Tips on -Song-Writing ( by Fenny West)

Tips on Song Wring is

This is an excerpt from my book: Sing a New Song

I will share my song experience—ideas that will help any

songwriter or aspiring songwriter.

Introduction to Song writing—

As the title suggests, this is just an introduction to song writing. The ideas

espoused here stem primarily from my experience as a singer/ songwriter

and worship leader both here in the UK and Ireland. It is also based on my

intimacy with God who has deemed it fit to equip me with this gifting to

use to build up His Body before He reappears. I am therefore not writing

as a sage. Songwriting is a vast and intricate subject. However, I have no

doubt that this work can provide a good spring-board for any aspiring

songwriter.

Poetry and songwriting are very closely linked. That is why I would

recommend poetry to any songwriter. My poetry writing has no doubt

enhanced my songwriting. Whereas I shall touch a bit on poetry here

but poetry writing is not the purpose of this book. For a fuller study on

how to write poems, see

Anthology of Living Poems where I have laid

the foundation for good poetry writing and given many poems under the

different themes.

Few people are gifted with writing the lyrics—words of a song. They then

look for some musician to put music to it. It then becomes a song. At other

times there is a piece of music that is looking for a lyric that matches it.

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For instance, an instrumentalist could be a good composer of music but

bereft of the skills of a lyricist. He/she could collaborate with a lyricist and

become a formidable alliance. Even fewer people are gifted with the ability

to write good songs—lyrics and music and be able to sing it and make a

huge success of it. This is why we have those who are specialists at singing;

they have trained their voices very well over the years and are able to carry

a song to the utmost height. Every songwriter needs such a singer, who can

interpret the song and lift it “beyond the veil”. There are of course some

mega stars who can write the song—music and lyrics—and can sing and

they perform it with the same degree of virtuoso as the singing specialist.

Obviously these are also very few indeed. Often two or more songwriters

can collaborate to make a great hit. Examples are Tim Rice and Lord Lloyd

Webber in the circular world and Gerald Coates and Noel Richards in the

Christian music scene.

Whereas I do not consider myself to be a mega star, by the grace of God I am

a singer /songwriter and have written 100s of songs mainly in the Christian/

Gospel genre; many of which were inspired by the Holy Spirit and the

Bible. In fact some of them are Scriptures set to music like the Psalms. See

Sing the Psalms (

Psalms Set To Music) or Scriptures in Songs.

1. PURPOSE: Why am I writing? This is the motive for writing.

Without purpose any gift or talent will be either abused or misused. God

made you for a purpose and gave you a gift for a purpose. You need first of

all to find your purpose and then discover the gift inside of you designed

for the fulfillment of your purpose.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God,

to those who are the called

according to His purpose. Rom8:28 NKJV

Some people are commissioned to write a song for a particular occasion

and are remunerated for getting the job done. In this case there is a specific

goal—film, wedding, anniversary, celebration etc. This goal determines the

theme of the song. Every song should have a theme. I will develop this idea

later. Songwriting could also be a career, in which case the writer is open to

any one and would write on any theme irrespective of his/her principles.

The main preoccupation here could be to make a living. On the other hand,

there will be others who would believe that their talent is God—given and

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therefore to be used to glorify Him. They may or may not make a living

out of it, but would seek to put principle and godliness above profit? Such

people would therefore not write songs that contradict their beliefs.

Christians are enjoined to do whatever they do “as unto Him”. Whatever

talents we have, come from Him. We belong to Him. He should take first

place in my writing, singing and performing. It is wrong to sacrifice one’s

principles just to make a few bob, even worse not to have principles at all.

That said, if your main calling is songwriting then God will provide for

you through that channel as people will commission you to write for them

for various occasions.

Provision is in the vision. Where the Lord presides,

He provides

And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord

Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

23 And whatever you

do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, Col3: 17, 23

And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a

burnt offering.” So the two of them went together. Gen22:8 NKJV

2 METHOD

How do I write?

This is not an easy question to answer. However, it is a key question. Various

songwriters approach songwriting differently depending on how gifted

they are. Some people have also trained themselves and approach it in a

regimental way. For those who are able to play some musical instruments,

the task is made easier. Inspiration can come any time. A good song—writer

should be prepared at all times to capture the inspiration. Usually they

come as skeletons that you need to put flesh on, may be at a later stage. For

some writers, the approach will differ from time to time. My approach has

varied over the years and it depends on how I am led or how the inspiration

comes. It is important to be ready , flexible and diligent. An inspiration

ignored may not come back.

‘

Of hooks’ in the book of songwriting

Any song that is popular will have what is called a hook. This is that part of

the song that arrests the listener and is often triggered when they think of

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the song. Someone defined it as “the sweet part of the song that’s repeated

over and over.”

I will use a few examples of the songs I have composed.

Peace be still

This is a song that is simple but very powerful because there is not only

audience participation but also that all through the song the lyric is totally

the word of God and it is prophetic. It is as if you are hearing God sing His

back to you.

The hook here is the Chorus:

My child peace be still

And know that I am God

The hook here is the chorus:

Peace be still.

I delight in your Word

(Ps.119:9,15-16,105; Ps.1:1-3; Jos.1:8)

(Sing the Psalms)

I delight in Your word.

Lord Your word lights my path.

I meditate in Your word,

So to be on the right path. X2

How can one keep pure his ways? (Leader)

By keeping to Your word (congr.)

How can one not go astray? (Leader)

By living by Your word.(congr.)

I delight in Your word

Lord, Your word lights my path.

I meditate in Your word,

So to be on the right path.

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How can one do all Your will? (Leader)

By keeping to Your word. (congr.)

How can one Your plan fulfil? (Leader)

By living by Your word. (congr.)

I delight in your word . . . X2

(also a Psalm)

The hook here is the first line:

‘I delight in your word’, married to that rhythm

Come Comforter

Lord Jesus, when You were leaving,

We felt we’ll be so lonely,

And we prayed that You stay behind,

But You promised the Holy Ghost.

(Come Holy Spirit)

CH:

Come Holy Spirit;

Come Comforter.

Come Holy Spirit;

Come Comforter

On the day of Pentecost,

You came in might and power.

O Lord let the fires burn again,

Come Comforter.

(Come Holy Spirit)

CH:

Lord Jesus, as the days get darker,

The more we need the Holy Ghost.

Lord in these closing days of time,

Let the Holy Ghost come pouring.

(Come Holy Spirit)

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Lord, we are up against

The principalities and powers;

But Lord through Your Holy Ghost,

We’ll surely overcome.

(Come Holy Spirit)

For this Song

The hook is again the chorus

Come Holy Spirit come comforter

Once you begin to sing it is difficult to let go. You could forget other parts

of the song but this part remains and hunts you for a long time.

Once again, opinions may differ in that some people may be hooked by

something else in the song other than the chorus.

However, be that as it may, as a songwriter it is good to bear hooks in your

mind. Often they come naturally and before you know it, the hook is there

and you know it. With experience and the power of the Holy Spirit it will

happen effortlessly.

3. THEME

—The Message In the Song

What do I write?

Every song should have a message. This message is the theme or the subject of

the song. It is also true that some songs could have more than one or even

multiple themes and could be used for various purposes. For instance, a

song about the birth of a baby could also be used of the birth of a vision

and those for outreach could be used for commissioning a ministry.

Theme ‘a subject or topic of discourse or of artistic representation.’ This is

your distinctive message in a song. It must not be confused or jumbled.

Your theme gives the song its focus. Generally, it is better to keep to one

theme than having many themes in one song. However there is no hard

and fast rule about this. Experience is the best teacher in this respect.

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4. Ignite your creative genius

Fire your songwriting passion. If you like a song others have written, try

creating an additional verse for that song. If it is easy to do, try creating two

and then three. Before you know it another song is in the making. Make sure

the theme is the same. Now try a different melody line for your new creation.

If you succeed you have a brand new song. Know that there are some melodies

which match different lyrics. This will boost your confidence. To excel in this

area, you have to stretch yourself, give yourself a challenge from time to time.

The song ‘Now the day is far spent’ below came through that exercise.

You can also draw inspiration from the work of others such as book or film

titles, even names of shops, advertisements etc

An example of a song I wrote stemmed from a book called ‘Don’t Date

Devils. ‘ Based on a sermon I heard I was inspired to write this song

with the same

title as shown below:

Don’t Date Devils

Gen.3, Matt.4 1Pet 2:22, 1Pet.5:8

Stand, you’ll survive on single street.

Wait for Boaz, shun Bozo.

Ditch Delilah, damn the devil.

Don’t date devils.

He’ll use you, abuse you and dishonour you.

Woo, wine dine you and then dump you.

Wound, whack, waylay and wind you up. (come on!)

Don’t date devils.

He’s violent, insolent, devil-sent. (a deviant)

Has no vision, brings division.

Childish, hellish or a dictator (Idi Amin)

Don’t date devils.

Has no regard for God or man.

Rebellious, licentious, flippant, arrogant.

With a sugar-coated tongue but a dog.

Don’t date devils.

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Like Delilah, she’ll dance around you.

She likes your feature, not your future.

Don’t let her kiss the life out of you.

Don’t Date Devils.

She’s cool, luscious but not virtuous.

Flirts and darts from man to man.

Watch! She’ll snuff the light out of you.

Don’t date devils.

She’s slick, slippery, slithery, full of sin.

With a vile mission, shuns submission.

Wild, wayward, whorish, wordless woman.

Don’t date devils.

The song below was inspired by a well-know welsh hymn: ‘Here is Love’

NOW THE DAY IS FAR SPENT

Now the day is far spent

Night is creeping upon us.

Soon we’ll see the Day of the Lord,

Coming, rushing upon us.

O that we would see the rainbow

On the cloud, a sign to us.

Faithful God who keeps His promise,

Coming even as He said.

Amy we work while it is day, Lord.

In the night no man can work.

Always doing what You say, Lord.

Standing always on the Rock.

That we would see the good field,

Vast and plenteous with harvest.

That we would join hand to hand,

Reaping precious souls for God.

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Now we’ll raise the banner of praise,

For our God who is the Most High;

Regardless of what the world says,

Until our eyes greet Your eyes.

Fill us O Holy Spirit.

Ignite us Refiner’s Fire.

Renew us, revive us O Lord.

Here we come, Lord here we come.

This is the song that inspired ‘Now the Day is Far Spent’

Here is love, vast as the ocean,

Lovingkindness as the flood,

When the Prince of Life, our Ransom,

Shed for us His precious blood.

Who His love will not remember?

Who can cease to sing His praise?

He can never be forgotten,

Throughout Heav’n’s eternal days.

On the mount of crucifixion,

Fountains opened deep and wide;

Through the floodgates of God’s mercy

Flowed a vast and gracious tide.

Grace and love, like mighty rivers,

Poured incessant from above,

And Heav’n’s peace and perfect justice

Kissed a guilty world in love.

Let me all Thy love accepting,

Love Thee, ever all my days;

Let me seek Thy kingdom only

And my life be to Thy praise;

Thou alone shalt be my glory,

Nothing in the world I see.

