Portsmouth Uni Gospel Choir after a Risen! rehearsal
Portsmouth Uni Gospel Choir with London Touring Cast
Well I am not sure if you saw on Saturday, July 8th the fantastic Portsmouth University Gospel Choir on BBC 1s “Pitch Battle” with judges that included Gareth Malone and Seal but if you did not then I strongly suggest you watch on I Player http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08yb0pj/pitch-battle-series-1-episode-4” because they were absolutely brilliant. The clip featured today shows them being chosen by Seal after their rendition of “Kissed By A Rose.”
One reason was I was so very pleased with their success is that I knew most of the choir including their leader, Heavilyn Sarpong as they had sang with the London Touring Cast in the first production of Risen! The Musical at the New Theatre Royal.
They deserve every possible success as they are such lovely people. I will never forget how welcoming they were when I first went to their rehearsals for Risen! and how hard they all worked. I remember so well almost being in tears when I first heard them sing “Jesus Oh, Oh” a clip of which I will try and post next week. I also treasure the friendships they fostered with the London Touring Cast and how moving it was when they prayed for the cast with us all in a circle on the stage of the New Theatre Royal just before the first performance.
Afterwards I could not get the Gospel Choir out of their dressing room as they were all singing “Jesus Is My Lord” at the top of their voices. I am sure one of the reasons why Seal chose them as winners of that “Pitch Battle” episode and why they will continue to do well is because they convey such love and joy. Although the cameras quickly switched when some of them got down on their knees to thank God – their obvious love of Jesus just shone through- although the performances of the others in the programme were excellent they just could not match the Portsmouth University Gospel Choir’s exuberance which I believe was Spirit led.
“Did they not do enough on that awful day ?” from Risen! The Musical – featuring the London Touring Cast at the New Theatre Royal
“Restore Us Lord God Almighty” featuring Lucy Stimpson- Maynard from the album “Where Would I Be Without You?” recorded and produced by Ross Gill
Over the past few weeks I have been offering songs as a means of responding to the tragic and awful events in Manchester and London. Today’s featured song is another “lament” taken from Psalms 80 and 88.
I use extracts from a paper “Psalms of Lament” by G. Brooke Lester to describe what exactly is a lament. However before that may I tell you a bit of the story behind the writing of this song? I had the idea of a lament after reading a devotion by Selwyn Hughes in “Every Day With Jesus.” God had inspired the melody to the chorus by “placing it in my head” but He had not given me a tune for the verse- so I made one up. When I sang the song to Lucy Stimpson- Maynard she loved the chorus but when I sang my melody for the verse she looked at me as if to say “What is going on?” I instantly knew exactly what she meant – but also instantly remembered a melody she had written as part of a school play- and yes it fitted the verse lyrics perfectly -so that is what you hear in today’s featured song “Restore Us Lord God Almighty.”
If many of us have been taught to put on a happy face, to let a smile be our umbrella, to keep our complaints to ourselves, then the Hebrew Bible offers a welcome corrective in the complaint psalms, or psalms of lament.
Lament, as a genre of psalm, is not the same as lamentation over the dead. In a lament psalm, a petitioner addresses God directly on the occasion of some calamity. Given God’s history with God’s people, the psalmist is comfortable charging God with “dereliction of duty” and unabashedly urges a favorable response.
Psalm 44 illustrates well the typical features of the lament psalm. A lament usually contains some direct address to God (Ps 44:1, “O God”), a complaint describing the occasion for the lament (Ps 44:9-22), a petition for redress (Ps 44:23-26), some statement of trust concerning God’s proclivity to save and vindicate (Ps 44:1-8), and a vow to offer public thanksgiving after God has intervened favorably.
As a response to crisis, the lament psalm is best understood in comparison to the other major genres of psalms, namely, praise and thanksgiving psalms. Psalms of praise, with their celebratory language, portray a just and life-sustaining created order. They reflect the comfortable embrace of a status quo whose conditions favor the speaker. Thanksgiving psalms speak to the gathered community of their deliverance from a crisis by God. They reflect the resolution of the crisis and the speaker’s progress toward moving on after trauma.
Between these two forms sit the lament psalms, which respond to a crisis that disrupts the life of an individual or community. In laments, a critical event calls into question the conviction that God reliably protects the speaker from injustice, chaos, and death. The lament psalm, then, looks backward at praise (recalling God’s saving acts), and it looks forward to thanksgiving and salvation (praising God’s inclination to save). Lament gazes unflinchingly at the present reality of pain and at God’s apparent slowness to save.
