Month: August 2011

Last, but not least, is submission #4, in which Greg gets down with his bad self.

Here’s what Faith Alive was looking for:

1 Corinthians 13: 1-4  and 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 : The memory work from 1 Corinthians appears in two successive units.  I’m kind of thinking rap for this.  Could be cool—and it needs to speak to 4^th and 5^th graders (the new young teens!)

Here’s the move I busted: MP3, PDF

This is just a demo to get the idea across, but I plan to make the final recording sound a bit like Eminem and Rihanna’s “Love the Way You Lie” (minus the cursing and violence). I’m guessing Eminem and Rihanna aren’t going to put out a scripture song album any time soon, so if anyone knows Toby Mac’s or KJ-52’s people, let me know. I think this could work for one of them.

What would a set of children’s songs be without a round? Submission #3 keeps things from getting square.

Here’s what they asked for:

Mark 5: 36b: This is a very short verse.  Need a catchy chorus-feel that will work well with kindergarten and grade 1

Here’s what I wrote: MP3, PDF

Like “The Colors of the Covenant,” the first half of this is scripture and the second half is application–but this one is in super compact form. My hope is that this song will roll around in kids’ heads when they’re feeling scared. Kind of like “God is Bigger than the Boogie Man,” but without the talking vegetables.

In day two of my Faith Alive scripture song submissions, I get a little whimsical.

Here’s what they wanted:

Genesis 1: 1,31: We need a catchy version of these two verses for K-1.  Could include animals, animal sounds, etc.  Maybe an island feel.

Here’s what I came up with: MP3, PDF

I could extol the virtues of a singable melody, an upbeat acoustic reggae style (watch your back Bruno Mars), and a simple call-and-response form that will let non-readers sing along. But all I need to say is beluga, arugula.

A few weeks back Faith Alive put out a call for scripture songs for children and tweens. The email listed four scriptures in their Sunday school curriculum for which they need songs. There’s nothing that motivates me more than this kind of scripture song challenge. (I can’t wait until their Sunday School curriculum moves into Leviticus!) For the next four days I’ll post a new one each day.

Here’s what they wanted:

Genesis 9: 12-13: Something appropriate for 2nd and 3rd graders. Could use the line “This is a sign of the covenant as a chorus”? This one will be a challenge!

Here’s what I gave them: MP3, PDF

I especially like the words on this one. The alliteration in the title gets things started. The first verse succinctly tells the story of Noah, culminating in the rainbow of the chorus. (Not as easy as it seems, by the way.) The second verse applies the story of the rain, rainbow, and the covenant to those of us who are singing the song. Of course, this is a lot of words for 2nd and 3rd graders to sing. It wasn’t clear whether the song is intended for listening or singing, so we’ll see whether it’s accepted or not.