Thou hast cleansed and sanctified me,

Thou Thyself hast set me free.

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In Thy truth Thou dost direct me

By Thy Spirit through Thy Word;

And Thy grace my need is meeting,

As I trust in Thee, my Lord.

Of Thy fullness Thou art pouring

Thy great love and power on me,

Without measure, full and boundless,

Drawing out my heart to Thee.

Words: William Rees (1802-1883)

Music: Robert Lowry ( 1876)

This is another song derived from a song I know. I have added three more

verses but it still shares the music of the original song.

There gonna be a revival

There’s gonna be a revival in my life

From the crown of my head

to the soles of my feet

There’s gonna be a revival in my life

There’s gonna be a revival in this land

From the East to the West

From the North to the South

There’s gonna be a revival in this land.

These dry bones shall live again

Because you are the

Resurrection and the Life

These dry bones shall live again.

You Take my Breath Away

I stand in awe of You,

O Faithful and True

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I gaze upon your beauty

Brightness and majesty.

You take my breath away,

I bow to you this day,

Offering to you a sacrifice of praise.

I don’t know how to start

So I come with all my heart

May everything within me

Give You honour and glory

I come just as I am

To You the Great I Am

Offering to You a sacrifice of Praise.

In You I live and move

Most High, You are my love

I love to be in Your presence

I come without pretense

Laying all at Your feet

Trusting You to complete

Offering to you a sacrifice of praise.

You can also create a different rendition of other songs.

For instance I have a few renditions and arrangements of the well-known

song:

Amazing Grace with very catchy tunes. If these are well-recorded I

have no doubt that they will go a long way. Don’t be afraid to experiment.

This is one of them:

Amazing Grace

CH: Amazing grace,

how sweet the sound

I was once lost but now am found

was blind but now I see.

V1 Amazing grace how sweet the sound

that saved a wretch like me

I was once lost but now am found

was blind but now I see.

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Ch:

T’was grace that thought my heart to fear

and grace my fears relieved

How precious did that grace appear

the hour I first believed

Through many dangers, toils and snares . . .

we have already come.

T’was Grace that brought us safe thus far . . .

and Grace will lead us home

When we’ve been there ten thousand years . . .

bright shining as the sun.

We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise . . .

than when we’ve first begun

Amazing grace . . .

To end . . .

I was once lost . . .

(I was once lost

but now am found

was blind but now I see)

repeated many times.

years

That is how you create new songs.

Give me that old time religion

It’s good enough for me

It was good for Paul and Silas

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It was good for Paul and Silas

It’s good enough for me.

It was good for Mary and Martha

It’s good enough for me

It was good for Paul and Peter

It’s good enough for me.

I have added the last two verses in this song

Try creating your own using bible characters that can be matched and

alliterate.

5. Be ready with your spiritual antennae

Apart from being inspired through other songwriters or songs, inspirations

can come directly from the Holy Spirit where you receive a tune you have

not heard before and you capture it and flow with it. Some may come

ready whilst others may come rough and you have to find time and polish

them. This is where diligence comes into play.

Without You

came on the road as I was going to visit. I happened to have

a recorder on me, so I hummed it in and recorded immediately when I got

back home I recorded it again using different rhythms and different keys on

the keyboard as many as four times. It amazing how different rhythms can

transform a song if you can play along with the preset rhythms in a keyboard.

That has also been one skills that has buttressed my songwriting.

Some inspirations have come at the early hours of the morning and I have

had to creep out of bed and hum it into a recorded to be developed later.

Where I have been lazy, I have lost the tune. However partnering with the

Holy Spirit, I have acknowledged Him in prayer and recovered some lost

music to songs composed. Often a completely new music emerges. This

make s you dependent on the Holy Spirit, which is good. However it also

shows you that there is a human element to it. You have to do your part

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and then God will help you . It shows that the grace of God is sufficient for

us so if we fail, we can ask for forgiveness and help.

It is vital as a Christian songwriter to learn to hear from the Holy Spirit. “As many

as are led by the Spirit of God they are the children of God.” (Rom.8:14)

Some songs I have written were inspired whilst listening to sermons

examples are:

KEEP YOUR DREAM ALIVE!

CH: Keep your dream alive

Go fulfill purpose.

Go now to your God

And let Him tell you your purpose;

And life will have a new meaning.

Every one has an assignment.

Each one has a purpose.

Everyone has a God-ordained dream.

Life has no meaning

If you don’t know its reason.

So keep your dream alive!

Fight the good fight of faith.

Fight for God-given dream.

Fight in the power of His might.

You’re a light, take your rightful place.

Shine Saint, in the night

So keep your dream alive.

Don’t Date Devils

This is a song for singles.

Stand, you’ll survive on single street.

Wait for Boaz, shun Bozo.

Ditch Delilah, damn the devil.

Don

’t date devils.

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191

He’ll use you, abuse you and dishonour you.

Woo, wine dine you and then dump you.

Wound, whack, waylay and wind you up. (come on)

Don

’t date devils.

He’s violent, insolent, devil-sent. (a deviant)

Has no vision, brings division.

Childish, hellish, a dictator (Idi Amin)

Don

’t date devils.

Has no regard for God or man.

Rebellious, licentious, flippant, arrogant.

With a sugar-coated tongue but a dog.

Don

’t date devils.

Like Delilah, she’ll dance around you.

She likes your feature, not your future.

Don

’t let her kiss the life out of you.

Don

’t Date Devils.

She’s cool, luscious but not virtuous.

Flirts and darts from man to man.

Watch! She’ll snuff the light out of you.

Don

’t date devils.

She’s slick, slippery, slithery, full of sin.

With a vile mission, shuns submission.

Wild, wayward, wordless woman.

Don

’t date devils.

(Gen.3, Matt.4, 1Pet 2:22, 1Pet.5:8, John10:10, Ps1:1-3, Prov4:18, Prov.

3:5-6,Ps37:23,25, Ruth2, Gen.24,Jud. 14,16)

A literary device called alliteration has been used here. This is where the

consonant sound of phrases in the song have been repeated e,g Don’t Date

Devils

Wild wayward, wordless, woman,

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There are other literary devices that should additionally be considered in

songwriting such as imagery, assonance. For details of these see

Anthology

of Living Poems or LivingPoems4dailyLiving

NOTHING CAN STOP YOU!

Nothing can stop you

’Cause your God is faithful and true

he will bring you through

completing the good work begun in you

Nothing can stop you’

’cause the Most High is for you

He is with you and he is in you

To complete the good work begun in you.

Nothing can stop you

The angels of God are around you

They’ve been given charge over you

Your God will see you through

Nothing can stop you

Your setback is a set up

A set up for a lift up

A set up for a great come back

Nothing can stop you

Your upset is a setup

A setup for a lift up

A lift up, so saint look up

Your setback is a setup

A set up for a lift up

a set up for a comeback

yes for a great, great, great comeback

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6. Intro/ending

You only have one chance of making the first impression. Make it count.

Just like the interview for a job. You need to think of the first lines or the

introduction of your song.. I often use scriptures or communicate with the

audience, especially if there is a part where they will have to participate.

Such songs are more effective because you are not doing it alone and people

usually like getting into the ‘act’, so I like to write with that in mind Hence

where a song lends itself to audience participation the intro should be in

quickly telling them where they come in. This should be done in a seamless

fashion and not long-drawn out otherwise you would lose them. I am now

going into performance of the song which may not be what you are into. I

am speaking here to those who write and perform. Besides even if you only

write you need to think of those who will perform the song and make life

easy for them by including ideas for introducing a song to make its impact

lasting. I know you cannot be over precise or be too prescriptive. And you

may not be able to do that with every song you write, but it is worth noting

and attempting from time to time as you write songs.

7. QUALITIES OF A GOOD SONG, the hit song, intros

and endings

Opinions may differ in this regard. Generally good songs would include

one or more of these qualities or attributes imagery, rhymes, metaphors,

similes,

It should be well structured with verse, chorus, bridge etc but there are

songs that may be very simple and yet very powerful and effective.

Without You (John 15:5, James3:3-4, Mark5:1-5, John11:39-44

Jer.29:10, Jonah 2,)

Without You am like a ship

Without a rudder bound for wreckage

Without You am like a plane

With no clear destination.

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CH: Without You, without You

Life has no purpose or meaning

But with You at the helm

I am bound a safe haven

Without You am like a car

With a drunken driver behind the wheel

Without You am like a horse

With no bridle, let lose, going astray.

Without You am like a mad man

In the graveyard cutting himself

Without You am like Lazarus

Dead, buried and stank

This song has no rhymes but full of powerful imagery which lends to its quality

Another song with some imagery is You must be Born Again

You Must Be Born Again!

(Jn.3:3; Ro.3:23; Acts 9:1-18; Jn.1:12)

Intro:

Except a man be born again,

He cannot see the Kingdom of God.

Jesus said,” Marvel not I say unto you,

you must be born again.

Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh.

And what ever is born of the Spirit is spirit. Jn3:3

I remember that day,

that glorious light,

of the Gospel dawned on my spirit

And that which was separated,

was joined to God again.

Alleluia! I was born again.

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Ch:

I say

You, You must be born again.

It’s not by might not by power,

but through the Spirit of God.

I say

You, You must be born again.

It’s not by works but by grace

through

faith, in the Lord Jesus Christ.

I remember that day,

that I was forgiven

of my sins and delivered from darkness.

And he who was going blind began to see again,

translated into the Kingdom of Light.

The song below is different as it has rhymes and also a chorus.

May Your Glory Be Seen

Mtt. 3:15-17, Col.2:10

May Your majesty

Be seen in my life;

May Your beauty

Be seen in me.

May Your excellency

Be seen in my life.

May Your glory

Be seen in me.

CH:

In You I live.

In You I move.

In You I have my being.

May Your majesty

Be seen in my life.

May Your beauty

Be seen in me.

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May Your wisdom

Be seen in my life;

May Your kingdom

Be seen in me.

May Your matchless grace

Be seen in my life;

May your praise

Be seen in me..

CH:

In You I live.

In You I move.

In You I have my being.

May Your majesty

Be seen in my life.

May your glory

Be seen me.

(May Your glory)

May your glory

Be seen in me

The song below is structured differently with rhymes but with no chorus.

Saints of God, let us celebrate;

Celebrate this new life in Christ;

Sing to the Lord and jubilate-

Jubilate in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Saints of God, let us clap and sing-

Clap and sing to God our Father;

Give glory to the Lord of lords our King;

The Most High God our Maker.

Saints of God, let’s dance and rejoice-

Rejoice because the Lord, He is good;

So good to us that He made us His choice,

His people, His royal priesthood.

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Saints of God, let His praises ring;

From sunrise until sunset;

Let all that is within us sing-

Sing every one who has breath

What makes a song a hit?

Like it or not most of the songs that have made it are poetic. This is why if

you want to be successful as a songwriter you must learn the art of poetry..

