Cross Creek Church Blog

Burnt Orange Pine Trees – Harnessing the Means of Grace in the New Year

A serious drought struck our region of the country, beginning back in August and extending until just a few weeks ago.  I imagine a lot of spiritual lessons could be drawn from observing and considering the impact of no rain for weeks and weeks on end.  It certainly gets everyone’s attention when we realize that something essential for all life, that is usually available in plenteous supply, might actually run out – a reminder that God’s presence and His saving grace are blessings He chooses to give as a gift.  And the picture of how hardened the earth becomes when it has not been watered drives one to think on the hardness of our souls without spiritual moisture in the forms of Word, Sacrament, and Prayer.

But what struck me lately, in this Christmas Season, was the mix of burnt orange dead pine trees on the hillsides, intermingled with the usual vibrant green ones.  Like other parts of the country, Alabama’s leafy trees (my “forestry” major sister would not be excited with that terminology!) get brown and lose their leaves in the fall, even when moisture is overflowing.  But the pine trees in our region rarely shift colors from their steadfast green.  Since pine trees sprout up here like dandelions do in other regions, it is hard to avoid the sight of the burnt orange blighted scenery.

As I think about my spiritual life this last year, and look to the upcoming year, I am convicted about the message these scorched “never-greens” send about growth in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I cannot say that I have ever had a stellar year of spiritual vibrancy, and in some ways, this past year has probably been better than others.  Spiritual growth is not something we can put on a scale to weigh or time around a race track, so only God ultimately knows what is happening in each of our souls.  But this past year has certainly been a battle to maintain the means of grace:

  • to keep up with my good plan to read through the whole Bible for the first time in several years (my app tells me I’m at 38% and yes I started in January, not July! Ha)
  • to carve out regular focused time in prayer (I’m glad there is no app to tell how I’ve done with that!)
  • and to draw close to God in worship, including the sacraments God provides (as a pastor, my attendance record is usually pretty strong, but heart and body are not always in the same place).

What a joy, then, to realize that the security of my salvation is not dependent on my perfect follow-through on these, or any other good spiritual practices – that the tree of Jesus’ righteous life and sacrifice for me is the most remarkable green, and I have his vibrancy credited to me by faith.  And what a joy to realize that although sun-charred pine trees may not recover in the new year, God’s gracious empowering can renew me and anyone else who needs it.  And what a conviction, that God is always offering rain – word, prayer, sacraments – for His people, and we are foolish to extend our roots in the direction of the world’s dryness, when his streams of water abound.

“Still, Still, Still …”

[Written by Christine Cox]

Whenever I hear this Austrian Christmas carol, I see my mother leaning back in her armchair, listening to her favorite German Christmas carol record. A sweet stillness caressed over her, the sound of the music soothingly filling the room. As a child I ‘thought like a child’, (1 Corinthians 13:11-14), wondering what she was thinking and feeling, why the music was so soothing; now I know fully the spiritual depth of the music – that in this peaceful manger scene, as mother cradles the infant Jesus, she knows that He is the hope of salvation who now had been brought to mankind through The Incarnation.

Tradition, both written and pictorial, shows that in the stillness of prayer, Mary was greeted by the angel Gabriel. In the stillness of deep sleep, her earthly spouse, Joseph, was visited by an angel in a dream – twice. He should not fear to take Mary as his wife and then later warned him to take his family and flee to Egypt for Herod was about to destroy the Child. In the stillness of the night, our Savior was born. Still, yet the heavens were filled with angelic hosts, declaring the Glory of the Lord singing great Hosannas, Glory to the King!
In the stillness of the Upper Room, our Lord ushered in the New Covenant – a respite before they all would experience the greatest trial in history. After the Crucifixion, darkness and, I imagine, a still eeriness and a loneliness engulfed the whole land, until the Lord burst forth from the grave. It was a stillness preparing the way for His Resurrection. Saul – Paul had to be still before God was able to work through him. Peter, too, in the stillness of prayer saw the heavens open and the Lord calling him to minister to all peoples, showing no partiality that the Good News is for all nations!

