Rejoice -- Ben Shive, Bryan Fowler, Keith + Kristyn Getty, Skye Peterson

 

What began as an inspiration from an anonymous author, and from a time over two or three millennia ago, coalesced into something broader with the help of five 21^st Century songwriters. The home of Keith and Kristyn Getty was the scene (see the map of County Londonderry made in 1837, with Portstewart, where the Gettys live, shown outlined in a blue circle) where this pair had invited three others – Ben Shive, Bryan Fowler, and Skye Peterson – to work out a new song they simply entitled “Rejoice”. It’s a theme that not only the original psalmist captured in six short verses of poetry, but which was also picked up by a 1^st Century writer who knew all about this emotional context even if it stood in stark contrast to his own circumstances. Even the Creator Himself would say that praise and rejoicing must be heard, lest the rocks (stones) cry out instead (Luke 19:40).

 

Bryan Fowler first suggested the theme of rejoicing to the group assembled in Northern Ireland, and it quickly stirred the imaginations of the rest of the group (sometime either in, or in the months preceding 2022). Bryan had evidently been reading what the ancient and unknown psalmist had written, and which we now call Psalm 150, especially verse six that is the capstone of the psalms. Bryan’s spark had already allowed him to concoct a chorus based on Psalm 150:6, and the others, especially Kristyn, felt that this spirit of praise was not something based on one’s comfortable conditions, and in fact should ring out despite what someone was experiencing. The apostle Paul’s Philippians 4:4 message to ‘Rejoice!’ spoke to them collectively. These five could not have missed that Paul’s exclamation came though he was experiencing imprisonment at the time. They acknowledged amongst each other that ‘sing(ing) the bible’ meant that anxieties we humans endure, particularly among young people, cannot be ignored. Indeed, that’s where the Christian truths come into play, so that people look upward to recall Jesus’ promises, to pray for one another, to be thankful to Him in all things, and to offer praise as a sign of courage and trust. Their lyrics especially echo what the psalmist and Paul spoke so that others would follow, though difficulties intrude on one’s joy – ‘…be anxious for nothing’ (v.2), ‘the dark cannot destroy’ (v.3), and ‘…throughout every season’ (chorus), we all have reason to lift up a shout of rejoicing. Some might even call ‘Rejoice’ an anthem, something we use to re-center ourselves daily, to remind us that He is worthy and should be the focus of our beings.

 

The Gettys, Bryan Fowler, Ben Shive, and Skye Peterson would be the first to admit that they had recorded something in ‘Rejoice’ that was not new. And yet, the number of times that this refrain is repeated in the bible’s pages underscores that what they have produced musically is reflective of what God wants us to never forget. Run a search in your own bible app for forms of the words rejoice and praise…it should be constantly on our lips, if we recall His character and His actions for us. These five composers have not left those Godly character traits and the transport He gives as mysteries for us – ‘love’, ‘gentleness’, ‘goodness’ ‘grace’ (v.1); that He is ‘peace’, a ‘shepherd’, and ‘reigns eternal’ (v.2); that He gives us ‘hope’ and ‘joy yet to come’ (v.3) – those are what He possesses and translates as offerings to you and me. How could you turn down such an offer?    

Read and hear the entire story of the song’s development here: The Story Behind: Rejoice

 

Read some brief comments about the song’s purpose (from Keith Getty) here: Keith & Kristyn Getty & Rend Collective – Rejoice Lyrics | Genius Lyrics

 

See information on the map-graphic here: File:1837Londonderry.jpg - Wikimedia Commons…This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or fewer. {{PD-1996}} – public domain in its source country on January 1, 1996 and in the United States. This map-graphic may be found inside this article: County Londonderry - Wikipedia

O Church, Arise – Keith Getty and Stuart Townend

 

What we might imagine in the form of armor, like that once worn by mounted troops in the French army (see the picture here), is what Keith Getty and Stuart Townend want Christians to think about as a metaphor for life in a spiritual struggle – one for which God has provided tools for the battle. Once you have this armor in place, you and your compatriots can say “O Church, Arise”, because then you are fully equipped for whatever comes your way. It was 2005, and Keith and Stuart had been at contemporary songwriting for some time, especially along themes meant to lift the church and remember what scripture says about its history and mission. There’s no better place to start than with what an apostle, a one-time staunch opponent of Christianity, had to say on the subject of spiritual battle.

 

Keith and Stuart needed no other circumstance or reason to write a new song in 2005, except that there was a sense that Christians needed a new injection of courage to wage the ongoing struggle with the forces of evil. And that was why they read what Paul had to say to some believers in a place called Ephesus a long time ago. What they read in Paul’s 11 verses (6:10-20) is packed with punch about how to defend oneself, and so these two songwriters took the words composed some 20 centuries earlier to construct their own musical version of this apostle’s directives. The ‘shield of faith’, ‘belt of truth’, and ‘sword’ (of truth) are part of the lyrical ‘armor’ that Keith and Stuart sing to stir others to exploit.  It’s clear that that the enemy is a ‘captor’, armed with ‘devil’s lies’, and that this is ‘war’ with ‘battle(s)’ to be fought against the forces of ‘darkness’. But lest those on the side of God misunderstand and engage in the battles the same way that the enemy does, Getty and Townend make it clear that the Christian’s mode of attack is with the unconventional. Love is our ‘battle cry’. Love is used multiple times in conjunction with ‘grace’ and ‘mercy’, for they are synonymous with the approach of our ‘captain’ – Christ. He modeled for His disciples in the few short years of His mission on earth how to behave, even unto death. It’s His ‘cross where love and mercy meet’, which initially gives Satan and his accomplices pride, but then he lies ‘crushed beneath His feet’ when the ‘Conqueror’ arises and ‘emerges’ from the sepulcher, giving all of us a reason to join in a ‘vic’try march’. Keith and Stuart conclude their four-verse hymn with a callout to the Spirit to strengthen those of us who are still here, with the help of aged believers and memories of those who’ve already gone on before us – the ‘saints of old’. We are not alone. Keith and Stuart also say that the following inspired much of their lyrics: 2 Corinthians 12:9, Isaiah 61:1-3, and Revelation 5:9-10.

