Father, hear the prayer we offer (Sussex)
Tune: Sussex
Meter: 87 87
Style: Traditional English
Composer: Unknown adapted by arranger: Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958)
Lyricist: Love Maria Whitcomb Willis (1824 – 1908)
Church Year: General
Music and Lyrics Copyright Public Domain
Performance Copyright ℗ 2016 Richard M S Irwin, Certain rights reserved.
You can download the free MP3 recording for use in Worship by clicking on the Download ...
Firmly I believe and truly (Shipston)
Hymn – Firmly I believe and truly – Lyrics
Firmly I believe and truly
God is Three, and God is One;
And I next acknowledge duly
Manhood taken by the Son.
And I trust and hope most fully
In that Manhood crucified;
And each thought and deed unruly
Do to death, as He has died.
Simply to His grace and wholly
Light and life and ...
For the beauty of the earth (England’s Lane) – Organ Hymn – For the beauty of the earth – Lyrics
For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.
For the beauty of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and ...
For the beauty of the earth (Heathlands) – Organ Hymn – For the beauty of the earth – Lyrics
For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.
For the beauty of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and ...
God rest you merry, gentlemen (God Rest You Merry) Carol – God rest you merry, gentlemen – Lyrics
1. God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy
2. In Bethlehem, in Israel,
This blessed Babe was born
And laid ...
I saw three ships come sailing in Carol – I saw three ships come sailing in – Lyrics
I saw three ships come sailing in,
On Christmas day, on Christmas day,
I saw three ships come sailing in,
On Christmas day in the morning.
And what was in those ships all three?
On Christmas day, on Christmas day,
And what was in those ships all three?
On Christmas day in ...
It came upon a midnight clear (Noël) – Organ and Trumpet Descant Lyrics
It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth
To touch their harps of gold;
“Peace on the earth, good will to men,
From Heaven’s all gracious King.”
The world in solemn stillness lay,
To hear the angels sing.
Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavenly music floats
O’er all ...
It is a thing most wonderful (Herongate) – Organ Lyrics
It is a thing most wonderful,
Almost too wonderful to be,
That God’s own Son should come from Heav’n,
And die to save a child like me.
And yet I know that it is true;
He chose a poor and humble lot,
And wept and toiled and mourned and died,
For love of those who loved Him not.
I cannot tell how He ...
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun (Truro) – Orchestra Hymn- Jesus shall reign where’er the sun – Lyrics
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on His love with sweetest song;
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on His Name.
Blessings abound wherever He reigns;
The ...
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun (Truro) – Organ with Trumpet Descant Hymn- Jesus shall reign where’er the sun – Lyrics
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on His love with sweetest song;
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on His Name.
Blessings abound wherever He reigns;
The ...
Jesus, Thou divine companion (Saltash) Hymn – Jesus, Thou divine companion – Lyrics
Jesus, Thou divine companion,
By thy lowly human birth
Thou hast come to join the workers,
Burden bearers of the Earth.
Thou the carpenter of Nazareth,
Toiling for thy daily food,
By thy patience and Thy courage,
Thou hast taught us toil is good.
They who tread the path of labour
Follow where thy feet have trod;
They ...
O Lord, my God, I thirst for You (Kingsfold) Hymn – O Lord, my God, I thirst for You – Lyrics
“God my Rock”
O Lord, my God, I thirst for You,
I long to see your face,
Just as the hunted deer is stressed
I falter in the race;
My heart cries out, my tears run down,
I am in deep distress,
“Where is your God?” men say to me,
They taunt ...
On Christmas night all Christians sing (Sussex Carol)
Album:
Tune: Sussex Carol
Meter: 88 88 88
Style: Carol, Traditional English
Church Year: Christmas
Composer: Unknown
Original arranger: Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958).
This version with Trumpet Descant arranger: Richard Mark Stephen Irwin
Lyricist: Phillips Brooks (1835 – 1893)
Music and Lyrics Copyright Public Domain
Performance Copyright ℗ 2013 Richard M S Irwin. All rights reserved.
Recordings
Carol – On Christmas night all Christians ...
To whom will you the Lord compare? (Herongate) Hymn – To whom will you the Lord compare? – Lyrics
To whom will you the Lord compare?
Is there His equal anywhere?
O lift up your eyes and the heavens survey,
Who made this most amazing display?