In this Advent season, let us take this wonderful opportunity to break from the busyness of the season to embrace ‘stillness.’ Ponder upon His Word penetrating our souls, our interior life. And as we await with joyful expectation of this year’s Christmas celebrations, let it also be preparation as we await His second coming.

Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. Psalm 46:10

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Audio  link, Traditional Melody 1819
Lyrics and Translation by Tradition by Action and German Way

Still, still, still,
Weil’s Kindlein schlafen will.
Maria tut es niedersingen
Ihre keusche Brust darbringen,
Still, still, still,
Weil Kindlein schlafen will.		 Still, still, still,
Let Baby sleep its fill.
Maria sings a lullaby sweet
And lays her true heart at Your feet
Still, still, still,
Let Baby sleep its fill.
Schlaf, schlaf, schlaf,
Mein liebes Kindlein, schlaf.
Die Englein tun schön musizieren
Bei dem Kindlein jubilieren,
Schlaf, schlaf, schlaf,
Mein liebes Kindlein, schlaf.		 Sleep, sleep, sleep,
My precious Baby sleep.
The Angels are all music making
By the Manger jubilating
Sleep, sleep, sleep,
My precious Baby sleep.
Groß, groß, groß,
die Lieb’ ist übergroß!
Gott hat den Himmelsthron verlassen,
und muss reisen auf der Strassen.
Groß, groß, groß,
die Lieb’ ist übergroß.		 Great, great, great,
the love is enormous!
God has left his heavenly throne
and must travel on the road.
Great, great, great,
the love is enormous!
Auf, auf, auf,
Ihr Adamskinder auf.
Fallet Jesum all zu Füssen,
Weil er für uns d’Sünd tut büssen.
Auf, auf, auf,
Ihr Adamskinder auf.		 Rise, rise, rise,
All Adam’s children rise.
O, kneel at the feet of Jesus now,
Our sins to atone He did vow.
Rise, rise, rise,
All Adam’s children rise.
Wir, wir, wir,
Wir rufen all zu Dir:
Tu uns des Himmels Reich aufschliessen,
Wenn wir einmal sterben müssen.
Wir, wir, wir,
Wir rufen all zu Dir.

We, we, we,
We all implore Thee:
Open for us heaven’s gate
Let Your Kingdom be our fate.
We, we, we,
We all implore Thee.
bless the lord at all times

I Will Bless the Lord at All Times

[Written by Jeff Koonce]

I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Psalm 34:1

I will bless the Lord at all times. I don’t know about you, but this can seem incredibly difficult. All times? Continually? Really? David, the writer of this Psalm, sets the bar pretty high for the rest of us. Granted, it’s easy for us to praise the Lord when things are going well when we feel good about our life and the blessings He’s given us. We are grateful for family and our health, our jobs, and our security.

What about those times when things aren’t going so well? Maybe you’re depressed, lonely, angry, grieving, upset with how the way things have turned out. Is His praise continually in your mouth during those times? We are more likely to look inward to ourselves; on our shame, fear, and failures. Or we look for someone to blame. David is a normal person. In himself, he has no special powers that we do not possess as human beings. His struggles are the same as our struggles. So how did David do it?

I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant,
and their faces shall never be ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him
and saved him out of all his troubles.
Psalm 34:4-6

David sought the Lord and was delivered from his fears. In the midst of our difficulties and struggles, we should not look inward, but upward. We, too, should seek the Lord. For us, this means seeking him through prayer and His Word. And as we allow His Word to shine a light into the darkness of our hearts and the power of the Holy Spirit to move in us and reveal the Gospel at work in our lives, we begin to see and trust that God is good and faithful, even in the hard things. When we rest in that promise, it’s small step to bless the Lord at all times, in all circumstances, and praise Him continually.