“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow” from Risen!- The Musical
“Out of the Depths” featuring Chloe Brokenshire as Mary Magdalene from the album Risen!The Musical recorded and produced by Joffy Girling
It was sometime in 2000 that I was returning from a Partners Day at Waverley Abbey House in Farnham, which is the centre for the “Crusade for World Revival” (CWR) the publishers of Selwyn Hughes’ “Every Day with Jesus.” As I was driving car an up-tempo tune came into my head that I knew was very melodic (he says humbly!) Sometimes God gives me melodies and lyrics at the same time but on this occasion it was just the melody.
On August 12th 2000 the Russian submarine Kursk sank with all 118 on board lost. I remember seeing a photograph of one of the lost sailors’ mothers and her face was one of total anguish.
Shortly afterwards I was in London’s Leicester Square with my son Chris who was then aged 15. We were about to go into the Odeon cinema when my phone rang and I was told that his close friend, Richard had suddenly and un-expectantly died. I remember like it was yesterday sitting Chris down and telling him the tragic news before we immediately returned home.
The two incidents made me think of how the Psalmists would cry out to God in their songs/poems which are called laments. I searched through the Psalms and found the words of Psalms 130 and 6 and also those from Isaiah 55 to convey exactly what the Russian mother and all the family and friends of Richard were feeling.
Out of the depths I cry out to you oh Lord,
Wont you please hear me do not hide your face.
My soul is in anguish it cries “Why or why Lord?”
I’m worn out from groaning I’m drenched in my tears.
So I had the words but no melody- the most recent tune in my head – the one from the return journey from Waverley Abbey House was too fast and so totally inappropriate for such anguished words. But what if I slowed the tune down? Well that is what I did and the song that resulted became “Out of the Depths.” It was originally sung by Lucy Stimpson- Maynard on the Mustard Seed album “Love is the Way.”
Tragically I had another dear friend whose son died. Someone who had the “Love is the Way” album gave the “Out of the Depths” track to the family which they played constantly giving them much strength and comfort. Somehow Lucy even managed to sing the song live at my friend’s son’s funeral.
I also sent Selwyn Hughes a copy when his son died but today I have chosen another version of the song, this one by Chloe Brokenshire who sang the part of Mary Magdalene on the CD of Risen! The Musical. She sings the song after watching Jesus crucified and I offer it here, together with the songs or the past two blogs (“This is not Heaven,” “Allow His Loving Arms” and “Oh Lord Here my Voice”) to all those bereaved in the recent horrific and tragic events in London and Manchester.
“This Is Not Heaven” from the album “Uplifted” featuring Lucy Stimpson- Maynard recorded and produced by Bob Ross
Two weeks ago in response to the atrocities in Manchester and London I offered the words of two songs “Allow His Loving Arms” and “Oh Lord Hear My Voice.” Since then we have the awful event in Finsbury Park and the devastating fire in Grenfell Tower and it is only natural to ask the question “Why? and to ask that directly of God. In previous blogs I have tried to address the question of why does God allow suffering and it seems appropriate during these most difficult times to revisit a few key thoughts.
First, it is an imperfect world in which we live (the featured song for today expresses the same idea in slightly different words “This is not heaven.”)
Second for love to be genuine people have to have a choice whether or not to love – that is why God gave us a free will – to love and follow Him or not. Without a choice we would simply be robots. When given a choice some will make wrong ones, maybe even ones that could be deemed as evil as the case in Manchester and London. If the tragedy that is Grenfell Towers is found to have been caused by cutting corners on safety, born out of possible greed then that too could be deemed as evil- certainly the consequences of this disaster could demand such a verdict.
Third, it is possible to believe that God is good but that the world is often bad. Jesus lived in a world that was full of hate and persecution and He was eventually killed by people that through fear and bigotry decided His fate. Jesus suffered and so He understands how we feel when we suffer and He is, therefore perfectly placed to hold us in our grief. That is not meant to sound glib and I am not suggesting that singing a song to Him will make everything ok. No the pain of these recent horrific events is raw, as is the many ways in which we can suffer in this imperfect world. Having family and friends to show compassion, kindness, empathy and sympathy is wonderful, but the peace that comes from God is beyond understanding. We cannot avoid the storms of life and it is, I believe wrong to try and pretend they do not exist- no we need to walk through the storms and hopefully come out the other side stronger. In walking through life’s storms it is good to know that God walks with us and is there to comfort and support us – we just need to choose to believe that truth and call on His help.