It is fundamental. However you don’t have to be a Shakespeare to write

a good poetic song. Rhymes are an important element of poetry. There

are also similes, word pictures, metaphors, allegories, alliteration assonance

etc. that can be incorporated into a song to give it the added punch or

hook-factor or X-factor.

That said, there some powerful songs that are not necessarily poetic

but have made tremendous impact nonetheless. The songwriter who is

accomplished can pull it off with a none poetic song. Some other songs

make it because of their hook—that part of a song that is often repeated to

hold the singer on tender hooks.

Patterns of rhymes

These could take the following patterns at the end of the lines: aabb or

abab for a quartet . Other patterns can be adopted depending on the skill

of the songwriter.

God of Creation! ( Rev4:11,Ps8, Gen1)

God of Creation, strength of my life.

Great Revelation, source of my life.

My devotion I give to You.

Adoration I give to You.

Ch: God of Creation, Great Revelation.

To You I give adoration.

God of Creation, strength of my life.

To You I give adoration

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O king of Glory, song of my life.

O Lord of Glory, love of my life.

My devotion I give to You.

Adoration I give to You.

O God of Abraham, life of my life.

O Great I Am, key to my life.

My devotion I give to You.

Adoration I give to You.

Can you identify the rhyme pattern in this songs? Is it abab or aabb or a

variation?

Use of Alliteration—

This is a repetition of words starting with consonant sounds next to each

other or in close proximity.

When used for your title it lends itself to quick remembrance.

You often find it used for naming products films, songs messages, business

names etc like:

.Stand, You’ll Survive on Single Street.

.Don’t Date Devils

.Poor preparation precedes poor performance

Don’t Date Devils

(Gen.3, Matt.4, 1Pet 2:22, 1Pet.5:8, John10:10, Ps1:1-3, Prov4:18, Prov.

3:5-6,Ps37:23,25, Gen.24,Jud. 14,16,16 Ruth2,4, )

Stand, you’ll survive on single street.

Wait for Boaz, shun Bozo.

Ditch Delilah, damn the devil.

Don

’t date devils.

He’ll use you, abuse you and dishonour you.

Woo, wine dine you and then dump you.

Wound, whack, waylay and wind you up. (come on)

Don

’t date devils.

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He’s violent, insolent, devil-sent. ( a deviant)

Has no vision, brings division.

Childish, hellish or a dictator ( Idi Amin)

Don

’t date devils.

Has no regard for God or man.

Rebellious, licentious, flippant, arrogant.

With a sugar-coated tongue but a dog.

Don

’t date devils.

Like Delilah, she’ll dance around you.

She likes your feature, not your future.

Don

’t let her kiss the life out of you.

Don

’t Date Devils.

She’s cool, luscious but not virtuous.

Flirts and darts from man to man.

Watch! She’ll snuff the light out of you.

Don

’t date devils.

She’s slick, slippery, slithery, full of sin.

With a vile mission, shuns submission.

Wild, wayward, wordless woman.

Don

’t date devils.

The Song and the Sound

Different songs gel with different sounds. Just as each instrument has its

own special sound, you need to discern which combination of instrument

will give you the best result in any recording. Yet again there are no hard

and fast rules about this as we see over the years with different renditions of

certain songs turning out to be hits. There is no end to experimentation in

the music business. I have various versions of some songs in my repertoire

or compositions and they are good in their own right. It depends on the

audience I am singing it to. The songs that come to mind here are ‘

All

Things are Possible’

and ‘Without You.’

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Expression

Every song has its own unique energy otherwise it is dead. The energy

of a song is often released through contrasts in the combination and

volume in the instruments and that of the singer (s).

The more acquainted you are with the basics of music the better you will

be at song writing.

8. THE QUALITIES OF A GOOD SONGWRITER

• DISCIPLINE and PERSEVERANCE

• ‘TEACHABILITY’

• ‘INTEGRITY

• EXCELLENCE / PERFECTING YOUR SONG

• Ability to use LITERARY DEVICES good songs use imagery,

alliteration, assonance, rhetorical questions, dialogue, repetition,

anaphora, apart from rhyme patterns. These are explored n detail

Living Poems4Daily Living

• SIMPLICITY

• READINESS—

• ORGANISATION

DICIPLINE AND PERSEVERANCE—what does it take? (may be part

of the qualities of a good songwriter indicated below)

It requires discipline and perseverance and practice to writing a song

that is enduring—a test of time. For the beginner you have to accept

the reality that you will write many songs that you cannot write home

about before you write a hit. And that is, if you persevere. No matter

how talented one is, there is a need to polish and hone that talent to

such a degree that it becomes a rose among thorns. As a songwriter for

over ten years now, I admit I have written many none-songs than songs.

But it does not discourage me. How else do you learn to write unless you

write? As a songwriter and a beginner at that, you must be prepared for

many rejections and be able to soldier on regardless. Also, only very few

people make a living out of songwriting. So do something else whilst you

work at your songwriting on the side until the breakthrough comes. I did

accountancy, education and some menial work on the side while waiting

for the breakthrough.

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201

I have had to rework some songs several times before recording them in a

studio. Even after publishing some songs I know that they can be improved.

They are not set in stone and there could be many variants of the same

song with different effects.

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives

the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain

it. 25 And everyone who

competes

for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain

a perishable crown, but we

for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run

thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as

one who beats the air. 27

But I discipline my body and bring

it into subjection, lest, when I have

preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.1 Cor.8:24-27

He who has a slack hand becomes poor, But the hand of the

diligent

makes rich. Prov.10:4 NKJV

Seest thou a man

diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he

shall not stand before mean men.Prov.22:29KJV

As Jesus endured the cross and so must we in any endeavour to obtain the

crown. Heb.12:1-3

Rivers and Hurdles

As indicated, music industry is not an easy road. There are many rivers and

hurdles to cross. The songwriting business requires a lot of perseverance.

You may be a talented pianist but you need a good singer who needs your

services. You may be a good singer but you need good songs that you like to

sing. There are many discouragements and giants that have to be confronted

and defeated. It is not a profession for the faint hearted. You need to believe

in yourself and the talent you have and be determined to make it. Better

still if you know God in a personal way and know that your talent has come

from Him. You must continually go to Him for guidance and inspiration

and encouragement because without Him, you can do nothing.

You must be prepared to start small and grow. Be prepared for

disappointments and learn from them. Your balloon may be deflated many

times but you have to believe in yourself and the One Who gave you the

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vision to bring to fruition what He had begun. In Him all things work

together for our good. You must be prepared to sing to yourself alone in

your bedroom or on the road for along time before you do it before a

group.

‘TEACHABILITY’

As in any profession, those who excel are those who are hungry to do better

each day. They never see themselves as having arrived. To become a

good songwriter, you must be willing to learn from others and open to

correction. They have mentors – people they admire and respect from

whom they learn. This could be by direct contact or through their works

or books. I have learned from singer/songwriters such as Ian Whyte,

Don Franscisco, Graham Kendrick and Noel Richards, to mention a

few. Ian Whyte inspired me to start setting the Psalms to music.

Paul after writing 13 best-sellers was aware of his inadequacy and wanted

to know more of God, This is the attitude very good songwriter

should have: ‘Study to show yourself approved . . . ‘ ‘That I may know

Him

. . .

Read other books on songwriting

I know I am just scratching the surface of songwriting in this book it is good

to read about songwriting but it is better to practice writing frequently,

recording and trying them out when you have the opportunity. You may

have to sing the songs to you self, family or friends as captive audience and

see their reaction before you take it out. And as they say, ‘if it does not work

at home don’t export it.’ Even if you’re criticised, use the critique to your

advantage. Learn to encourage your self like David did. One day your day

will come. ‘Readers are leaders.’

Playing a musical instrument

Being able to play a musical instrument will enhance you r songwriting

greatly. It will make you more independent and versatile. Playing

the guitar, harmonica and a bit of the keyboard have helped me

tremendously to choose keys for the songs I write and to change them

I feel another key would suit my voice better.

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INTEGRITY

Integrity is ‘firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values’

or honesty. Every songwriter needs it. It means you must not arrogate

to your self the work belonging to another.

You must be faithful to the truth and its application in your songs. Sources

need to be acknowledged. Of course this does not prevent you from

using work that is not under copyright control and substantially

improving it. This differentiates it from the previous work. That is

why you can have hundreds of versions of Amazing Grace and each

can have a copyright in its own right. Without honesty, you cannot be

trusted and if you cannot be trusted, you have nothing to offer.

Integrity means you will not sell other peoples work to enrich yourself. I t

also means you will use other peoples work with permission if they are

still alive and their copyright has not expired.

EXCELLENCE

Excellence means being innovative, having a desire to reach all those God

has given to you. It includes versatility. Often you may be inspired to

cross styles to reach a different audience whilst keeping your message

pure and unadulterated.

To improve in your songwriting you must realize that every song can be

improved. Besides, you can have different renditions of a song which

could have different effects on your audience. The use of different

instruments and rhythms can also give your songs different flavours

and unexpected cutting edge. These possibilities should be explored

continually to improve your songwriting.

Excellence comes at a price—no price, no prize.’ You must be dedicated to

your chosen field to excel.

This means hard work and prayer practicing to make perfect. As a

songwriter, you must be prepared to write, rewrite, review, re-review

etc. That is why I have joined a Critique Circle where I can submit my

lyrics and get feedbacks and amendments where need be. And there

have been many occasions where I have had to make amendments

to some songs. Two heads are better than one. Like I said earlier on,

learn from accomplished writers. Have a look at acclaimed songs and

ask yourself why they are so acclaimed. Also remember that different

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arrangements can produce different results and the same goes for the

interpretation by different singers. Look for singers that can interpret

your song to its utmost.

Perfecting Your Song

To perfect your song you need to test it out to see what needs perfecting.

You can also have the privilege of seeing peoples’ reaction to it. This

can be done by playing it at home for members of your family and

soliciting their opinion. You also have the opportunity being able to

share it in a small cell group setting and taking a reading. I have been

privileged to do just that for some of my songs. And it’s been very

helpful.

USING LITERARY DEVICES

It is imperative that as a songwriter you develop and improve the quality of

your writing by employing various literary devices as earlier indicated

such as alliterations or assonance for titles or groups of words in your

song to make it stand out and easy to remember. It is important that

your title ‘speaks.’

Alpha and Omega

Author and the Finisher

Give Glory to the King

You are a faithful God

Heaven Hear my voice

Again you can use metaphors and similes to paint pictures in the mind of

your audience. The Bible is full of such devices. I would recommend

that you learn these and then apply them in your songwriting. You can

even go further by creating your own based on your experience and

every day occurrence. Quality songs often use imagery, alliteration,

assonance, rhetorical questions, dialogue, repetition, anaphora,

apart from rhyme patterns. These are explored n detail in

Living

Poems4Daily Living

Without You

Without You am like a ship

Without a rudder bound for wreckage

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205

Without You am like a plane

With no clear destination.