The Lord Himself formed all these arrays
Of galaxies, of milky ways,
He cares for each one of the vast starry host,
So great is ...
Unto the hills (Thys Endrys Night) Lyrics
Unto the hills I lift my eyes;
From whence shall help arise?
My help comes from the Lord alone,
Maker of earth and skies.
He shall not let your foot be moved,
He watches His beloved.
Behold, He guards His chosen ones,
In sleep they are un-moved.
The Lord’s your keeper, night and day;
At your right hand, come what may;
Not sun, nor moon, ...
We plough the fields and scatter (Wir Pflügen) – Brass Band Lyrics
We plough the fields, and scatter
The good seed on the land,
But it is fed and watered
By God’s almighty hand;
He sends the snow in winter,
The warmth to swell the grain,
The breezes and the sunshine,
And soft refreshing rain.
Refrain
All good gifts around us
Are sent from heav’n above,
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord
For all his love.
He only ...
We read of a place that’s called Heaven (How beautiful Heaven must be) Hymn – We read of a place that’s called Heaven – Lyrics
We read of a place that’s called heaven,
It’s made for the pure and the free;
These truths in God’s Word He hath given,
How beautiful heaven must be.
How beautiful heaven must be,
Sweet home of the happy and free;
Fair heaven of rest for the weary,
How beautiful heaven ...
What Child is this (Greensleeves) – Guitar and Flute Carol – What Child is this – Lyrics
What Child is this who, laid to rest
On Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom Angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds guard and Angels sing;
Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.
Why lies He in such mean estate,
Where ox ...
When a knight won his spurs (Stowy) Hymn – When a knight won his spurs – Lyrics
When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old,
He was gentle and brave, he was gallant and bold;
With a shield on his arm and a lance in his hand,
For God and for valour he rode through the land.
No charger have I, and no sword ...
Why do you say your way is not clear? (Herongate) Hymn – Why do you say your way is not clear? – Lyrics
Why do you say your way is not clear,
Why do you say “The Lord is not near,”
For have you not known this, and have you not heard,
The Everlasting God is your Lord?
And He who made the Heavens and earth
Sees all your need, knows ...
For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.
For the beauty of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower,
Sun and moon and stars of light,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.
For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above,
Pleasures pure and undefiled,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.
For each perfect gift of thine,
To our race so freely given,
Graces human and divine,
Flowers of earth and buds of heaven,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
Recordings
Original Key in D Major
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Lower Setting in B Major
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
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Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on His love with sweetest song;
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on His Name.
Blessings abound wherever He reigns;
The prisoner leaps to lose his chains;
The weary find eternal rest,
And all the sons of want are blessed.
As rain on meadows newly mown,
So shall He send his influence down:
His grace on fainting souls distills,
Like heav’nly dew on thirsty hills.
Let every creature rise and bring
Peculiar honors to our King;
Angels descend with songs again,
And earth repeat the loud amen!
Recording
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
Click Here to Download
Details
Tune: Truro
Meter: LM
Style: Traditional English
Usage: General, Epiphany, Trinity
Composer: Thomas Williams in Psalmodia Evangelica (1789)
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on His love with sweetest song;
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on His Name.
Blessings abound wherever He reigns;
The prisoner leaps to lose his chains;
The weary find eternal rest,
And all the sons of want are blessed.
As rain on meadows newly mown,
So shall He send his influence down:
His grace on fainting souls distills,
Like heav’nly dew on thirsty hills.
Let every creature rise and bring
Peculiar honors to our King;
Angels descend with songs again,
And earth repeat the loud amen!
Recording
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
Click Here to Download
Details
Tune: Truro
Meter: LM
Style: Traditional English
Usage: General, Epiphany, Trinity
Composer: Thomas Williams in Psalmodia Evangelica (1789)
Jesus, Thou divine companion,
By thy lowly human birth
Thou hast come to join the workers,
Burden bearers of the Earth.
Thou the carpenter of Nazareth,
Toiling for thy daily food,
By thy patience and Thy courage,
Thou hast taught us toil is good.
They who tread the path of labour
Follow where thy feet have trod;
They who work without complaining
Do the holy will of God.
Never more thou needest seek me,
I am with thee ever more;
Raise the stone and thou shalt find me,
Cleave the wood and I am there.