Anger and revenge are understandable emotions during times like these and I believe it is ok to be angry with God – He is big enough to take it and indeed the Psalmists often displayed anger and bewilderment through their Laments – but more of that next week.
As I have said before I enjoy drawing attention to people who are generally regarded as cool and who are also Christians for example, Bear Grylls, Usain Bolt, Jürgen Klopp and Maro Itoje.
On the same theme I thought you might enjoy this video clip showing a number of other “celebrities” who state their belief in God- some may surprise you as they did me, for example, Tom Hanks, Beyoncé, Sylvester Stallone and Rihanna.
Allow His Loving Arms featuring Ross Gill from the album “The Season of Singing” recorded and produced by Ross Gill
“Oh Lord Here My Voice” – featuring Lucy Stimpson- Maynard from the album “Where Would I Be Without You? recorded and produced by Ross Gill
In light of the recent horrific events in Manchester and London I thought it appropriate this week to offer two songs- Allow His Loving Arms and Oh Lord Hear My Voice. Extracts from both are below:
“Still in Tears” from the albums “Uplifted” and “His Story” featuring Lucy Stimpon- Maynard recorded and produced by Bob Ross (Uplifted) and Ross Gill (His Story)
As I said a couple of weeks ago, before featuring the Rugby Union player Maro Itoje, I often draw attention to people who are generally regarded as cool and who are also Christians. Others I have featured include Bear Grylls, Usain Bolt, Jürgen Klopp and Zach Johnson. Today I would like to highlight another, someone of whom to be honest, I had not heard because I do not follow American Football- Tim Tebow. Tim gave the brilliant interview featured today and also began the phenomena now named after him – “Tebowing.”
Here is an explanation taken from extracts from Wikipedia:
“Tebowing” is a neologism for the act of kneeling on one knee in prayer specifically with one’s head bowed and an arm resting on the one bent knee, when kneeling, a form of genuflecting. It is derived from Tebow’s propensity for kneeling and praying. The origin of the phrase is credited to fan Jared Kleinstein, who posted a picture with friends on Facebook, in which they mimicked a pose of Tebow following the Broncos’ comeback overtime victory over the Dolphins on October 23, 2011. The popularity of the picture led Kleinstein to set up a website showing pictures submitted by people depicting various interpretations of Tebowing all over the world. After two-and-a-half months, the site received 20,000 photograph submissions and 20 million page views from 2 million unique visitors. The New York Times wrote “it can be hard to tell whether [people tebowing] are celebrating or mocking [Tebow] for his virtuous ways.” Pittsburgh mayor Luke Ravenstahl “tebowed” as part of a bet with the mayor of Denver following the Broncos playoff victory over the Steelers in 2012. On October 9, 2012, Tebow was awarded the trademark to Tebowing after winning a legal battle with two fans who had expressed interest in trademarking the name.
In December 2011, the life-sized wall graphics company Fathead released a “Tebowing” sticker that became the company’s best-selling product in two days.
Tebowing was included as a feature in the Madden NFL 13 video game
I am not what you think of kneeling to pray before, during or after a game or of crossing oneself or looking up to heaven after, for example scoring a goal, however please watch today’s featured video clip. In it Tim explains how he wore references to biblical verses on his eye black and in the 2009 BCS Championship Game, he wore John 3:16 resulting in the verse being the highest-ranked Google search term over the next 24 hours, generating over 90 million hits.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. “
Last weekend was the 2nd anniversary of the first professional production of Risen! The Musical. Here are extracts from the blogs of two years ago that described the day and how it came about:
The Risen! CD was mastered by Andrew Bourbon, a Senior Lecturer at the London College of Music (LCM) which is part of the University of West London based in Ealing. Andrew was so impressed with the show that he told his friends in the Performing Arts Department. I met one in London, Niamh Mcguckin, who Lectures in Voice (which means singing too) and she too was so impressed that she has taken it upon herself to form a cast from LCM students and post -graduates together with fellow professionals. She has acquired the use of the LCM facilities (which are amazing) for rehearsals and intends to have a least 10 rehearsals on Wednesdays and Sundays before the Pentecost production.