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
Psalm 34:8

This idea of praising God in the midst of dire circumstances is the theme of a song we, the Hymn Collective, have been working on recently. “Hold on to Me” was written by Ashley Self during one of those difficult times in life when you just don’t know what to do or say. Ashley and his wife, Staci, lost their daughter, Lily Grace on the day she was born in 2012. Ashley wrote this song that night in the hospital and when we got around to recording an album we all knew that this song had to be a big part of that project.

We are happy to have a finished version to share with everyone and we hope it serves as a reminder that no matter how bad it seems, seek the Lord, rest in Him, and praise Him continually. I will bless the Lord at all times.

The LORD is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:18

Hold on to Me
Words and music: Ashley Self, 2012

It’s not enough to know you love me when my heart hurts this way.
When I don’t feel your presence, I don’t know what to pray.
Right now, all I feel is empty inside and afraid this pain won’t ease.

Hold on to me;
Wipe these tears from my face in my faltering faith I cry,
Hold on to me;
In my weakness, be strong; I can’t stand or even breathe.
Hold on to me.

People try to explain it; they say she’s safe in your hands.
But I can’t help but question if this was your plan.
Right now, all I feel is empty inside and afraid this pain won’t ease.

Did you know at night that I’m afraid to close my eyes?
I see her face so clearly, and I believe the lies.
If this be a dream, awaken me that I may rise and praise thee.

“Hold on to Me” can also be found on iTunes and Spotify.

I Watch in Amazement as God Shows Up

[Written by Shawndee Lovoy]
I tell you, I am so very lucky!

Bumpus Middle School First Priority Club
Bumpus Middle School students sharing prayer requests at First Priority Club

Every week for the past 3 years, I have gotten a front row seat and watched in amazement as God shows up. And when He shows up, He shows up BIG!!

If ever I feel overwhelmed at the state of our nation and begin to feel as if there is no hope, all I have to do is go to Brocks Gap Intermediate School, or Bumpus Middle School, or Ross Bridge Park on a Wednesday night.

There I see it.  I see HOPE. I see that Jesus is as alive and well as He ever was. I see that He has not let us go.  He is still pursuing, still calling, still changing lives. And the lives He is changing are those of the next generation.

First Priority Club, Leaders Summit and Cross Creek Youth Group

First Priority Leaders Summit
38 Bumpus Middle School Students attended the First Priority Leaders Summit in Birmingham, AL

I have watched 200 plus students show up by their own choosing to worship Jesus in the choir room at Brocks Gap.

I have seen an 8th-grade girl stand up in front of 100 of her peers and proclaim how Jesus has changed her heart at Bumpus Middle School.

I have watched a group of 5 Cross Creek middle schoolers invite their friends and our youth group grow to almost 50 kids on a Wednesday night.

I have sat and watched in awe and wonder at the reality that God is still very much at work around here.

I am perplexed at the fact that I see Jesus so alive on a public school campus. I am moved that I see Jesus getting His glory at a neighborhood park.

So, if you ever feel despair about the way our world seems to be heading, just believe me. I’ve seen it.  Jesus is moving and He is not slowing down.  I pray that we will all continue to jump on board what He is doing and watch in amazement.

Cross Creek Youth at Ross Park
Cross Creek Youth
Pizza time
Cross Creek Youth
Cross Creek Youth at the Lovoy’s

Politics as “Un”-Usual – Breaking Down Platforms

Image result for ballot box

Our suburban community recently completed much-anticipated municipal elections.  Voters turned out in significantly higher numbers than 4 years ago and “regime change” proved to be the order of the day.  Neighborhood residents in the area are probably all happy to have the normally scenic wooded hillsides no longer blocked by the collage of signs with LARGE LAST NAMES and tiny slogans.  But for many, myself included, the intense local campaign season, actually provided a welcome distraction from a befuddling national political scenario.

