Good Shepherd
by Brielle Smith
- Good Shepherd 00:00
“Today, if you hear his voice…” As I pondered Psalm 95 and John 10, the themes of shepherd, voice, trust, and listening simmered in the back of my mind. Then, one sleepless night during Advent, I sat with the Lord through many silent hours of dark. Words came quietly, gradually. I began singing a conversation with God—a wondering, asking, remembering. And gently, as He often does, I found that my confession of solitude and shadows became a remembrance and receiving of the goodness of God.
LYRICS:
Good Shepherd you’ve been quiet lately, or
Have I not been listening?
It’s hard to tell these days
Between these midnight
Shadows on my ceiling
And that creaky floorboard feeling
I start to feel alone
But I will trust my Shepherd
I will trust my Shepherd
It always comes back to trust,
My Shepherd
Your steady hand will always
Lead me Home
Good Shepherd I’m caught between the longing
The hunger and the hoping
The ache’s too much these days
And I need you,
I breathe in and I need you
My heart beats fast, I need you
Let me hear the way
Your voice is like honey
Your words sweeter than wine
You speak, I listen
Your love is better than life
Singing over Me
by Katie Abernethy
- Singing Over Me 00:00
‘My sheep hear my voice.’ In writing this song, I began thinking about what the voice of our Good Shepherd sounds like, and what He is saying to us, His sheep. The first verse that came to my mind pertaining to this was Zephaniah 3:17 –
“The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.”
This verse has always amazed me – that the God of the universe rejoices over us with singing! I wanted to draw attention to how amazing it is that God delights in us in spite of our weaknesses. So the verses of the song mainly focus on our human limitations, while the chorus rejoices in hearing our Good Shepherd singing over us.
Two people graciously used their talents in bringing this song to life–Jeannie Iseman sang and played guitar for the recording, and John Traynor did the recording, mixing, and editing. It was a privilege working with them both, and I am very grateful to them.
LYRICS:
I woke up today ready to change the world.
Took one step and fell flat on my face.
It doesn’t take me long to see I’m not all I’m cracked up to be, and yet, I hear You singing over me.
I can’t quite afford to let my neighbor see
The wreckage that’s behind this smile.
And even as I come to You, I somehow feel there’s more I’ve got to do
to hear You singing over me.
Chorus:
But oh, I hear You singing!
And can it be that You delight in me?
Oh, I hear the voice of a Good, Good Shepherd singing over me.
It’s not that I really want to save myself.
It’s more that I think I should.
But I hear an echo in my soul of amazing grace, and it sounds
like You singing over me.
(chorus)
I have yet to see the masterpiece,
But I’ve seen Your works and they are good.
Even as I wait for You to come back and make all things new, still I hear,
hear You singing over me!
Glory (Find Us Here)
by Emily Talbott
- Glory (Find Us Here) 00:00
This song is a reflection on the holy mystery of the incarnation. During Advent, we celebrate and remember how our Messiah came to be with us in our world, just like a bright light that shows us the way home. But He did not arrive with a big display of power. He came to be with us in astonishing humility. The posture of this song comes from Psalm 95, which commands us to sing praise and kneel before God (v. 1, 6). I wanted to reflect in it both the humility of Christ in His coming and the call to respond to His love in awe and humility. My prayer for this season is that Your light will shine on us, and through us, and around us everywhere like a leading star and a sunrise and a lamp in the window.
LYRICS:
Glory shining bright
Like a lamp in the window at night
You took us by surprise
When You came down to find us here
Glory! To the shepherd
Lowly You revealed Your light
You took us by surprise
When You came down find us here
And we sing,
Alleluia!
Alleluia!
Alleluia!
Glory in disguise
Incarnate Love crucified
You opened up our eyes
When You came and found us
You opened up our eyes
When You arose to find us here
Let Us Adore
by Addie Gannon
- Let Us Adore 00:00
This song is an invitation for people to join in adoring Jesus, our Good Shepherd. The chorus, using text from Psalm 95, declares that he is our Maker who is worthy of our worship simply because he is God! In the verses, I borrowed lines from Psalm 23 and Psalm 34 to articulate attributes of God as a loving father and shepherd. The second verse ends with an invitation to magnify his name together, which leads into the final bridge and chorus, meant to reflect many voices to coming together in harmony with praise and adoration.