CH: Without You, without You

Life has no purpose or meaning

But with You at the helm

I am bound a safe haven

Without You am like a car

With a drunken driver behind the wheel

Without You am like a horse

With no bridle, let lose, going astray.

Without You am like a mad man

In the graveyard cutting himself

Without You am like Lazarus

Dead, buried and stank

Many images have been used in this song which gives it its quality.

SIMPLICITY

Often some songwriters make things complicated to form a stumbling

block. There are many great songs that are very simple. We need to

learn a lesson from this. It is wise to make a song easy to sing. Avoid

making your song complex otherwise it will remain on the shelf. Make

it accessible to all. There is often virtue in simplicity.

You are the Lord (

Ex.34:6)

You are the Lord,

The Lord God,

merciful and gracious,

longsuffering and abundant

in goodness and truth.

This is a simple song but because it is inspired by the Holy Spirit and

espouses the greatness, goodness, and integrity of God, it is short,

sweet and catchy.

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Sweet Rose of Sharon ( SoS 2:1 Rev.22:16, Isa9:6,—7:14)

Sweet Rose of Sharon, Lilly of the Valley,

The Bright Morning Star, the Prince of Peace,

Jesus, (that’s what You are)X7

The Root of Jesse, the Seed of David, the Lion of Judah, the Mighty God,

Messiah, the Everlasting Father, My intercessor, Emmanuel,

Lord Jesus, (that’s what You are) X7

Interlude Harmonica

The Good Shepherd, my Healer, my Saviour, You are my Lord, the King of

Glory, the Lord of Glory, the King of kings and the Lord of Lords

Jesus, (that’s what You are) X7

This is another song made up of the Names of Jesus, which is simple but

powerful.

Another is Pre-eminent One, which focuses on Jesus, His personality, deity

and centrality and pre-eminence. It is composed in a minor key and

does not need many chords to lift it ‘beyond the veil.’

Pre-eminent One

(Col.1:15-18;Rev.1:8,Heb.1:3)

Intro:

Speak/Sing

😦Excellent One!

The most High!

Number One in my life.

The Head of the Church.

The first and the Last.

The Alpha and the Omega.)

Pre-eminent One.

First Born from the dead.

First Born of all creation.

Head of the Church.

You are in every thing.

And through You

all things hold together.

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Ch:

Pre-eminent one.

You take first place,

You are all and in all.

(Holy, holy, Lord God Almighty).X2

through You all things were made-

In heaven and earth below;

Be they thrones dominions or rulers.

Before all things You were,

The Beginning and the End;

The Alpha and the Omega.

Ch:

You’re number One.

In my life

Pre-eminent One.

You take first place.

You are all and in all.

Ch:

READINESS—

Every good songwriter needs to be very sensitive and ready to capture

inspirations as they come. Be ready to write down reminders that you will

develop later into songs. This may mean waking up in the middle of the

night to hum a tune into a recorder or humming a tune on the road until

you get home to record.

Inspiration often comes like a flash and you must be in a state of readiness

for it. It can be during your prayer time, in Church during a sermon, on

the road as you are walking home or any other setting. Just be prepared

to capture it by any means. Write it down in an Ideas Book, or put it on

a tape where you can pick it up later to develop. I have discovered that

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I capture more inspirations when I m ready and expectant. The earth

in all its fullness belongs to my Father. He is the Only Wise God—the

fountain of wisdom. He said he has made us partakers of His divine

nature. He said we have the mind of Christ. He said it His desire that

my mind be renewed to think His thoughts. He said I should ask Him

for wisdom if I so desire and that He will give it to me generously, so I

am expectant of His inspiration, insight, counsel, godly ideas to propel

me in the direction of fulfilling my ministry. Those who put their trust

in Him shall not be put to shame. He is my help and I will lift up my

eye to Him, my Helper. My pen shall be like that of a ready writer.

ORGANISATION

You must also be well-organised so that you know where to locate new

songs that you need to work on are and be diligent to work on them

When you are able to write many songs it would be wise to classify your titles

thematically as shown below. Also see my thematic index later in this book.

These are some of the themes I have covered in my song writing odyssey.

Thematic Guide

EVANGELISM(REACH OUT)

CONSECRATION/ Worship &

RESURRECTION/EASTER

PRAISE ( Most of the Psalms)

NEW CREATION REALITIES

DIVINE DIRECTION

FAITH/COMFORT

CHILDREN SONGS

SECOND COMING

PRAYER SONGS

COMMUNION

A NEW YEAR

HOLY SPIRIT

WEDDING

ETERNITY

THE WORD

Sing a New Song

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REVIVAL

PROPHETIC

STORY SONGS

CELEBRATION

SPIRITUAL WARFARE

HOME WITH THE LORD

CLOSING THE CURTAIN

Some song titles within the themes are shown below

EVANGELISM (REACH OUT)

• You must be born again

• Jesus turned it All around

• Jesus, Jesus, Jesus

CONSECRATION/ Worship &

• Undivided Heart

• Pre-eminent One

• Holy Father, My God

• You are Holy

• I will Come To You

RESURRECTION/EASTER

• Look not for the Living Among the dead

• Christ is Alive

•

PRAISE (Most of the Psalms)

• Great and Marvellous

• Praise the Lord

• God of Creation

• You are the Lord

New Creation Realities

• In Him

DIVINE DIRECTION

• Come, Holy Wind

• My Child, Pay Attention

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FAITH/COMFORT

• The Just shall live by faith

• I believe to See

• Oaks of Righteousness Shall Stand

CHILDREN SONGS

• Jesus, is my Friend

SECOND COMING

• He’s Coming!

PRAYER SONGS

• Fill me from Top to bottom

• I will call on Your /name

COMMUNION

• Remember me

A NEW YEAR

• He Crowns the Year

HOLY SPIRIT

• Come Comforter

• Pour On Us a New Anointing

• The Spirit o f the Lord

WEDDING

• I’ve found you

• And the two shall be One

ETERNITY

• The City of God

• In the World but Not of The World

THE WORD

• I Delight in your Word

REVIVAL

• There gonna be a revival

• If My People

Sing a New Song

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PROPHETIC

• Peace be Still!

• There is a Friend

• Be Strong and courageous

STORY SONGS

• I was born clappy

CELEBRATION

• Saints of God, let us Celebrate

SPIRITUAL WARFARE

• Under Your Feet

• Sleeping Giant Awake!

• Summon Your power, O Lord

CLOSING THE CURTAIN

• May the peace

9. METERING OF A SONG

Metering of songs has to do with the length of the lines in a stanza. This is

usually determined by the number of syllables in a line. A good songwriter

will keep the difference if any to a minimum as it will affect the flow of the

song. You can elongate short lines by adding a few words, without altering

the meaning or the thought implied. And the same goes with long lines

In the song below there are 8 syllables to each line, on the average. You can

say it has a metre if 8.

Saints of God, let us celebrate; ( Ps47,—148, 149, 150)

Celebrate this new life in Christ;

Sing to the Lord and jubilate-

Jubilate in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Saints of God, let us clap and sing-

Clap and sing to God our Father;

Give glory to the Lord of lords our King;

The Most High God our Maker.

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Saints of God, let’s dance and rejoice-

Rejoice because the Lord, He is good;

So good to us that He made us His choice,

His people, His royal priesthood.

Saints of God, let His praises ring;

From sunrise until sunset;

Let all that is within us sing-

Sing every one who has breath

10. TYPES OF SONGS

There

are many genres to choose from or identify with depending on where

you ‘re coming from.

There are different types of songs such as Pop, jazz, folk, Rock n’roll ,

musicals, gospel, praise and worship, hip hop, rap , R& B, Reggae, Country,

Contemporary Christian songs, Country Gospel etc. As a songwriter or

prospective songwriter,. you need to be exposed to different types of songs

to increase your versatility. This need for versatility is however no excuse to

exposing your mind and spirit to the junk of the world that will pollute the

pure stream of God in you. To this end I have composed some songs with

Country Gospel, African, Pop, and Reggae flavour.

I Can Do All Things—Country

Heaven is My Home—Country

Jesus Turned It All Around

. Country

(Mtt.9:27-30; Mk.8:22-26)

Once upon a time,

I was going

blind.

Once upon a time,

I had no

hope.

Once upon a time,

I groped in the

dark.

But the Lord Jesus came

and turned it all around.

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213

Jesus, Jesus,

Son of the Living God.

You gave

sight to me.

You gave

hope to me.

And turned my darkness into

light. (XXX to End)

All Things are Possible—Reggae rendition

We Need Each Other—Pop

Keep Your Dream Alive!—Pop

Trust and Be Happy—African

Something Happened Inside—African

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you

present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God,

which is

your reasonable service.

2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be

transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what

that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Rom12:1-2

Blessed is the man

Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,

Nor stands in the path of sinners,

Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,

And in His law he meditates day and night.

He shall be like a tree

Planted by the rivers of water,

That brings forth its fruit in its season,

Whose leaf also shall not wither;

And whatever he does shall prosper.

Ps1:1-3

11.

WORD BASIS-FOR THE COMMITTED

CHRISTIAN,

The word of God is spirit and it is life. It transforms, it counsels, it is a

light to our path and a lamp to our feet. That is why most of the songs

I write are base on the scriptures. Even when we come to Christian

songwriters, some are specialist in worship, or praise and worship

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others are more inclined to Pop Gospel or Contemporary Gospel or

even Country Gospel. You must know your area of specialty.

Your statutes have been my songs

In the house of my pilgrimage.Ps119:54

For example the song below is very much the word of God from the

following scriptures:

M’t:19:26: But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is

impossible; but with God all things are possible.

M’r:9:23: Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible

to him that believeth.

M’r:10:27: And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible,

but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

Psalms:119:89: For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.

Isa:55:11: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall

not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please,

and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

M’r:11:23: For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this

mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall

not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he

saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

M’r:11:24: Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye

pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

Heb:6:17: Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs

of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:

Heb:6:18: That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for

God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for

refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:

2 Cor.1:20 For all the

promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen,

unto the glory of God by us.

All Things Are Possible (Matt 19:26, Mark 9:23, Ps119, Isa55:11, Matt

24:11, Mark11:23, Heb6:18)

All things are possible

to those who believe

I have prayed the word of God

I know I’ll receive

The Word of God is so sure

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Settled in heaven

It will accomplish

that which pleases Him

CH:I believe so I will see

I believe so I will receive

I believe and so I speak

My confession will bring a manifestation xxxxx

If God says, ‘Yes!’

Tell me who can say, ‘No’

By two unchangeable things

It is impossible for God to lie.

His promises are, Yes and amen

in Christ Jesus

The Word gone out from His mouth

will not return to Him empty

I have no doubt that it is the word of God in a song that gives it life to

refresh, revive, motivate, heal deliver and transform the listener. So if you

are a Christian songwriter I counsel you to saturate your songs with God’s

word to give it a cutting edge.