 

And, as long as we stay connected to Him through a church of strong believers, we shall never be alone. No one aims to go be with God alone in the Afterlife. Read some more of Paul’s letters, and see if you discover some regular theme in how he concludes them. Paul must have thought that church was really crucial in the life and steadfastness of others whom he called brothers and sisters. A ‘holy kiss’ was one way that Paul often told his contemporaries to regard one another (Romans, 1 + 2 Corinthians, and 1 Thessalonians), and that’s one way to look at what Keith and Stuart have written in ‘O Church, Arise’. You sing what their poetry coaxes from deep inside your mind and spirit – the truths of where our faith is rooted, and the direction in which we are all headed. They have us sing ‘we’ no less than six times, and so we’re all aimed in the direction of His eternal embrace, and we’re already walking arm-in-arm with each other and in His Spirit. That’s church.

 

Read about the song’s meaning according to one of the composers/authors here: O Church Arise Lyrics - Stuart Townend

Read about the composers/authors here: O Church, Arise | Hymnary.org

Read about one of the composers here: Stuart Townend (musician) - Wikipedia

Read about one of the composers here: Keith Getty - Wikipedia

See here for how the song’s lyrics compare to scripture: Is 'O Church Arise' Biblical? | The Berean Test

 

See here for information about the image: Géricault - Portrait de carabinier - Louvre - Cuirass - Wikipedia. Artist Théodore Géricault (1791–1824)… The author died in 1824, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1930.

Joy Has Dawned -- Stuart Townend and Keith Getty

 

Tell the complete story. That, in a very brief summary, is what Stuart Townend said that Keith Getty and he were trying to accomplish in 2004 when they wrote “Joy Has Dawned”. Although one might think there are plenty of Christmas carols, Stuart and Keith thought there were far too few that really speak of Jesus becoming human. And so, the Christmas nativity (see masterpiece artwork The Adoration of the Shepherds here by 17^th Century artist Matthias Stomer) was what they envisioned musically, but not just the scene. There’s so much depth in what God-With-Us meant for people as the 1^st Century dawned, that the import of His entry, life, sacrifice, and resurrection cannot be exaggerated 20 centuries later. It’s a story that’s too important to be limited to just one time of the year, and it begins with how He chose to come.

 

Stuart and Keith set out to add one song to the world’s Christmas music repertoire, and what they discovered was that a whole album about this subject would emerge (see its contents at the end of this blog post with the link provided).  These two British songwriters’ passion is to share the whole story about Jesus, and to spur the church to sing songs that have scriptural truths embedded within them. And so, they thought about ‘Joy…’ as part of a collection that would focus on musically accomplishing what the Apostles’ Creed has done for centuries. Telling the fundamentals of the Christian faith is therefore underscored with each one of the four verses they penned. Jesus was the ‘humble gift of love’ (v.1), a rather amazing present to mankind from the one who actually created all we can see (see Colossians 1:16 and John 1:3). Think of that: the One who is the Creator chose to be a new creature in the arms of a young woman named Mary whom He created. Incomprehensible and physically impossible, you say? Not for this God. He even ‘set the stars in place’ and ‘shaped the earth’, and now He’s a baby in a ‘stable’, ‘vulnerable and helpless’ (v.2). How could the Father entrust His Only Begotten to fallible humans?! Despite His lowly arrival, this baby was recognized as special, with appropriate gifts that could be seen as especially indicative of Jesus’ identity as a king and eventual Divine Sacrifice – ‘gold’ for his role as king of the Jews; ‘incense’ like that used by priests as an offering in the presence of God Himself; and ‘myrrh’ that was commonly used to embalm a dead body (v.3). Stuart and Keith round out their description of Jesus with several synonyms for Him: ‘Son of Adam, Son of heaven’, ‘ransom’, ‘reconcil(er)’, ‘Christ’, ‘Savior’, ‘Friend’, ‘glorious mystery’, ‘babe’, and finally ‘Lord of history’(v.4). Others are sprinkled through the other verses, like ‘Prince of life’ (v.2), and ‘the lamb’ (v.3). Are there really enough names for Him?

 

What Stuart and Keith might have concluded is that Jesus is a mouthful, and so much more. That is what spurred these two to write a new Christmas hymn -- that there was really too little that had been said musically about Him to properly express what He means to humanity. Maybe we all ought to be singing Christmas songs year-round, although doing so might make them rote performances. God needs to be special in the lives of people, and the Christmas season does that in some measure. But what Stuart and Keith have said in their title of the song – that this ‘Joy Has Dawned’ – in fact persists throughout the year and all of life. And, this characteristic will be true of the Afterlife and Heaven where we will be. His light will always be there (Revelation 21:23-24; 22:5). This joy that has already dawned has no sunset.     

 

Read the song story here: Joy Has Dawned (December's Hymn of the Month)

 

See the entire album’s contents here: Joy Has Dawned - Downloadable Listening Tracks (FULL ALBUM) | Lifeway

 

Read about the two composers here: Stuart Townend (musician) - Wikipedia  and Keith Getty - Wikipedia

 

See information on the picture here: File:Adoration of the sheperds - Matthias Stomer.jpg - Wikimedia Commons…The author died in 1660, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1930.