Update 1/15/22: Sheet music for this song is now available at gregscheer.com.
I first heard “Ready My Heart” on Steve Bell’s CD Each Rare Moment over a decade ago. It’s been an integral part of my church’s Advent ever since. It is a unique Advent song, a devotional text in which we pray that our hearts would be prepared to cradle the coming Savior.
It was written by Lois Shuford in the late 70s. I’m not sure how Steve Bell found it, but it certainly wasn’t due to a promotional campaign on Shuford’s part–in email correspondence a while back, she just seemed pleased and maybe a little surprised that the song had taken on a life of its own.
Head over to gregscheer.com for resources for using “Ready My Heart” in your church. Shuford is not registered with CCLI and seems pleased to have churches sing the song as long as they attribute the song to her. If that changes, I’ll update the information here.
Here’s the song in action at Church of the Servant: http://musicblog.gregscheer.com/ready_my_heart_confession.mp3