12 RESOURCES

The Songwriter’s Kit

Every songwriter should have a songwriting kit. This will include a dictionary,

thesaurus, rhyming dictionary, digital recorder, pen and paper. For a Christian

the Bible is an indispensable fountain of resource. Meditating on and studying

the word of God on a regular basis enables you to renew your mind and equips

you to saturate the songs you write with the word of God as indicated above. (

Rom12:1-2) It has been my launching pad for most songs I have written and

it cannot be compared to any other resource. A Christian songwriter should

in addition to these have different translations of the bible and different

Christian songbooks to feed from. Also it would be advisable to have the cds

or dvds of artists that you consider as mentors to you. No matter what rhythm

or rhyme you choose, it is paramount that your lyric should be informed by

the mind of Christ which is His word. The Word of God is light, life, living,

durable, dynamic, instructive, inspirational, incomparable, meaty, medicine,

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wisdom, comfort, compass, spiritual food. It is better than gold. It revives,

recreates, restores, recharges, reignites, challenges, charges and changes.

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I

speak to you are spirit, and

they are life. John6:53

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any

two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and

of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of

the heart.

Heb4:4

My son, give attention to my words;

Incline your ear to my sayings.

Do not let them depart from your eyes;

Keep them in the midst of your heart;

For they are life to those who find them,

And health to all their flesh.

Keep your heart with all diligence,

For out of it

spring the issues of life.

Prov4:20-23

(See I delight in your Word, Lord your Word is a Light, I will listen)

A good computer will also be handy for processing songs in a dedicated file

for easy access.

13. R

ECORDING YOUR SONG

A small home – digital recording studio would be ideal to record your songs

on in various arrangements before you choose the one you consider

best for the studio. You can also make demos from such machines for

producers or other musicians you work with. If you cannot sing, you

may hum your tune and look for a good singer to back you up.

If you can play an instrument, it would be a big bonus, as you will give

the song the right melody. Every song can be transformed depending

on the instruments and singers and the arrangement chosen by the

producer. However you can always partner with instrumentalists who

are looking for songwriters.

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You must take into consideration the beat or pulse—that part of the song

that people clap along to. Another important consideration is the

pattern of long and short a sounds and pauses that fit around the beat.

This is the rhythm. The melody or tune is the part people whistle to

or sing which is usually made up of notes of different pitches. The

pitch describes how high or low a musical tone is. Another important

note is the Structure of a song. It tells us how the song is organised

some structures are based on a variation of verse, chorus, and verse and

verse. There are other songs that may not have a chorus, like, ‘Don’t

Date Devil ‘but it has a repeated line’ Don’t Date Devils all through

the song. Also note that this song is alliterated for effect.

14.

THE RECORDING BUSINESS

If you happen to make progress to the point of recording in a studio, you

need a lot of preparation before going there as most studios charge per

hour or per day. The expenses involved is mammoth and this means you

need to plan well in advance and have a budget for it. You need to decide

who will back you up, their skill, availability, the types of instruments

you want for your songs etc. You need to do a lot of homework before

venturing out otherwise you will discourage yourself.

Do a lot of experimenting at home and be clear of what you want before you

go into the studio before. Of course you should be open to reasonable

suggestions but you cannot afford to go without a structure I mind.

You will pay dearly if you go unprepared.

15. MARKETING AND PUBLISHING YOUR SONG

It is one thing to write a song, it is quite another to have it marketed. You

should think of your market before recording. In this age of Information

Highway you would need a web presence where you can distribute your

song to make ends meet. Consider having a website or joining with others

to give you a forum to reach your audience. Consider songs you can give

away freely and websites that you can link to and who can link to you.. It is

important to have a system whereby samples of your songs can be accessed

on your website and online purchases made possible. If you want your song

to go places you must look for outlets for it. If you are not a good singer,

then look for a good singer who is looking for your kind of material. Also

consider looking for producers who can put a group together. It is easier to

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work in a group than to work in isolation. However that is easier said than

done. You need to pray for divine connection otherwise it can be a very

lonely road as I discovered. Some people are called to be Solo artistes and

they do better single solos. That said, there are always people behind the

scene who would assist in other capacities.

If you are able to produce demos at home, that can also help you in your

marketing. It is also possible to come into an agreement with someone who

can write the music such that anyone can play it in your absence.

With the wide use of the information Super-Highway, you can now self

publish your work on your website or publish on a website where you can

seek critique/review from other members. One example is faithwriters.com

to which I belong,

16. STEWARDSHIP—COPYRIGHT

There is wisdom in protecting your work so as to maximise the resources

derived from it to further its multiplication and leaving a legacy for

generations. Besides your prosperity would enable you to reach out to others

by your ability to sponsor worthy good causes. None of this is possible if

you are careless about your talent and leave it to those who are just on the

look out for ‘free lunch.’ You woe it to the next generation to and to God

to be a good steward of the gift s and talent bestowed on you.

Provided you are the owner of a work you have copy right for 50 years from

the date of the initial copyright., unless the copyright is lodged in a trust

in which case it can be enforced so long as the trust exists for the purposes

it was set up.

responsible for copyright in which you affirm that you are the original

owner of the work. Any infringement will entitle you to damages if you

successfully sue. You must append to such work your name the copyright

sign and the date the copyright originated. You can also avoid undue costs

and legal technicalities by putting the work in an envelope and post it

to your self by recoded delivery to establish the date the copyright was

initiated. The envelope must only be opened in a court where there is a

dispute of ownership of work.

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Apply yourself (Self-assessment exercise)

For each of theses songs:

Jesus, Jesus, I Come

(Jn.14:6; Isa.1:18,-55:1-3; Mtt11:28-30)

Jesus, Jesus

You are the Way,

You are the Truth,

The Way, the Truth and the Life.

Jesus, Jesus,

I come this day,

I come this day

I come this day to You

Undivided Heart

(Ps. 42:1-2)

As the dear pants for water,

So my soul longs for You.

As the dry land is thirsty for water,

So my soul thirsts for You.

CH: Give me O Lord,

an undivided heart

a heart after Your own heart X2

As a faithful dog

looks to his master

so my soul looks to You.

As a faithful wife

looks to her husband,

so my soul looks to You.

Holy Father, My God

Holy Father my God

Righteous Father my all.

Great I Am my Maker,

I worship You.

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For You are my God.

For the are my all.

Holy Father my God

I worship.

O Lord Jesus, my Saviour.

Lamb of God my Ransom.

Prince of Peace my peace.

I worship You.

For You are my God.

For You are my all.

O Lord Jesus my Saviour.

I worship You.

Holy Spirit, Comforter.

Counsellor, Strengthener.

My Standby, my Guide.

I worship You.

For You are my God.

For You are my all.

Holy Spirit, Comforter.

I worship You.

Pre-eminent One

(Col.1:15-18;Rev.1:8,Heb.1:3)

Intro:

Speak/Sing

:(Excellent One!

The most High!

Number One in my life.

The Head of the Church.

The first and the Last.

The Alpha and the Omega.)

Pre-eminent One.

First Born from the dead.

First Born of all creation.

Head of the Church.

You are in every thing.

And through You

all things hold together.

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Ch:

Pre-eminent one.

You take first place,

You are all and in all.

(Holy, holy, Lord God Almighty).X2

Through You all things were made-

In heaven and earth below;

Be they thrones dominions or rulers.

Before all things You were,

The Beginning and the End;

The Alpha and the Omega.

You’re number One.

In my life

Pre-eminent One.

You take first place.

You are all and in all

You Are Worthy

You are worthy

You are holy

Glory be to You my God.

You are worthy

You are holy

Glory be to You my God

Ch: You are my all;

My all in all.

You are the centre of my life.

Nothing compares to You my dear.

You are my all in all.

You are gracious

You are precious

Righteous in all Your ways

You are glorious

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And victorious

Bounteous in all Your ways.

You are faithful

and merciful

Powerful are You my God.

You are wonderful

And beautiful

Fearful in praises my God.

You are awesome

My ransom

Whole are in all your ways

I Will Come To You

(Worshipfully)

I will come to You, O Holy One.

I will come to You my love.

I will come to You, O Righteous One.

I will soar to You like a dove.

I will lift my voice in worship.

I will lift my hands in praise.

O Lord, I love this fellowship.

I will praise You all my days.

Christ is Alive!

(Lk.24:1-7; Jn.20:1-10; Mk16:1-8; Rev.1:18)

Intro:

Exhort:

“Behold he that was dead, is alive forever! Jesus Christ—the Son of

the Living God

!”

Christ is alive!

He’s risen!

Christ is alive,

alive for ever more

Death could not hold the king,

the king of kings.

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Christ is alive,

He’s risen

As he’s alive,

so we’ll live.

As he’s alive,

we’ll live for ever more.

We were raised with Him to live for ever more.

As He’s alive.

So we’ll live.

Exhort

He’ alive! alive forever more.

Jesus Christ of Nazareth!—the resurrection and the life.! He rose up

triumphant—truly the Lord of Glory.

The grave could no hold my King, your King. The stone was rolled away

and the King of kings came forth. Mtt.28:1-6

The angel said,” Look not for the living among the dead. He is not there

He’s is risen just as He said.” He is now seated at the right hand of the

Father as my attorney, and advocate, interceding for you and I.(1Jn2:1;

Luke24:5-6

And because He’s alive, you and I can live also. For when He was crucified,

we were crucified with Him, when He died, we died with Him buried

Him, and raised together with Him. We are now seated with Him inn

heavenly places—far above principalities and powers and dominions.

Alleluia! (Gal:2:20,Ephe.2:6)

Great and Marvelous

Great and marvelous are Your works.

O Lord, God Almighty.

Just and true are Your ways, O Lord.

Who shall not fear You,

and glorify Your holy Name

Great and marvelous are Your works O Lord.

Ch: For You only are holy.

For all nations shall come

and worship before You.

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Great and marvelous are your works,

O Lord God Almighty,

Just and true are Your ways O Lord.

For Yours alone is the greatness,

The dominion, majesty

Even wisdom, and power forever.

You spoke the word and the heavens were made

You spoke the word and the earth was made.

For Yours alone, O Lord is the greatness.

Who’s like unto You O Lord?

What god is like our God?

Who is the same forever and ever

So long as I have my breath,

I shall declare the works of my God.

Who’s like unto You O Lord.

1Praise the Lord

(1) Ps.150

Praise the Lord

Praise God in His sanctuary,

Praise Him in His mighty heavens,

Praise Him in for His acts of power.

Praise Him for His greatness,

Surpassing greatness,

Praise Him with a loud trumpet,

Praise Him with a harp and lyre.

Praise him with the tambourine,

Praise Him with a dance,

Praise Him with the string,

Praise Him with the flute.

Praise Him with the cymbal,

Resounding cymbal,

Let everything that has breath,

Praise the Lord.

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God of Creation!

God of Creation, strength of my life.

Great Revelation, source of my life.

My devotion I give to You.

Adoration I give to You.

Ch: God of Creation, Great Revelation.

To You I give adoration.

God of Creation, strength of my life.