LYRICS:
Come, let us worship and bow down
And kneel before our Maker
For he is our God, he is our God
And we are the people of his pasture
Enter his rest; lay your head on his breast
Hear his voice; open your hearts
To receive the joy, the love overflowing,
The meekness and the strength of a shepherd
His rod, his staff, comfort and guide
Though we stray, his reproof is in love
So taste and see that the Lord, he is goodLet us magnify his name together
Oh let us magnify his name together
Come, let us worship and bow down
And kneel before our Maker
For he is our God, he is our God
And we are the people of his pasture
Let us adore, let us adore, let us adore him!
Home Is Where I Am
by Linda Colozzi
- Home Is Where I Am 00:00
I invited Marly, my granddaughter, to collaborate with me by writing the background music for a poem I would read. When she agreed, I sat down in prayer inviting the Holy Spirit to inspire me with a poem that would be healing and uplifting to submit for the RezArts Festival. Listening for my Shepherd’s voice I wrote the following poem entitled, “Home is Where I am.” When I brought the poem to Marly to discuss the music when she was home on Christmas break, she asked me to record the poem at that time which I did. She then took it back to Georgia where she is in a gap program and created the background music. Her process was to pick out a few little melodies she would use for the piano. Then, after she played through the melodies on her midi keyboard until everything flowed through and around the words, she recorded the piano track. After that, she laid violin tracks, and then background vocals. Marly said she especially loved recording the vocal tracks, and they filled everything out. I loved collaborating with Marly, listening for the Shepherd’s voice, reading/praying this poem back to God, and sharing it.
“Home Is Where I Am”
Beloved Children,
Hear my Word,
Who is the Truth, the Light, the Way.
For you, I’ve come anew this day to set you free and show the Way.
The Way is not your way, but mine, to reveal each time you turn.
The turning IS the Practice needed to find me when I seem far away.
Come to my Word and Read to Me, I pray.
Your voice will hear My voice in you.
Turn to Me
in all the times
of stress
And I will show the Way home.
Home is in Me not out there in the world.
Home is beyond this world you see.
Sit with Me.
Read aloud to Me
My Word reflects the Light you see.
Be free.
Be with Me.
And you will see…..
Community of Believers
All are We
The Loving Father
by Leo Voytenko
- The Loving Father 00:00
Roughly half a year ago, one of the pastors at Rez preached a sermon on the parable of the prodigal son. I was struck by the metaphor of the sinful, lust-driven son representing mankind as a whole. This son ran away from his father and squandered his father’s wealth. By the ancient Jewish law the son deserved to die because of his sinful deed. Yet the father forgave him and threw a party just because his son was back!
I realized that because of my sinfulness I deserved to die as well! But thanks be to God, because love of our heavenly Father completely changes our stories!
“What a loving father!” I thought. “So loving, that He would die the shameful death on a cross that I should have died because of my sin!”
These thoughts filled my brain for so long that I decided to write a song about the prodigal son and how he represents us. I prayed and gave my songwriting time to the Lord.
LYRICS:
He kills the fattened calf for me;
Even though my sin is so deep
He puts the best robe on my back,
So that I might be his again!
In the prodigal son
I had money and I had time to run,
Hard on my heels the storm came
And then I was all but put to shame
And then I realized my great sin.
And I thought The Father wouldn’t let me in
So I just started walking back
Then I realized my father was running down the track
“Hey Dad, I’m sorry for running away,
Would you please let me just come and stay?”
“Oh son, I’d never mean you any harm!”
So now I rest in my Father’s arms!
I thought I was dead;
He says I’m alive again
I thought I was lost;
He says I am found again
He kills the fattened calf for me;
Even though my sin is so deep
He puts the best robe on my back,
So that I might be his again!
XCV
by Jack Urban
- XCV 00:00
How XCV came about is a mystery. While in New York, Art music was my lifeblood. I spent countless hours creating compositions for modern dance, new music festivals, and performances. The thrill of discovery always propelled me, but then unexpectedly, I was discovered–discovered by Jesus, and my world changed.