So finally, after more than four years of writing, recording and piloting Risen!- The Musical premiered at the Coventry Pentecost Festival on Saturday, May 23rd. It was an unforgettable day, the cast from the London College of Music were absolutely brilliant, not just in their performance but also for being such a great bunch of people to be with. So a huge thanks from me to them for everything that made the day so special – the “flash mob” in the Lower Precinct – Jodie managing a great performance even though poorly sick- the impromptu singing of “Jesus is My Lord” in the Marquee, with that pretty much straight after you arrived after a two and a half hour journey. I will never forget the way that “jaws dropped” when people heard Leah open up the song – they obviously had no idea of how good the cast would be but they certainly found out in those opening few notes! And of course all the commitment, patience and good humour in rehearsing with such a short time available – oh and I nearly forgot, for helping me drink a few glasses of Prosecco!
Tremendous thanks also for the amazing organisation that took place from the Festival Organisers “Hope for Coventry” – Andrew , Angus, Matthew and of course my great mate Darren- Bovis Coulter. Also to Jo the Manager of Holy Trinity Church’s Prayer House ; some parts of this inspiring building were built in the 15th Century and the cast had the privilege of using it for their changing rooms. Just behind us was Coventry Cathedral, which is so impressive with the new building standing side by the side with the original that was bombed in World War Two.
Biggest thanks, however must go to Niamh McGuckin, our brilliant Director who also played Mary Mother of Jesus. With very little time to rehearse she worked tirelessly to ensure that the production was of the highest possible quality. Her humility was also really apparent when she looked so shocked when the cast presented her with a bouquet of flowers in thanks for all her efforts.
So many people said such kind things about Risen!- The Musical but here is a quote from Andrew – one of the organisers:
“Risen! – The Musical” was a wonderful climax to the Coventry Pentecost Festival -we were treated to an uplifting portrayal of the story of Holy Week to Pentecost through amazing songs, word, action and dance by a highly professional team who conveyed the hope of the Gospel very powerfully. We felt truly blessed and privileged to host the premiere of this inspirational musical and everybody I spoke to was blessed by it. We wish you all God’s blessing in the future, and that “Risen!” will bless many thousands of people in the months to come.
CAST
Jesus – Mikey Wooster
Mary Mother of Jesus – Niamh McCuckin
John- Andrew Dovaston
Mary Magdalene- Jodie Quirke
Peter- Kieran Lawson
Mary sister of Martha and Lazarus – Claire Hutchinson
Thomas- Adam Valentine
Mary wife of Clopas – Leah Godbold
James- Johnny Fitzharris
Cleopas- Benny Bright
Cleopas’ friend- Coby Collins
Judas – Ennio Ficiur
“Give Us A Heart on Fire” proceeded by “All Authority” featuring the Original Cast from album Risen! The Musical recorded and produced by Joffy Girling
Last blog I said that I often draw attention to people who are generally regarded as cool and who are also Christians- for example Bear Grylls, Usain Bolt and Jürgen Klopp. I then went on to feature another -the Rugby Union player Mara Itoje.
In that list is the adventurer Bear Grylls who no one on Planet Earth could suggest is anything but a pretty cool guy. He is at present fronting the Alpha Course which seeks to introduce the basics of the Christian faith through a series of talks and discussions. It is described as “an opportunity to explore the meaning of life.” Alpha courses are run in churches, homes, workplaces, prisons, universities and a wide variety of other locations. The Alpha website states that the course has been run in 169 countries and 112 languages, with over 27 million people having taken part.
I should add that it is not the only course introducing people to the Christian faith – there is for example also the excellent “Christianity Explored” which I will look at on another occasion but Alpha had a great influence on me and it was during a course some 20 years ago that I became a Christian. Here is an extract from a blog I wrote some years ago describing the experience:
It starts off with me accepting an invitation from by dear friend Bob Milliken (Mr Mill) who was the Head of RE at Crofton School where I was Head of PE. After many years of refusing invitations to his church I eventually said yes and went to a Service at Porchester Baptist Church with my son Chris, who was about 12 at the time. Here I met Mr Mill’s father who had been a missionary in the Belgian Congo. At the end of the service I asked Mr Milliken if his wife, who had died two years previously, was in heaven and I was astounded by the simplicity and absolute belief by which he replied with a very simple but firm “Yes.” I took Mr Milliken back to his sheltered accommodation in Titchfield with Chris and we listened in awe to his stories of being a missionary.