To You I give adoration.

O king of Glory, song of my life.

O Lord of Glory, love of my life.

My devotion I give to You.

Adoration I give to You.

O God of Abraham, life of my life.

O Great I Am, key to my life.

My devotion I give to You.

Adoration I give to You.

You are the Lord (

Ex.34:6)

You are the Lord,

The Lord God,

merciful and gracious,

longsuffering and abundant

in goodness and truth.

In Him, in Him I am a conqueror

In Him, in Him I ‘m an overcomer

In Him, in Him I am a winner

In him I am well-covered

In him I am well-supplied

In him I am well-equipped

In him, in him , in Him I’m blessed and not cursed

. . . my weakness is made perfect

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Come Holy Wind

Come Holy Wind.

I want to know Your Mind.

Keep me from chasing the wind.

Help me Your truth to find.

Come Holy Wind.

Bind my mind to Your Mind.

Make me the Jesus-kind.

Please never leave me behind.

Come Holy Wind

Teach me faith the God-kind.

Teach me to follow Your Wind.

O make my feet like the Hind’s

Come Holy Wind

With You I want to dine.

I thirst for the Holy Wine.

Holy Wine from the Vine.

Come Holy Wind.

Teach me to mind my mind

Teach me to guard my mind.

May Your good You find in my mind.

Come Holy Wind.

Keep me from a froward mind.

May Your glory in me You find;

Your word my mind fully lined.

Come Holy Wind.

Teach me Your treasure to mine.

Teach me Your glorious mind

in no good lacking behind.

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. MY CHILD PAY ATTENTION Prov.4

Sm118

Speak V1 & 2

My Child pay attention to what I say.

Listen closely to My word.

Dot not let them out of your sight.

Keep them within your heart;

They are life to those who find them.

And health to ones whole body.

Above all else, guard, guard well your heart.

For it is the well, (well) spring of life.

Put away perversity from your mouth;

Keep corrupt talk far from your lips.

Let your eyes look, look straight ahead.

(Fix your gaze directly before you.)

Harm. interlude

The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn ,

Shining ever brighter till the full light of day.

The way of the wicked is like deep darkness.

They do not know what makes them stumble.

Fix your gaze directly before you.

Make level paths for your feet.

V1& V2

To end

My Child pay attention to what I say

(Make Level Paths for your feet) xx after each line

my child, my child, my child . . . .

harm to end

FAITH/COMFORT

The Just shall live by faith

The just shall live by faith

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For the things that are seen

Are passing away

The just shall live by faith.

We walk by faith, not sight

For the things that are seen

Are fleeting, transient

The just shall live by faith.

The unseen shaped the seen

For the things that are see

Are temporary

The just shall live by faith.

I Believe to See

(1Cor.1:26-2:5)

The world sees to believe,

But I believe to see.

Ch:

For my faith does not rest in the wisdom of men,

But in the power of God

For I know whom I believe,

So I receive to see.

My title deed is God’s word

And He stands by His word.

My God is all-powerful,

And He’s ever faithful.

The unseen shaped the seen,

And more real than the seen.

The seen is transient,

But the unseen permanent.

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Oaks of Righteousness Will Stand

The oaks of righteousness,

Shall stand in the fierce wind.

Through His great faithfulness,

Abounding grace they will find.

They will grow tall and strong,

Like cedars of Lebanon.

At night they’ll have a song,

To cheer those that mourn.

His Word their nourishment;

His Spirit their comfort;

His love so permanent;

Fiery darts come to naught.

They are the trees of the Lord;

His treasured possession.

They are watered by the Lord.

In famine or recession.

They will always flourish

Bearing fruit abundant.

They will never perish.

But have life abundant.

Jesus, is my Friend

Jesus is my Friend

My Friend to the end.

Jesus is my Friend,

And I love Him.

I will obey what He says;

To watch and pray come what may;

I will obey what He says,

’Cos I love Him.

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He’s Coming!

He is Coming!

(1Thes.4:16-18, Rev.4:1,10,11,-3:10; 1Cor.15:50-58)

The Lord Himself

Will come down

From heaven

With a loud command;

With voice of an arch-angel

With the trumpet call of God.

And the dead in Christ

Will rise first

And those still alive in Him

Will be caught up with them

In the air

So we will be forever.

In a twinkling of an eye,

We’ll all be changed

At the last trumpet.

It will happen in a flash.

The dead will be

raise imperishable

mortality clothe

with immortality

that sown in dishonour

raised in glory

that sown in weakness

raised in power

that sown in the natural body

(will be) in the spiritual body.

Alleluia!

Then the saying will come true:

“Death has been swallowed up in victory.X2 In victory!

Where O death is your victory,

Where O grave is your sting?”

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The King is coming-

The King of kings.

Are your ready for Him?

(He’s coming in power,

Coming in glory ) X2

Great glory.

Great power.

Interlude

He’s coming,

Coming in power,

Coming in great glory.

Are you ready for Him?

He’s coming,

For His own,

For His Body;

Are you ready for Him?.

Fill Me From Top to Bottom

Key D-E

Fill me from top to bottom

with all of You. X2

That my mouth will speak Your words;

and my mind think Your thoughts.

Fill me from top to bottom

With all of You.

Ch:

That my hands will reach out as Yours;

And feet going where You please.

Fill me . . . .

Change of Key to E

That my eyes will see as You see.

And my ears hear what you hear.

Fill me..

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That my will, will be to do Your will.

And my heart longing after You .Fill me

I Will Call On Your Name

I will call on Your Name,

The name above all names.

I will call on You Name

The Name ever the same.

Ch:

I will call on Your Name,

I will call on Your Name O Lord.

I will a call on Your Name,

Name stronger the grave.

I will call on Your Name,

The Name that You gave.

I will call on Your Name

The Name that lifted me.

I will call on Your Name,

The Name that sets free.

Ch:

I will call on Your name the greatest Name of all.

I will call on Your Name,

The sweetest Name of all.

Ch:

Come Comforter

Acts 2:1-4,

Joel2:28-32, Eph.5:18, Jn.7:37-39

Exhort

: “And it shall come to pass, afterwards that I will pour out My Spirit

upon all people;

And your sons and daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions,

your old men shall dream dreams. Even upon your hand maidens shall I pour

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out My Spirit. The sun will be darkened and the moon turned into blood. There

shall be billows of smoke before that great and majestic Day of the Lord.

Jesus said,

“If you love Me , keep My commandments and I will pray the

Father , and He shall give you another Comfort—The Holy Spirit and He shall

remain with you for ever”.

Lord Jesus, when You were leaving,

We felt we’ll be so lonely,

And we prayed that You stay behind,

But You promised the Holy Ghost.

(Come Holy Spirit)

CH:

Come Holy Spirit;

Come Comforter.

Come Holy Spirit;

Come Comforter

On the day of Pentecost,

You came in might and power.

O Lord let the fires burn again,

Come Comforter.

(Come Holy Spirit)

CH:

Lord Jesus, as the days get darker,

The more we need the Holy Ghost.

Lord in these closing days of time,

Let the Holy Ghost come pouring.

(Come Holy Spirit)

Lord, we are up against

The principalities and powers;

But Lord through Your Holy Ghost,

We’ll surely overcome.

(Come Holy Spirit)

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Pour On us a New Anointing

CH:

Pour on us a new anointing,

The power of the Holy Ghost O Lord.

Pour on us a new anointing,

To finish the work You gave to us.

Ignite your fire in us,

Burn off the dross in us, O Lord.

Pour on us a new anointing,

To finish the work You gave to us.

Lord make our feet like the hind’s

To thread on high places, O Lord.

Pour on us a new anointing ,

to finish the work You gave to us.

Renew our strength like the eagle’s

To mount up to surmount, O Lord.

Pour on us a new anointing,

To finish the work You gave to us.

Revive Your Body afresh

To do great exploits for You.

Pour..

Renew our vision, O Lord

to reach out for the lost, O Lord.

Pour on . . .

Increase that we might decrease,

Be Almighty in us, O Lord.

Pour on us..

The Spirit of the Lord is On

Me (1)

(Lk4:18-19)

The Spirit of the Lord is on me,

Because He has anointed me;

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To preach Good News to the poor

He has sent me to proclaim freedom,

Freedom for the prisoners,

And recovery of sight for the blind,

To release the oppressed

To proclaim the year,

The year of the Lord’s favour.

I’VE FOUND YOU

I’ve found you.

Bone of my bones

flesh of my flesh

You are my helper from God.

Darling, I’ve found you

My love, I’ve found you

Bone of my bones

Flesh of my flesh

You are my other half from God.

Father, I thank You.

Jesus, I thank You.

You have supplied

all that I need,

a fitting help—mate this day.

I thank you

Holy Spirit I thank You.

You have supplied

all that I need

a fitting help-mate this day.

Gen.2:23-24,Phil4:19

And the two shall be One

There is a City

(Rev.21:1-8,10,21,23;

Heb.11:10

There is a City

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Whose Builder and Maker is God’

The City of God.

There is a City

Whose streets are paved with gold’

The City of God.

Ch:

Although the Way

is a narrow Way

but it is the true Way

to perfect peace.

Come follow Him,

Who is the Way,

Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

There is a City

Where love will never grow cold;

The City of God

There a City

Whose treasures are more than gold

The City of God.

There is a City

Where tears, pains sorrows will end

The City of God.

There is a city

Where joy will never end;

The City of God.

There is a City

Whose light is not the sun light,

The City of God.

There is a City

Whose light—the glory of God

The City of God.

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In the World, but Not of the World

. Jn17:14, Ro.12:1-2 Key E

Ch:

Although I am in this world,

A E

I am not of this world;

Heaven is my home,

Heaven is my home.

Although I am in this world,

A E

I am not of this world;

A B7 E

Heaven is my home.

Born into this world;

But not of this world;

I am born of Love

A E

Born from above

Bought with a price,

And so great a sacrifice,

A F#m

Although I am in this world,

B7 E

I am not of this world.

Ch:

I am a stranger;

I am a traveller,

I am an alien

Citizen of heaven

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I’m an Ambassador;

And a Visitor

Although I am in this world,

I am not of this world.

Ch:

Mth Org

My King will soon come;

His Kingdom will come;

We’ll soon go away

To His Seat far away

And there to rejoice,

All who made Him their choice;

Although I am in this world,

I am not of this world.

I Delight in Your Word.

(Ps.119:9,15-16,105; Ps.1:1-3; Jos.1:8)

I delight in Your word.

Lord Your word lights my path.

I meditate in Your word,

So to be on the right path. X2

How can one keep pure his ways? (Leader)

By keeping to Your word (congr.)

How can one not go astray? (Leader)

By living by Your word.(congr.)

I delight in Your word

Lord Your word lights my path.

I meditate in Your word,

So to be on the right path.

How can one do all Your will? (Leader)

By keeping to Your word. (congr.)

How can one Your plan fulfil? (Leader)

By living by Your word. (congr.)