Feel free to jump to the bottom of this post if you want to get right to some summaries, from one Christian perspective, of what the national parties generally stand for.  But, if you have a moment, perhaps you will want to join me as I try to frame things up…along these lines.

It seems maybe some lessons from the local might help with the national.  Certainly our municipal election was a reminder of the privileges and responsibilities of living in democratic republic like ours.  In fact, although our church is not a massive one, we have close association with two candidates who attend, or have family who attend.  With 12,000 votes cast by residents of our 90,000 population community, one of these candidates squeaked out a win by just 9 votes (still being confirmed in fact).  We get to vote, and our votes do make a difference.  A whole lot of people throughout history, and throughout the world today would not be able to say that.

“Acting locally, and thinking globally” also provides a fresh lens on the biblical teaching that God’s sovereignty always supersedes (could have used another verb starting with a “t” there) human will.  And at the same time there are primary and secondary causes working simultaneously, such that, it is perfectly sound to urge one another to conscientious action and at the same time to prayerful trust in God.

Keeping all that in mind, I do get asked from time to time about my political thoughts.  I am pretty sure the role of pastor is not to play party politics, while simultaneously proclaiming a message of the one King of Kings and Lord of Lords who reigns over all nations and peoples.  However, I also know that Christians are called to seek the good of their city, state, and nation, as well as their world.  That does not happen only through politics, but it can include political involvement.

With that goal in mind, I hope if you’ve read this far you will take some time to click on the following links, which as we approach November, may be helpful summaries for all those who name the name of Christ, and even those who are not sure about such things, to read before we cast a ballot.  My younger sister will probably not be happy that I did not include the Green Party, but beggars can’t be choosers and the Democratic, Republican, and Libertarian were all I could find from this source.

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-you-should-know-about-the-democratic-party-platform

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-you-should-know-about-the-republican-party-platform

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-you-should-know-about-the-libertarian-party-platform

Crossing the 2 Samuel Finish Line! 

As we finish up our sermon series in second Samuel this Sunday it is a great time to pause and reflect on all that I trust God has been teaching us these last few months. In a sense he has also been teaching us since last year when we journeyed through first Samuel.
Going through an entire book of the Bible as we have done in this series certainly takes focus and concentration. Growing through weekly sermons is like a lot of things in life – God must work,but we also get out of it what we put into it. So now is a good time to pause and think back on some of the central themes that we have seen particularly in the life of David.

The central question we have addressed is, who is king? And of course we have seen this somewhat rhetorical question answered each week in the recognition that God is king and the kingship of the Old Testament people of God is ultimately fulfilled only and perfectly in King Jesus.

As I share a final message from chapter 24 this Sunday we will hopefully get a chance to reflect on some more of the lessons learned over the last few months but I found the following article to be insightful both for our current national situation and for dealing with one of the most common struggles and sin patterns we all face of worry and anxiety and fear. I hope you will take a few moments to read through it. Oh and stay tuned for info coming soon on a topical outreach series I will preach through in aug and sep, “Knowing and Sharing Our Faith” starting Aug 7.

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-king-david-can-teach-us-about-overcoming-political-anxiety

Man is Wolf Unto Man: A Reflection on Dallas, Nice, & Beyond

[Written by Ben Halbrooks]

Having taken 5 or so years of Spanish in school and remembering only the food-related vocab words, I certainly won’t pretend to know any Latin, with the exception of a few famous phrases. One is this: Homo homini lupus – “Man is wolf unto man.” It’s an ancient saying about human nature that’s difficult to deny after the violence and division our country has witnessed just in the last few weeks. Of course, American soil isn’t the only one with fresh stains – in Nice, France, the blood of its terror victims cries out from the ground for justice. In our own country, racism, hatred, and hostility threaten to further factionalize a nation increasingly dominated by a spirit of bitterness and accusation.