As a believer, soundtracks, sounds, and the Avant-Garde gave way to worship songs, and my focus on music became the joy of being used for the kingdom of Christ. The Rezarts Festival sparked the idea in me that lush sonic tapestries could be woven with gentle jazz and scripture to create a sacred experience.
I created the music of XCV with the sounds of the human voice, samples, and loops that come together in ways I could never have dreamed of in advance. It contains murmurs of Miles Davis, Joni Mitchel, Philip Glass, and Paul Winter but has a unique whisper that could only come from God’s still, small voice.
Chemical Bath
by Georgi VanDerway
- Chemical Bath 00:00
I have been learning the guitar for about 9 months now, and this is the first full song I have written, composed, and recorded. It is an instrumental hardcore/metal song.
Working on this project was a bit chaotic. I spent a good amount of time thinking about the prompt, and reflecting on my own experiences and struggles listening to the LORD’s voice. One of the main themes that came to mind was emotion. When things are really hard and I’m mad, angry, jealous. hurting etc., I think God’s voice can get drowned out in the intensity of physical emotion (the chemicals in our brains), and the pain that follows. I wanted to capture those feelings in this lament. I’m not sure how, but it turned out better than I expected (like all things we give to the LORD).
With You
by Becca Dame
- With You 00:00
As I thought about how God hears the voice of his sheep, this song came as a reply to how he has heard and seen me. I instantly had an image of a time when I was coming out of my own kind of bondage, and how God was with me in the process and setting me free. When I could get away, I would sit outside in this rocking chair at dusk or under the night sky. There were willow trees and the sound of horses behind the fences surrounding me, and it was quiet. So quiet, I could get settled in myself, in God, and in the present, in a way I had not been in a long time. And I would sing. As I was writing this song, God did the same thing with me again, only this time from my bedroom in Wheaton with the light of a candle and the night sky outside my window. It was like he was singing back to me. My hope is you also hear him singing back to you – with all your fears, longings, insecurities, and being – held, heard, and known by the God who loves his sheep.
LYRICS:
Come and find me under the willow tree like in Tallahassee
I missed the way your blue eyes filled with wonder, like a child again
You can run to me
Let your hair down
You feel small in this big world
But it’s the small things I delight
I delight in you
Let me feed you
Let your body rest here
I see your broken bones, your beating heart with all its fear
Lay your head on me
I will fill you up
Remind you whose you are
Receive my love and I will sing over you
Let it set you free
Like the way I broke those chains from your feet
So will you dance, dance with me?
I’m with you, and I wanna be
I see you, you’re not hidden from me
I chose you, you’re like royalty
You don’t have to go back anymore
You can stay with me and watch for the dawn
We Hear Your Voice
by Jonathan Smith
- We Hear Your Voice 00:00
Voices: Jonathan Smith and Sara Smith
Earlier this year I went on my first airplane trip. As I soared above the landscape I was thinking about how God sees the world, and I wrote the words of this song. After getting home I finished the song with the help of my sister and mom. I mainly compose on my guitar and compile everything in Logic Pro.
LYRICS:
You look down on the world below and all therein
Your sheep in need of a Shepherd,
You call we listen.
Chorus:
Jesus, You’re the Faithful Shepherd.
Jesus, lead us to the water.
Jesus, we bow our hearts before You
We are Your sheep, we hear Your voice.
As we hear Your voice calling us our hearts flood with joy.
Your sheep have found their Shepherd.
You call we listen.
Chorus:
Jesus, You’re the Faithful Shepherd.
Jesus, lead us to the water.
Jesus, we bow our hearts before You
We are Your sheep, we hear Your voice.
Listen
by Ruth Mudge
- The Lord God Is With Us 00:00
I reflected on John 10:27: “My Sheep Hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” The melody began as a lullaby, slowly morphing and combining this passage with the parable of the lost sheep and the angels rejoicing over one lost soul who comes home, worshiping at what God has done for us which was also reflected in Psalm 95. A call to worship, gentle but triumphant at the same time.
