Bathroom Liturgies & Morning Anthems: June 2015

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Following on from the handful of songs I highlighted in February and at Easter, ‘bathroom liturgies’ is just a phrase I’ve ending up using to describe the tunes that have recently been part of my ‘morning soundtrack’. Here are three more that I’ve been enjoying listening to as summer breaks in, ‘tuning my heart to sing God’s grace’:

1. My Soul Is Well – Simon Brading & Jordan Dillon

If you were at Word Alive 2015, then you probably heard this sung a fair bit. The recording’s actually from 2009, so the song’s been around for a while. It’s a bit of a catchy modern riff on Spafford’s classic hymn, ‘It Is Well With My Soul’, fixing your heart on the goodness of the gospel;

“There’s no promise I am missing, all I need has been supplied… my soul is well.”

2. Father, Open Our Eyes – Jamie Brown

Jamie wrote this song as he listened to a Gary Millar sermon from Together for the Gospel, on “Jesus Betrayed and Crucified”, from Luke 22:39-23:43. More on the story behind the song here. Effectively a sung prayer to savour Jesus:

“Infinite grace and mercy, tenderness deep and wide; A strong lion for our defense, a humble lamb as our sacrifice. How can we take Him for granted? How can our hearts become hard? Oh, that again we would run to our friend, embraced by the grace in His arms.”

3. 1 Corinthians 15:58 – The Verses Project

The Verses Project is a brilliant idea. The aim is to create musical and visual art that helps people memorise and meditate on Scripture, and Ryan Walker’s simple take on 1 Cor. 15:58 is a great example. Simple, infectious, and it captures the climactic nature of the two halves of this verse.

For me 1 Corinthians is a book that comes with a lot of memories, having been where our discipleship groups back in Cheltenham spent a year, as well as being one of the focuses of my dissertation. As I wake up and face a new day, with various priorities, pressures and tasks before me, it’s so important to grasp that ‘labour in the Lord’ is not in vain. I don’t have a video link, but you can download it for free here.

What about you? What’s your favourite song you’re listening to help ‘tune your heart’ at the start of the day?