My heart aches at the brutal, senseless loss of lives. The families! How will they ever recover? As we mourn and earnestly pray for healing, the news of such horrors is a sobering reminder of an unpopular truth: people are not basically good. Evil is real. Scripture is crystal clear on the point. “The heart,” wrote the prophet Jeremiah, “is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it?” (17:9)

We want to believe that deep down we’re all naturally decent people. That we can fix our situation, our world, through self-help and determination. This regimen. That policy. Trial and error, and we’ll eventually find the perfect ingredients… right? Believing it makes us feel better. But who are we convincing? We look outside ourselves for the problem and within ourselves for the solution. The Gospel shatters our illusions and tells us that’s backwards.

If we strip away all our excuses, we find the core of the problem is us. We are fallen. In and of ourselves, we have no power to overcome evil. Even our best efforts succumb to selfishness. We are all Lady Macbeth, scrubbing our dirty hands in vain. Guilty. The Apostle Paul’s characterization of humanity left to itself is far from flattering: “They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.” (Romans 1:29-31) Man is wolf unto man.

But there was one man who became a lamb.

“Behold, the Lamb of God,” John the Baptist declared of Jesus, “who takes away the sin of the world.” There is no hope but His. “For Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed.” (1 Corinthians 5:7) This is the hope of the Gospel. The hope that something outside of ourselves, Someone outside of ourselves, can bring us peace. “You were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” (1 Peter 1:18-19) Salvation from sin and the brokenness and misery of a fallen world – salvation from Dallas and Nice and every other unspeakable tragedy – comes only through the blood of the Lamb. And His way is love.

So as I mourn, pray, and reflect on these events, my hope is not in the wolves, but in the Lamb. “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb… For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:14,17)

People of the Lamb, rest in this:

“‘For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress… The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,’ says the Lord.” (Isaiah 65:17-19,25)

April Showers Bring May Flowers …. Reflection on Motherhood

Spring Flowers[Written by Christine Cox, Ministry Admin. Asst.]
A cute little ditty, but, as I think about it in a different sort of a way, it reminds me of God’s Beauty in His Creation, marred by sin and redeemed by His Love and Mercy pouring upon the earth as April showers to bring forth a new creation. As showers bring forth new seedlings from the soil, so God’s Love and Mercy create a newness in you and me for if “anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17).”

In this month of May, flowers manifest motherhood – a flower’s beauty, the beauty of a mother’s love; the many varieties of flowers, the uniqueness of each mother’s God-given gifts; each lovely, each charming, each delightful to God for “the splendor of the rose does not rob the little violet of its scent nor the daisy of charm. If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, Spring would lose its loveliness and there would be no wildflowers to make a meadow’s gay…so it is in the world of souls, which is the Garden of Jesus.” (Therese of Lisieux)

However, this beauty gets tarnished in this star-crazed world, where there is a constant striving for perfection, to be the first, the best – the best and perfect mother, with the best and perfect children, the best and perfect family. And, for some the subject of Mother’s Day is discouraging, not for disappointment as a mother, but for longing to be a mother, and struggling to wait on God’s timing or deal with the loss of miscarriage.
Thus, we fail to see the perfection that God actually wants. We fail to see His Love and Mercy in our struggles. He simply wants our love and trust, faith. He wants us to do His will; in His timing. Be His instrument. In this He rejoices.

Knowing our failures, He gives us wonderful examples of how He worked in and through the many mothers listed in the Bible – from our first mother Eve, to Mary, the mother of our Savior; through one, pain commenced; through the other, peace restored.
Though through Eve’s mistrust we have the wound of original sin, God showed His Love and Mercy by promising a restoration (Genesis 3:15) and then clothed Adam and Eve with garments (3:21). In Mary, called by some the ‘New Eve’, we see a deep faith as was with Abraham who “in hope believed against hope should become the father of many nations” (Romans 4:18) so Mary believed that she would become the mother of God’s Son. Through her belief, trust, and obedience mankind was blessed with its Redeemer, God’s Love and Mercy as was promised in Genesis.