The next day I rang Mr Mill to say how amazing I thought his dad was – he of course agreed with me. I told Mr Mill that I felt I wanted to go to Midnight Mass that evening and would he come with me. Mr Mill said that his church did not do Midnight Mass but that he would go with me to the church near Crofton School – Holy Rood.
Now often on Christmas Eve I would be down the local pubs having more than a few beers with ex- students so I was rather embarrassed about missing out the Red Lion and Cuckoo Pint and going to Holy Rood. Nevertheless I thought it would be worth it as the heavens would, no doubt, open up for me and I would experience something “spiritual.” However nothing very exciting happened in the Service but at the end a member of Crofton School’s Senior Leadership, Paul Knight, told me he was doing an Alpha Course and would I like to go. I thought “No Way!” Paul is now a close friend but at that time he was simply a member of the Senior Leadership Team so there was no chance of me going to an Alpha course led by him.
All that Christmas holiday I kept bumping into Paul – every time I was invited to a mince pie afternoon he would be there and each time ask the same thing – would I go on an Alpha Course? It turned out that he was not actually leading the course – just attending. He also said that my old mate Paul Hiscock of the Tech department was going so I did soften a bit but not enough to say “Yes.” At the final mince pie afternoon Paul asked me again and exasperated I said “Paul I can’t make Wednesdays – I am coaching Basketball” He replied “It’s on a Tuesday.” I was speechless – I had run out of excuses and so found myself one Tuesday passing the Red Lion and praying (well not really) that I would not be seen going into the Church opposite to my first Alpha night.
I was greeted by a smiling person (obviously a “Do Gooder” I thought) and presented with a badge with my name on it. I expected everyone to be wearing Jesus sandals and when I saw that someone actually was I decided to beat a hasty retreat. -however I then I smelt the curry. Now curry is the staple diet of PE students and teachers so I decided to delay by escape until after I had sampled the Korma.
During the meal I spoke to a lovely lady called Margaret who asked me what I was doing there and when I had difficulty in answering he reassured me that she too was unsure why she was there.
Tasty curry over – perhaps I should give the Vicar a chance? He looked a pretty cool guy and was not wearing a dog collar – not that I had a problem with that – So here we go to the ice cold pews for a boring sermon on Christ dying for my sins just like my past experiences as a choir boy. Actually no not at all! We went upstairs in the Church Centre to a warm and pleasant room with sofas – all rather nice and relaxing. The Vicar, Michael Christian- Edwards (appropriate name I thought) who has also become a dear friend started off with a joke and quite a good one at that – the laughter relaxed everyone and then Michael talked about whether or not Jesus really did exist. I really enjoyed the talk and even more the opportunity to ask questions afterwards- which I did in abundance. What about this and what about that – Michael answered all my questions with patience and great knowledge. I went home thinking I wonder? But there was no way really that I could ever become a Christian – what would my mates say? I would be a laughing stock – “Jesus Freak” and “Bible Basher.” However I went back the next week and then the next and then the next and then, and then – well the rest as they say is history.
“Because of Your Grace” featuring Harun Kotch from the album “The Season of Singing” recorded and produced by Ross Gill
I remember full well being concerned with the names I expected to be called when my friends found out that I had become a Christian. “Bible basher” and “Jesus freak” are two names that spring to mind. I certainly remember that being a Christian was not considered cool by the people I associated with. However to my surprise in turned out that there was no need for me to be concerned as I don’t remember any name calling (well not to my face anyway) and if there was -so what?
Nevertheless in my blog I have often drawn attention to people who are generally regarded as cool and who are also Christians- for example Bear Grylls, Usain Bolt and Jürgen Klopp. Today I would like to highlight another -the Rugby Union player Mara Itoje.
Maro was born in England to Nigerian parents. He made his England Rugby Union debut in 2016 and his 12 caps have included two Six Nations titles – including a Grand Slam in 2016 – plus a 3-0 series whitewash of Australia down under last summer. He has just been selected for the British and Irish Lions Tour of New Zealand this summer. At 22 he will be the youngest tourist.
In a recent interview with the BBC Maro talked of his Christian faith. He said
I feel as if everything I have – everything I have been fortunate to have been given -and the position I am in is a result of God.
Everything I am doing is not through my power but is through God’s power.
I am very fortunate and very happy that God has put me in this position. For me it is about giving the glory and the praise back to Him.
Maro is six foot five inches tall and weighs 18 stone and 4 pounds so I for one am not going to argue with him!!