Where the many toil together,
There am I amongst my own;
Where the tired workman sleepeth,
There I am with him alone.
I the peace which passeth knowledge
Dwell amidst the daily strife;
I the bread of Heaven broken
In the sacrament of life.
Every task, however simple,
Sets the soul who does it free;
Every deed of love and mercy,
Done to man, is done to me.
Never more thou needest seek me,
I am with thee ever more;
Raise the stone and thou shalt find me,
Cleave the wood and I am there.
Recording
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
Click Here to Download
Details
Tune: Saltash
Meter: 87 87 D
Style: Traditional English
Composer: Unknown from Hymnal: Plymouth Collection (USA 1855)
Arranger: Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958)
Lyricist: Henry Van Dyke (1852 – 1933) based on the words of the apostle Thomas Didymus in “The Sayings of Jesus” from the Dead Sea Scrolls.
O Lord, my God, I thirst for You,
I long to see your face,
Just as the hunted deer is stressed
I falter in the race;
My heart cries out, my tears run down,
I am in deep distress,
“Where is your God?” men say to me,
They taunt me and oppress.
Lord, when will I be helped by You,
I struggle day and night?
O hear my prayer, enable me
to stand in your great might;
I look back on those days gone by
when, Lord, You were so near,
when in your house with festive throng
I praised your Name so dear.
So why am I cast down, O Lord,
and why should I feel low?
You are my God, my Saviour strong,
Your praise from me shall flow;
I think of all your works, O Lord,
Your saving power of old,
So when beset and overwhelmed,
I will your strength take hold.
Your loving-kindness fills my days,
Your song at night I sing,
And when my fears assail again
to You I’ll tightly cling;
My hope is fixed on God, my Rock,
His own He won’t forget;
Be still my soul, my face will shine
And I will praise Him yet.
This hymn is based on Psalm 42, a prayer to God in which the writer expresses his deep desire for God’s presence at a time of great distress. In my reflection on this psalm I have sought to echo the heartfelt cry of the psalmist as he moves from a sense of unexplained and painful isolation from God to a confident trust in God and in His faithfulness.
Recording
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
Click Here to Download
Details
Tune: Kingsfold
Meter: DCM
Style: Traditional English
Composer: Unknown Originally adapted by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958) – arranger: Richard Mark Stephen Irwin (b. 1955)
Hymn – To whom will you the Lord compare? – Lyrics
To whom will you the Lord compare?
Is there His equal anywhere?
O lift up your eyes and the heavens survey,
Who made this most amazing display?
The Lord Himself formed all these arrays
Of galaxies, of milky ways,
He cares for each one of the vast starry host,
So great is He, not one becomes lost.
So why then say your way is not clear,
Why do you say “The Lord is not near,”
For have you not known this, and have you not heard,
The Everlasting God is your Lord?
And He who made the Heavens and earth
Sees all your need, knows all your worth;
He never grows tired, or weary or faint,
He cares for sinners, loves every saint.
He aids the weary, strengthens the frail,
And even strong ones falter and fail;
But those who patiently wait on the Lord
With eagles’ wings will rise up and soar.
Trust in the Lord for He ever lives,
Run in the strength that Jesus gives;
Walk on in Him Who never lets down,
Who keeps for ever, gives a crown.
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
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Details
Verses: 6
Tune: Herongate
Meter: LM
Style: Traditional English
Usage: General
Composer: Unknown
Original arranger: Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958)
This version arranger: Richard Mark Stephen Irwin (b. 1955)
To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these, that bringeth out their host by number:
he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that strong in power; not one faileth.
Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel,
My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?
There is no searching of his understanding.
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Unto the hills I lift my eyes;
From whence shall help arise?
My help comes from the Lord alone,
Maker of earth and skies.
He shall not let your foot be moved,
He watches His beloved.
Behold, He guards His chosen ones,
In sleep they are un-moved.
The Lord’s your keeper, night and day;
At your right hand, come what may;
Not sun, nor moon, will cause you harm:
The Lord’s your Rock and Stay.
He shall preserve from evils sore,
He’ll save you o’er and o’er.
Your going out, your coming in,
From now and evermore.