And, He shows us other mothers, who were imperfect creatures, bruised and broken vessels, who were discouraged, struggling with issues and disappointments in their lives – Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, Jochebed, Hannah, Elizabeth, Eunice and Lois, to name a few – yet, we see how He poured His Love and Mercy upon them; thus, how all were part of the tapestry in salvation history. All in His perfect timing.
As each were so unique and each can be a lesson on striving how to be that beautiful new creation used by God, so each mother, each woman, today is uniquely gifted to be His instrument to our families, to our communities, and to His church.

To all Women, for we have mentored many –
Happy Mothers’ Day!

[Image Credit: Josephine E. Cox/www.photosbyjosie.com]

Coming Full Circle

[Written by Liz Getz, Nursery Director]
For weeks I have been trying to settle on what I wanted to write about for my first blog.  As we move into the month of May I inevitably think about Mother’s Day and my own Mom.  Some of you know all or most of my story but I’m sure many of you do not.  I was raised in the Presbyterian Church and my childhood is full of memories of Sunday School and VBS in the summers, children’s choir and confirmation class, youth group on Sunday evenings and church retreats to the beach and the mountains in my teens, lock-ins, and summer camp in North Carolina each year of high school.

My Mom was a Sunday School teacher, volunteered with pretty much everything and my Dad was an usher.  When I started college at Auburn I was a typical college student, my Sunday mornings became more about sleeping in and less about getting up for church.  I went with my family on holidays or special services.  I worked in my church nursery just like the college girls do now for Cross Creek so I was often there but never actually a part of worship.  But I didn’t feel disconnected from the church – yet.

Then everything was turned upside down when my Mom passed away very unexpectedly in May 1999.  She was only 47 and still healthy and vibrant with so much left to experience in this life.  I was just 19 at the age you think you have it all figured out but in ways you cannot see yet still just a child.  I wish I felt the comfort of being a beloved child of God but I just felt like a motherless child.  When you lose someone before their time it can be very hard to see or understand that it was in God’s timing.  It took a long time before I felt real comfort in the scripture.  “You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.”  (Proverbs 19:21)

I started attending Cross Creek Church in early 2010 just a few months after the church had officially started services.  I was invited by the Hughes family as I have been friends with James and Casey for years (and years and years for my friendship with Casey).  They had both been telling me for weeks I should come to a service at the new church they were attending.  I was reluctant at first but eventually agreed.

Once I came to my first worship service I kept coming week after week.  Soon I was in a life group and over the years I have served in a number of areas including teaching Sunday School, hospitality and now as the Nursery Director.  I know many people are led to new churches through friends or family but for me this was coming back to the church.  I’ve not only come back to church but now I have come full circle.  I think my Mom would love the fact that I am back in the church and that I’ve come to walk in many of her footsteps as well.

Without the wonderful mothers we have in Cross Creek I wouldn’t have precious babies and toddlers to love each week.  So this Mother’s Day I thank those mothers and I thank my own Mom for all that she did to make me who I am.  She had a huge heart and loved to serve, it was one of her many gifts and I feel she passed many of those traits to me.  Our church is built upon our service to one another, that’s what I found to be at times challenging but also extremely rewarding about being a member of church that started as a church plant. It takes everyone being involved to make our church thrive and the Children’s Ministry especially cannot work without dedicated volunteers who are willing to serve.  “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10)

I want to give a special thank you to Jackie Culp who sent me this quote for encouragement:
“If you want to see a future preacher, president, leader, missionary, or hero, just sign up to work in the church nursery.  When God gives us children, He gives us the privilege of nurturing the future.”
–    David Jeremiah

hymns, musicians

Re-Tuned Hymns? What is that?