I delight in your word . . . X2

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If My People

(2Chr. 7:14)

If my people,

who are called by My Name,

shall humble themselves and pray,

and seek My Face,

and turn from their wicked ways,

then will I hear from heaven,

and forgive their sins

and will heal their land.

O Lord Your people

Who are called by Your Name

Do humble themselves and pray;

We seek Your face and turn from our wicked ways;

O Lord hear from heaven;

O Lord forgive our sins;

And Lord come heal our land.

O Lord God

Revive Your Church again;

Come Spirit like a rain;

Come refill our lives,

And overflow into our land.

Come Lord with Your power.

Shine in this dark hour.

Come Lord through Your Church tower

Peace! Be Still!

(Jn14:27, Mt14:22-27)

My peace I give to you

Not as the world gives

I give unto you.

Ch:

My child peace be still,

And know that I am God. XXX . . . .

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Exhort along with Running Chorus (Alternative scriptures can be used

as the Spirit leads)

Peace I leave with you.

My peace I now give to you.

Do not let your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.(Jn 14:27)

For I am your Maker the lord of Hosts is my Name, the Holy One of Israel

is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth, I am called. Peace be still

and know that I am God. (Isa.57:5)

No weapon that is formed against you will prosper. And every tongue that

rises against you in judgement, you shall show to be in the wrong. Peace be

still and know that I am God. (Isa57:17)

You are the redeemed of the lord .

And if God is for you, who can be against you. You are the righteousness of

God and if I have accepted you , who can condemn you?

Don’t you know that greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.

Don’t you that you are more than a conqueror through Christ.(Ro.8:37)

Be not anxious about anything. But in everything by prayer and petition with

thanks giving continue to make your wants known to God. And I will flood your

mind with my peace, which knows no bounds, transcends all understanding.

It would garrison your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. (Phil4:6-7)

You are redeemed from the curse of the law. Abraham’s blessing s are yours

(Gal.3:13)

For I know the thoughts and plans I have for you. Thoughts and plans for

welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.

(Jer.29:11)

Fear not. For I am with you; and do not look around in terror and be

dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen harden you; Yes! I will help

you. Yes! I will hold you up and retain you with My victorious right Hand

of rightness and justice. (Isa.41:10)

Know that those who wait for the Lord, who expect, look for and hope in

Him shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their

wings and mount up as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall

walk and not faint or become tired. (Isa.40:31)

Fear not! For I am your shield and your abundant compensation; and your

reward shall be exceedingly great. (Gen.15:1)

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Be persuaded beyond doubt that neither death nor life nor angels nor

principalities, nor things impending or threatening, nor things to come,

nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will

be able to separate you from the love of god which is in Christ Jesus, our

Lord. (Ro:38-39)

Peace be still and know that I am God. Fear not! I am your shield and your

exceeding great reward, says God.

There is a Friend Who Sticks

(Prov:18:24)

There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother

One with you in the

In the raging sea.

There is a Friend

who sticks closer than a brother

One with you

in the red hot furnace.

“Though your mother and your Father may forsake you,

I’ll pick you up “

Says the Lord, your God.

“For I have carved you on the palm of My Hand.

(And I will never, I will never, I will never forsake you”). X2

()XXX to end.

Be Strong and Courageous

(2Chro. 32:7-8)

Be strong and courageous;

Do not be afraid.

Do not be discouraged,

because of the foes

In spite of their vastness

Think of the Lord’s greatness

With them is the arm of the flesh,

But with us the Lord of Hosts.

The Lord is on our side.

He will not forsake us.

Those who’ve come in one way

will flee in seven ways.

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Mighty angels are around those,

those who fear the Lord.

Weeping may endure for the night,

But in the mourning joy will come.

I was Born Clappy Nic’ O’Demus

I was born clappy

Into a family,

In the West African region.

We loved religion,

We were in religion,

But religion was not in us.

We sang those songs

Though we were so wrong,

We thought we had it made.

With one eye we prayed,

With the other we strayed,

Fooling that God did not see.

I remember that day that that Nic’ O demus

Went knocking on that door at night.

He asked the Way, Master Jesus: “How come You’re different from all”

That day he heard the truth

From Jesus—the Truth,

And his problem was cured from the root.

He knew “Churchianity” was not Christianity,

Religion was not life in Christ.

I was in a mess;

Enmeshed in a mess,

Yet I thought I enjoyed my life.

Yet no life in my life’

Till Christ gave me His life;

So I sing this song of life.

I was going blind;

No good in my mind;

Yet I thought I had good sight

But for the love Jesus-the Light,

I would have been dead in the night.

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Now I have life,

From Christ, New Life.

I have passed from death to life

I have a home above;

Purchased by love,

I’m a citizen of heaven above.

Saints of God, ..Celebrate

Saints of God, let us celebrate;

Celebrate this new life in Christ;

Sing to the Lord and jubilate;

Jubilate in the lord Jesus Christ.

Saints of God, let us clap and sing.

Clap and sing to God our Father;

Give glory to the Lord of lords our King;

The Most High God our Maker.

Saints of God, let us dance and rejoice;

Rejoice because the Lord, He is good;

So good to us that He made us His choice,

His people, His royal priest hood.

Saints of God, let His praises ring;

From sunrise until sunset;

Let all that is within us sing;

Sing every one who has breath.

In a Desert Land ..Found Me.

(Deut.32:10-13)

In a desert land You found me

In a barren and howling waste You found me

You shielded me and cared for me.

As the apple of Your eyes cared for me.

Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,

Hovers over its young in a test,

Spreads its wings to catch them,

And on its pinions carried them.

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So Lord You stirred up my nest’

And hovered over me in my test,

Spread Your Wings to catch me,

And on Your Pinions carried me.

You made me ride me ride on the heights;

On the heights of the land in Your might;

From the fruit of the field, Lord You fed me’

With cords, oil, milk and honey.

Sing to the Lord a New Song

(Ps.97:1-9)

Ch : sing to the Lord a new song ‘

For he has done marvelous things;

His right Hand and His holy Arm,

Have worked salvation for Him.

The Lord has made known His salvation,

To the house of Israel . . .

IT’S A SPIRITUAL WARFARE

It’s a spiritual warfare ( Spiritual warfare)

Put the enemy (in his proper place)

And his proper place is (under your feet)

His proper place is (under your feet)

Put on the helmet of salvation (it’s a spiritual warfare) (

The belt of truth (it’s a spiritual warfare)

The shoes of the Gospel (it’s a spiritual warfare)

The breast plate of righteousness (it’s a spiritual warfare)

Take the shield of faith (it’s a spiritual warfare)

The Sword of the Spirit (it’s a spiritual warfare)

Sing a New Song

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Thank God, Jesus has won (the victory)

Jesus has won (the victory)

The victory (at Calvary)

Having done all Saint, (stand your ground)

©Fenny West

And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven

suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. Matt.11:12

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against

the wiles of the devil.

12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but

against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of

against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

13Therefore

take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in

the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on

the breastplate of righteousness,

15and having shod your feet with the

preparation of the gospel of peace;

16above all, taking the shield of faith

with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is

the word of God;

18praying always with all prayer and supplication in the

Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for

all the saints—(Ephe.6:10-18)

Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle

of them, triumphing over them in it.Col.2:15

The LORD said to my Lord,

“Sit at My right hand,

Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”Ps110:1

Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ,

and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

2Cor.2:14

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Fenny West

Sleeping Giant Awake!

(Ephe.5:14,27; Luke 19:13,Eph.2:6)

Sleeping Giant awake!

(Awake, awake!)

The Lord is coming soon awake, (Awake, awake)!

He ‘s coming for a glorious Bride.

(Awake, awake!)

A Bride without spot or wrinkles.

(Awake, awake!)

Sleeping Giant awake! Come on!

(Awake, awake!)

It’s battle time awake!

Awake, awake!

The lord is on our side.

Awake, awake !

Through Him we’re more than conquerors.

Awake, awake!

Sleeping Giant awake.

Awake, awake.

The Lord is coming soon awake.

Awake, awake.

He’s coming for a pow’rful Church.

Awake, awake.

He’s coming for an overcoming Church.

Awake, awake.

Summon Your Pow’r O Lord.Ps68:28

Summon Your pow’r O Lord.

Show me Your strength

As You have done before

O Lord, O Lord.

Path the heavens and come down;

Touch the mountains and let them smoke

O Lord, O Lord.

Sing a New Song

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Ch:

Flash Your lightning O Lord

and confuse all Your enemies.

Shoot Your arrows O Lord

And scatter, scatter, scatter every foe.

Summon Your pow’r O Lord.

Show me Your strength

As You have done before

O Lord, O Lord.

Summon Your Pow’r O Lord

Show me Your strength

As You have done before

O Lord, O Lord

Let a fire go before You

To burn up all Your enemies

O Lord, O Lord.

May the zeal of the Lord of Host.

Bring this to pass to His glory.

Amen.

1. Describe the structure

2. Write down the rhyme pattern e.g abab,—a-a etc, or indicate ‘ no

rhyme pattern’ as the case may be

3. What do you think was the justification for using the title used.

4. If you were allowed to give the song a title, what would you choose

and why?

5. Whilst keeping within the same theme, compose a verse or two for

each song

6. Choose a theme for each of the songs from the themes given below

or an alternative theme.

• Evangelism

• Praise and Worship

• Easter/ Resurrection

• New Creation Realities

• Divine Direction

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Fenny West

• Story Songs (ballad)

• Holy Spirit

• Spiritual warfare

• Second Coming

• Revival

• Faith

• Prayer

• Wedding

• Eternity

• Word

7. Find some relevant scriptures for:

• Holy Father, My God

• You are worthy

• I Will Come To You

• Great and Marvellous

• God of Creation

• Come Holy Wind

• The Just shall live by

• Oaks of righteousness

Websites—

Free Now! ( by Fenny West)

Let Him grow More ( by Fenny West)

Let Him

grow more

As you grow less

When you confess.

Let Him increase

Fill to the brim

As you decrease

Brimming with Him.

Bow down to Him

In all your dreams

Yield for a yield

Vast in the field.

Proverbs 15

³³ The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, And before honor is humility.

roverbs 18

¹² Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, And before honor is humility.

Proverbs 22

⁴ By humility and the fear of the LORD Are riches and honor and life.

http://christian-talk.forumotion.com

https://inspiration4generations.wordpress.com/2011/12/24/journey-of-jesus/

Face Fear with Faith ( by Fenny West)

Fear knocks on every door

And will surely knock on yours

Choose to do the right thing

Just face fear with faith.

Moses and Mary Magdalene faced fear

Mary, the Mother of Jesus, faced fear

Jacob, Joshua and Jeremiah, faced fear

Peter and Paul faced fear

Isaac and Isaiah faced fear

Daniel and David faced fear

Abraham and Azariah faced fear

So prepare to face your fear.

Hold on to the Word of God.

Think of the power of God.

Think of the promises of God.

Confess the goodness and grace of God

Sufficient for you.

Cast on God all your cares

Never live with fear

Or run from fear

But face fear with faith.