Recording
Instrumental
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
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Performance with voices from michael e. owens
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
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SATB Score
Details
Tune: Thys Endrys Night
Meter: CM
Style: Traditional English
Usage: General
Composer: Unknown, arranger: Richard M S Irwin (b. 1955)
We plough the fields, and scatter
The good seed on the land,
But it is fed and watered
By God’s almighty hand;
He sends the snow in winter,
The warmth to swell the grain,
The breezes and the sunshine,
And soft refreshing rain.
Refrain All good gifts around us Are sent from heav’n above, Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord For all his love.
He only is the Maker
Of all things near and far;
He paints the wayside flower,
He lights the evening star;
The winds and waves obey him,
By him the birds are fed;
Much more to us, his children,
He gives our daily bread. Refrain
We thank thee, then, O Father,
For all things bright and good,
The seed time and the harvest,
Our life, our health, our food:
No gifts have we to offer
For all thy love imparts,
But that which thou desirest,
Our humble, thankful hearts. Refrain
Recordings
Original Key in A Flat
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Lower Key in F
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
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Details
Verses: 4
Tune: Wir Pflügen
Meter: 76 76 D and Refrain
Style: Traditional English, Traditional German
Usage: Harvest
Composer: Johann Abraham Schulz (1747 – 1800)
Harmony: John Bacchus Dykes (1823 – 1876)
Lyricist: Matthias Claudius (1740 – 1815)
Translator: Jane Montgomery Campbell (1817 – 1878)
This well-known harvest hymn might appear to come from the English countryside, but it has rather different origins. It is the Peasant’s Song from a sketch by Matthias Claudius in Paul Erdmann’s Fest (Hamburg, 1782), depicting a harvest thanksgiving in a North German farmhouse. Based upon a song heard sung at the home of one of the farmers. Claudius was for some time an atheist, but later renewed his Christian faith. At the time of writing this hymn he was editor of the local paper in Hesse Darmstadt, where he was also a Commissioner of Agriculture.
Originally seventeen verses long, each verse followed by a refrain, the hymn was translated into English by Miss Jane Montgomery Campbell. This translation, though not very literal, attempts to preserve the spirit of the original. It first appeared in Rev Charles S Bere’s A Garland of Songs (1861) and subsequently in the Appendix (1868) to Hymns Ancient and Modern, where verse 3 was revised to the present text from the original:
line 5 – No gifts have we to offer… (rev. Accept the gifts we offer) line 7 – But that which thou desirest… (rev. And, what thou most desirest…)
This alteration was probably introduced to make the hymn suitable for services where harvest produce was on view or offered by the worshippers, although the English Hymnal continues to use the original words.
Hymn – We read of a place that’s called Heaven – Lyrics
We read of a place that’s called heaven,
It’s made for the pure and the free;
These truths in God’s Word He hath given,
How beautiful heaven must be.
How beautiful heaven must be,
Sweet home of the happy and free;
Fair heaven of rest for the weary,
How beautiful heaven must be.
In heaven no drooping nor pining,
No wishing for elsewhere to be;
God’s light is forever there shining,
How beautiful heaven must be. Refrain
Pure waters of life there are flowing,
And all who will drink may be free;
Rare jewels of splendour are glowing,
How beautiful heaven must be. Refrain
The angels so sweetly are singing,
Up there by the beautiful sea;
Sweet chords from their gold harps are ringing,
How beautiful heaven must be. Refrain
Recording
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
Click Here to Download
When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old,
He was gentle and brave, he was gallant and bold;
With a shield on his arm and a lance in his hand,
For God and for valour he rode through the land.
No charger have I, and no sword by my side,
Yet still to adventure and battle I ride,
Though back into storyland giants have fled,
And the knights are no more and the dragons are dead.
Let faith be my shield and let joy be my steed
‘gainst the dragons of anger, the ogres of greed;
And let me set free with the sword of my youth,
From the castle of darkness, the power of the truth
Lyrics Copyright Oxford University Press, All Rights Reserved
Recording
2012 performance
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
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2008 performance
The music used in this recording belongs in the Public Domain, but the Performance rights ℗ belong to Richard M S Irwin. You may click the Download Button to obtain the MP3 recording for use in Worship or for personal use only. For other uses of the recording, please Contact Us.
Click Here to Download
Details
Verses: 3
Tune: Stowy
Meter: 12 12 12 12
Style: Traditional English
Use: General
Composer: Unknown Traditional English fold melody originally harmonised by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958) this version arranger: Richard Mark Stephen Irwin
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