[Written by Jeff Koonce]

If you’re new to Cross Creek Church (CCC), you may have noticed that some of the songs we sing during worship on Sundays are a little bit different from what you might sing in other churches or hear on Christian radio. The songs we sing at CCC may have 4 or 5 verses containing a lot of words, some of which you may have no idea what they mean. The words and phrases seem to come from a different era, but the music is being played by what looks like a modern worship band. What’s going on?! Well, you have just experienced some “re-tuned” hymns.

What’s a re-tuned hymn, you say?

A re-tuned hymn is simply an old hymn text that is set to a new tune or melody. In our context at CCC, we arrange the music of these hymns to fit the instruments and musicians we have available. With our set up of acoustic guitar, mandolin, and keyboard, we lean heavily on American folk and bluegrass styles.

Over the life of the historic Church, thousands of texts have been written for the purpose of being sung during worship. Some of those texts were paired with great music and become some of the most famous and best loved hymns of the Church; hymns like “Amazing Grace”, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”, “Be Thou My Vision”. Some of these texts were less fortunate and either paired with a tune that did not stand the test of time or no tune ever really stuck with the text.

“Re-tuning” hymns is hardly a modern invention. People have been re-tuning hymns for as long as there have been hymns. It’s not uncommon to flip through a hymnal and find the same text paired with 2 or 3 tunes. It’s rare that a hymn text and tune were written together by the same person. More often, they were written separately with a musician writing music for a pre-existing text. Most hymn texts are written in a poetical meter, and it was common to apply a standard tune of compatible meter to many different texts. The hymnals of the 18th and early 19th centuries were only compilations of texts; there was no music included.

The modern re-tuned hymn movement began about 20 years ago centered around some Reformed University Fellowships (college ministries of the PCA). A few RUF pastors and musicians began taking these all-but-forgotten hymn texts and writing new music for them in an effort to expose college students to deep Gospel truth delivered in a relevant musical language.

The most prominent early adopter of re-tuned hymns was Kevin Twit, RUF pastor at Belmont University in Nashville. When Kevin, also a musician, song writer, and audio engineer, found himself pastoring to an exceptional group of young musicians, they recorded the first “Indelible Grace” album. 17 years and 9 albums later, hymns by Indelible Grace are some of the most popular and reliable re-tuned hymns being used in the Church today. Some of their hymns we sing at CCC are “And Can It Be”, “Psalm 130 (From the Depths of Woe)”, and “Jesus, I Come”

Here in Birmingham, a group of musicians from Red Mountain Church (myself included) began re-tuning hymns and released 7 albums as Red Mountain Music. Their work fostered hot bed of creativity inspiring several other hymn re-tuning projects from musicians in the area. Hymn Collective, The Corner Room, Community Presbyterian, Thy Love Inspires, Grace and Peace Music, all have some connection through Red Mountain.

So what is it about re-tuned hymns? What’s the point? Why sing them?

Fundamentally, the hymn texts used in these hymns are rich poetry, full of deep theological themes that can stir, not just our hearts, but our imaginations, our intellects, and our wills. These texts are works of art, thoughtfully constructed by masters of their craft and reflecting the creativity of our creator God. Through artful depictions and narrative structures, we sing about God’s Word and His promises while encountering a full range of emotions; from joy to sorrow, guilt to relief. We sing the beautiful, complete story of the Gospel: the glory of God, the helplessness of man, the sacrifice of the Son, the power of the Holy Spirit, and the redemption of the Church.

These texts also connect us to the larger, historic Church. They remind us that we are not alone in our struggles as Christians, our experience is not unique. For centuries, these hymns have laid bare the issues and themes of the Christian life and remind us of the faithfulness of God and his steadfast love to all generations.

By using new, modern music we connect the ancient with the authentic; historic Christianity in our own musical language. Re-tuned hymns serve as a middle path between “traditional” hymns and “contemporary” praise and worship; bridging the gap between generations and style preference. Old text, new music; richness and depth, modern musical sensibility. A heritage of beautiful poetry, demonstrating a robust theology, set in our own musical language.