Faith comes through hearing the word,

Not just once but again and again.

Whether in the sunshine or in the rain.

Resolve, my friend, today, to face fear with faith.

⁹ Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Josh1:9

¹ After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” Gen15:1

¹⁰ Fear not, for I am with you;

Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,

Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isa41:10

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying:

⁵ “ Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;

Before you were born I sanctified you;

I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

⁶ Then said I:

“ Ah, Lord GOD!

Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”

⁷ But the LORD said to me:

“ Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’

For you shall go to all to whom I send you,

And whatever I command you, you shall speak.

⁸ Do not be afraid of their faces,

For I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD.
⁹ Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: “ Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. Jer1:1-9

When Worry Wakes You Up ( by Fenny West)

When worry wakes you up

Turn your attention to God

He never sleeps- always up.

Take comfort from His word.

Why worry? Begin to pray

And the peace of God will come

Focus on Jesus, don’t stray,

And He will calm your storm.

Worry will war you out

Give fuel to your enemy,

Make you fear and doubt

Becloud any possibility.

Worry wastes your energy

Undermines the word of God

Magnifies your energy

Belittles your Source and God.

19/4/12

http://christian-talk.forumotion.com/t5576-fresh-and-flourishing#10883

https://inspiration4generations.wordpress.com/2011/12/24/journey-of-jesus/

Empty Seats Speak -Olympics Race of Grace Lesson 3 ( by Fenny West)

Empty Seats Speak

Olympics Race of Grace Lesson

Empty Seats

Whereas it is reported that the tickets for some events have been sold off, many empty seats at some events prompted investigation.

Do you know that we also have such problem in many of our Churches? We need not only to pray about this but do something about it-witnessing- because we are co-labourers with God.

⁹For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.1Cor3:9

⁸Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.

⁹Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.’

¹⁰So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. Matt22:9-10

⁶He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him.

^Ps126:6

³ Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.

^Dan12:3

³⁵**Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!**

John4:35

¹⁸Then Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon; and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty.

1Sam20:18

Olympic Series: the Race of Grace 1: Preparation ( by Fenny West)

Olympic Series: the Race of Grace 1: Preparation

Preparation is essential.

You must be decisive

About the event to do.

You must register to be in it;

Have the right mental attitude;

Deny yourself and train;

Whether it rains or shines.

Put your body under.

Put your goal in mind.

Have partners to spur you on;

Train with you, give you feedbacks.

You must make up your mind to win.

You cannot ignore the alarm

When it beckons on you.

You must sacrifice and rise

Even if the body complains.

There are places you must not go.

There are diets you must forgo.

You must always see the goal.

Ensure you have self-control.

You cannot play when you should pay

The price you know you need to pay.

The same goes for the race of grace,

Which surpasses the Olympics.

Because we run for an incorruptible crown

In place of the crown that will perish;

And so discipline is essential too.

We cannot play in the devil’s vineyard,

Or encumber ourselves with weights

That will easily beset us, trip us up.

We must eat a balanced diet

Of the word which is spirit and life.

When London won the bid to stage the 30^th Olympiad, it was a moment to cherish. There was euphoria in the air. We were walking on the air with excitement, proud to have beaten off other strong contenders like Paris

.

Despite the great preparation for the bid, on arrival back home, it dawned on the Olympic organisers that it is one thing to win a bid but quite another to put all the requirements in place for the greatest and most successful show on earth.[/

A lot of infrastructure was required. Sponsors have to be sort and secured. The government has to deny itself in many areas to cough out substantial funds to back the organisers and to satisfy the IOC that we were equal to the task.

There were security concerns that have to be adequately addressed.

Home-grown talents have to be sort and trained so lift the face of the host and this will take a lot of efforts investment and sacrifice.

Some workers saw it as an opportunity to milk the situation to their advantage which raised the cost of staging the games. There were special Olympic traffic lanes to ensure that key personnel and athletes are not held up in traffic.

Organisers also have to think ahead of the legacy they will leave behind after the games. So preparation has to be comprehensive.

Poor preparation precedes poor performance

Proper preparation procures proficient performance

Preclude proper preparation and you have prepared to fail

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

As With the Olympics

So it is in life.

²⁴Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.

²⁵And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.

²⁶Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air.

²⁷But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.

http://christian-talk.forumotion.com/t5576-fresh-and-flourishing#10883

Make A Mark

William Ford Robinson Stanley

Great Man of talents many

Whose life was a great reward

And won many sterling awards

Born blessed to be a blessing

Lived a life that is a great lesson

Motivated, created, invented

With penchant that’s excellent.

Industrious and generous

Magnanimous and illustrious

Left indelible lasting legacy

Monument –memorable victory.

Long gone, yet still speaks to us

To take the baton, make a plus

Addition, contribution to all

Make a mark that is tall

William Ford Robinson Stanley (2 February 1829 – 14 August 1909) was a British inventor with 78 patents filed in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America. He was an engineer who designed and made precision drawing and mathematical instruments, as well as surveying instruments and telescopes, manufactured by his company “William Ford Stanley and Co. Ltd.”
- Stanley was a skilled architect who designed and founded the UK’s first Trades school, Stanley Technical Trades School (now Harris Academy South Norwood), as well as designing the Stanley Halls in South Norwood. Stanley designed and built his two homes. He was a noted philanthropist, who gave over £80,000 to education projects during the last 15 years of his life. When he died, most of his estate, valued at £59,000, was bequeathed to trade schools and students in south London, and one of his homes was used as a children’s home after his death, in accordance with his will.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stanley_(inventor)

https://inspiration4generations.wordpress.com/2013/01/03/in-this-brand-new-year-2/

http://.www.christian_talk.forumotion.com

Intimacy is Gold

Relationship with God

Cherished above all things

Surpassing everything.

Let it be your delight

And you will have His light

Let it be your first love

And you will be above.

New Birth is the first rung

Of a ladder that’s long.

You must desire to grow;

Increase, rise, soar and glow.

Like Enoch walked with God

You too must walk with God

Walk worthy of His call

Walk consistently like Paul.

Desire to know Him more

And He’ll open the door

To treasury you know not yet

And you’ll zoom like jet.

Let it be your one desire,

Then you’ll rise out of mire,

Into the place for you;

Specially meant for you.

Cry, ”That I may know Him!”

Yell, ”That I may love Him!”

More than all else I know.

May we together flow

Hand in hand like lovers

Communing under cover

Meeting long before dawn

Much long before the sun.

Intimacy with God is gold

Go for it and be bold.

Grow in it day by day.

Be this, O Lord, I pray!

w in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.Mark1:35

¹As the ³⁵Nodeer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.

²My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?Ps42:1-2

⁴One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple.

⁵For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.Ps27:4-5

Quicken Us, O Lord!

Charles H. Spurgeon

“Thou hast left thy first love.”Revelation 2:4

Ever to be remembered is that best and brightest of hours, when first we saw the Lord, lost our burden, received the roll of promise, rejoiced in full salvation, and went on our way in peace. It was spring time in the soul; the winter was past; the mutterings of Sinai’s thunders were hushed; the flashings of its lightnings were no more perceived; God was beheld as reconciled; the law threatened no vengeance, justice demanded no punishment.

Then the flowers appeared in our heart; hope, love, peace, and patience sprung from the sod; the hyacinth of repentance, the snowdrop of pure holiness, the crocus of golden faith, the daffodil of early love, all decked the garden of the soul. The time of the singing of birds was come, and we rejoiced with thanksgiving; we magnified the holy name of our forgiving God, and our resolve was, “Lord, I am thine, wholly thine; all I am, and all I have, I would devote to thee.Thou hast bought me with thy blood — let me spend myself and be spent in thy service. In life and in death let me be consecrated to thee.”

How have we kept this resolve? Our espousal love burned with a holy flame of devoutedness to Jesus — is it the same now? Might not Jesus well say to us, “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love”? Alas! it is but little we have done for our Master’s glory. Our winter has lasted all too long. We are as cold as ice when we should feel a summer’s glow and bloom with sacred flowers. We give to God pence when he deserveth pounds, nay, deserveth our heart’s blood to be coined in the service of his church and of his truth.

But shall we continue thus? O Lord, after thou hast so richly blessed us, shall we be ungrateful and become indifferent to thy good cause and work? O quicken us that we may return to our first love, and do our first works! Send us a genial spring, O Sun of Righteousness.

Let Him

grow more

As you grow less

When you confess.

Let Him increase

Fill to the brim

As you decrease

Brimming with Him.

Bow down to Him

In all your dreams

Yield for a yield

Vast in the field.

Proverbs 15

33 The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, And before honor is humility.

roverbs 18

12 Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, And before honor is humility.

Proverbs 22

4 By humility and the fear of the LORD Are riches and honor and life.

Fear knocks on every door

And will surely knock on yours

Choose to do the right thing

Just face fear with faith.

Moses and Mary Magdalene faced fear

Mary, the Mother of Jesus, faced fear

Jacob, Joshua and Jeremiah, faced fear

Peter and Paul faced fear

Isaac and Isaiah faced fear

Daniel and David faced fear

Abraham and Azariah faced fear

So prepare to face your fear.

Hold on to the Word of God.

Think of the power of God.

Think of the promises of God.

Confess the goodness and grace of God

Sufficient for you.

Cast on God all your cares

Never live with fear

Or run from fear

But face fear with faith.

Faith comes through hearing the word,

Not just once but again and again.

Whether in the sunshine or in the rain.

Resolve, my friend, today, to face fear with faith.

9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Josh1:9

1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” Gen15:1

10 Fear not, for I am with you;

Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,

Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isa41:10

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying:

5 “ Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;

Before you were born I sanctified you;

I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

6 Then said I:

“ Ah, Lord GOD!

Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”

7 But the LORD said to me:

“ Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’

For you shall go to all to whom I send you,

And whatever I command you, you shall speak.

8 Do not be afraid of their faces,

For I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD. 9 Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: “ Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. Jer1:1-9

When worry wakes you up

Turn your attention to God

He never sleeps- always up.

Take comfort from His word.

Why worry? Begin to pray

And the peace of God will come

Focus on Jesus, don’t stray,

And He will calm your storm.

Worry will war you out

Give fuel to your enemy,

Make you fear and doubt

Becloud any possibility.

Worry wastes your energy

Undermines the word of God

Magnifies your energy

Belittles your Source and God.

Empty Seats

³³ The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, And before honor is humility.

¹² Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, And before honor is humility.

⁴ By humility and the fear of the LORD Are riches and honor and life.

⁹ Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Josh1:9

¹ After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” Gen15:1

¹⁰ Fear not, for I am with you;

⁵ “ Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;

⁶ Then said I:

⁷ But the LORD said to me:

⁸ Do not be afraid of their faces,

For I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD.
⁹ Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: “ Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. Jer1:1-9

⁹For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.1Cor3:9

⁸Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.

⁹Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.’

¹⁰So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. Matt22:9-10

⁶He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him.

^Ps126:6

³ Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.

^Dan12:3

³⁵**Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!**

¹⁸Then Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon; and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty.