hear our thanks for all you've made.
Yet we see its tribulation,
now by human sin betrayed.
Lord it grieves us how our brothers
swiftly turn from good and true,
break your laws and follow others,
please themselves, abandon you.
God, our race once grieved your person
as our evil ways emerged.
As our morals sank and worsened,
by your flood our world was purged.
Though the rainbow marks your promise
that your love will still endure,
yet we find, like doubting Thomas,
that we long to be more sure.
God, we hear of Jesus' teaching
of the coming of the end:
of the flash of lightning, reaching
'cross the heav'ns, which then descend;
of the angels in their glory,
and the Son, and trumpet voice.
Lord, in part we dread the story,
and in part our souls rejoice.
From the fig-tree comes a lesson:
when it buds the spring is near.
So when wickedness is pressing,
that's when Jesus will appear.
No-one knows about that instant
when the earth will cease to be,
not the angels in bright raiment,
not the Son, not even he.
God the Father of creation,
only you will end our days:
keep us safe from devastation,
keep us walking in your ways.
Keep us firm and sure and steady,
strong in faith in Christ alone:
only so can we be ready
for our Lord to take us home.
Words copyright © John Hartley 2007. All rights reserved.
Inspired by Matthew 24:30-46.
Suggested tune: Stenka Razin
Story behind the song
This song is a basic attempt to set Jesus' teaching about the second coming to music, for the purposes of using it during the Christian season of Advent. Like many Christians I approach this season with a mixture of eager anticipation of Christ's second coming - won't it be wonderful? - and a certain sense of dread (in case it happens) and resignation (in case it doesn't). I remember many years ago I heard a sermon which said that the secret of maintaining the Christian life was to keep the eschatological tension at the right level in one's soul: a bit like keeping the fan-belt at the correct tension in one's car-engine. Too tight and one blows up into other-worldliness of various millennial sorts, but too loose and one loses one's anticipation of God doing great things. This song tries to scratch some of that dynamic.
As a graphic for this page I've just used the sheet music for no. 109 on this site, which is why the tune has the wrong title at the top.
John Hartley.
Windows Media Player. When you click the left-hand "play" button your computer should have started to play the tune. If it didn't, you might be able to get the tune by clicking here, or by right-clicking the link, choosing "save target as", saving it onto your computer, and then opening it with a music-playing program.
Please remember that a midi file of a tune isn't supposed to be a state-of-the-art musical arrangement - it is only supposed to give a basic idea of how the tune goes. Any reasonable organist / keyboard player / music group could make it sound far better.