Idea based on the message of Hosea. "They ploughed wickedness and judgement sprung up as hemlock in the furrows of thier fields" (Hosea 10:4)

HEMLOCK IN THE FURROWS

Put the trumpet to your lips
Its time to raise the alarm
The eagle's soaring high above
Its the calm before the storm
Every idol that you carved
Lies scattered on the ground
When you were young you sowed the breeze
Now reap the whirlwind!

How can i give you up
or turn you away?
You hold a place in my heart
That no other can take
Jerusalem, Jerusalem

I can feel your sorrow
And understand your pain
For while the prophet played the fool
The wise man went insane
A house that is divided
Cannot hope to stand
You made your choice to sow the breeze
Now reap the whirlwind!

How can i give you up
or turn you away?
You hold a place in my heart
That no other can take
How can I give you up
Or turn my back on you?
With tender chords of love
I will draw you back to myself


Hemlock in the furrows

STAND STILL

Stand still and see the salvation of God
The sun in it's course hesitates at His word
His might without measure addresses our needs
With right hand outstretched His purpose succeeds

Stand still and see His salvation unfold
His mighty deliverance with wonder behold
The breath of His Spirit unsettles the trees
Uprooting the proud in their comfort and ease
Stand still see God's power revealed!

The battle belongs to the Lord
The victory's already won
Our hearts are assured 
For the outcome is known
Before the fight has begun

Stand still and behold His redemption first hand
For who can resist Him, His purpose withstand?
Majestic He rides on the wings of the clouds
Cloaking His steps with the deep as a shroud

Stand still and see His mighty display 
Bold splendour of sunset at the close of the day
The stars in their courses the heavens define
Celestial signposts in space and through time
Stand still see God's power revealed!



Stand Still

FOOLS GOLD

Cruising down an open highway
Heading south on Route 49
I'm on my way to Fortune City 
Basking in the warm sunshine
Got a dollar in my hand
And a pocket full of dreams

California's Golden Highway
Beckons me to take a chance
I roll down into El Dorado
To make my fortune at the 'Union' camp
With the dust still in my eyes
And gold fever in my soul

Well I thought wealth was everything
So money became my goal
But where is the profit when you gain the world
If the cost is to forfeit your soul?

Fool's gold is in my heart, 
has turned my head, this 
Fool's gold is poisoning my soul

Been working the mine for a year now
Still searching for the mother lode
Hoping I will strike it lucky 
Still driven by this lust for gold
But memories of the past
Weigh heavy on my soul

I'm going back to West Virginia
My heart is calling me home
I've spent too long here in this city
My strength has been stripped to the bone
Got a quarter in my hand 
And a pocket full of holes

Fool's gold is in my heart, 
has turned my head, this 
Fool's gold is poisoning my soul

Don't be fooled by 
Fool's gold is in my heart, 
has turned my head, this 
Fool's gold is poisoning my soul


Fool's Gold

CLASS OF 73

when we were young and free
we carried in our hearts a vision
they called us wise beyond our years
we took a stand to fight injustice and oppression
we had a dream to change the world

we gave the best, the best we had to offer
our aim was far beyond our reach 
we followed hard in the footsteps of the Master
we were the men to fill the breach

but with the passing of the years
and little changing
our expectations unfulfilled
when did we give up hope, surrender our convictions
give up the fight and quit the race?

was that the best, the best that we could offer?
it only shows how far we fall
when we compare ourselves against the Master
who freely gave His life for all
His life for all, His life for all
who freely gave His life for all

when we are old and frail
we'll carry in our hearts a memory
vague recollections of the things 
that might have been 
and they will write this epithath upon our gravestones
"these were the best intentioned men"

is this the best, the best that we can offer?
is there nothing left to give?
when we compare ourselves against the Master
who gave His life that we might live

don't give up, 
no don't give in 
where there's breath 
there's hope to change



Class of 73

FREEDOM'S VOICE

Freedom's voice is a mighty wind
Sweeping through the land 
Promoting change
Uprooting kingdoms
Turning upside down
The rule of tyrants 
Who would seek to put us down

Freedom's voice is a raging fire
Purifies the soul 
Re-kindling desire
Consuming all 
Lying in it's path
Refining silver, purging all the dross

You shall know the truth
When you hear Him 
You shall know the truth 
When you meet Him
Know the truth 
The truth to set you free

Don't believe the devil's lies
Jesus is the truth and the life
He's the way to God 
He's the One who can set you free
Set you free

Freedom's voice is a gentle breeze
That moves our hearts 
Like the swaying of the trees
The chill of ice 
in the scorching heat of day
The gentle voice showing us the way

(Soundtrack extract of Martin Luther King "I've Been to the Mountaintop" Speech delivered 3 April 1968, Mason Temple, Memphis, Tennessee)


Freedom's Voice

PSALM 139

Lord you have searched me
You know all my paths
You perceive all my thoughts from afar
You know when I sit
You know when I rise
Watching over me hour by hour
You know when I come
You know when I go
And there's never a day goes by
I'm not down down on my knees
Giving thanks for your wonderful love

Lord you have searched me
You know all my ways
There's nothing thats hid from your sight
Even the darkness
Will shine like the day
For with you day and night are alike
You know all the words 
In my mouth even before
They are formed on my tongue
How can I fathom the depths of your wonderful love?

Where can I go? Where can I run?
Where can I hide from your all seeing Spirit?
If I ascend into the heavens
If I descend into the abyss
If I should take the wings of the morning
And fly to the ends of the earth
Your right hand will guide me 
And always be holding me fast

Lord you created my innermost soul
I know I am fearfully made
My frame was not hidden
While still in the womb
Being formed in the secret place
You knit me together
and wove all my parts
While still in the depths of the earth
You brought forth a child to this world
on the day of my birth

Search me Oh God, look deep in my heart
Test me and know all my anxious thoughts
Search me Oh God and see if there be
an offensive way in me
Search me Oh God, Search me Oh God
Lead me in all of your ways
all the days of my life



Psalm 139

UNTO YOU WHO BELIEVE

Unto you who believe He is precious
He's the Christ, God's Chosen One
For the stone that the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone

He's the solid Rock
on which we stand
the God in whom we trust
the promised One from ages past
Through whom mankind is blessed

Unto you who believe He is precious
The Messiah, God's Holy One
For the stone that the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone

He's the solid Rock
for those with faith
who listen to His call
but a stumbling block to those who doubt
a rock to make men fall



Unto You Who Believe

THEREFORE WITH JOY

Therefore with joy
Shall you draw water
Out of the well 
of His salvation
the depths of His love

The Lord has become my salvation
I will trust and not be afraid
The Lord is my strength 
He's my hope, He's my joy
I will sing to Him
all of my days

Therefore With Joy

THOSE WHO TRUST

Those who trust
In the LORD
Like mount Zion 
will never be moved

As the mountains 
surround Jerusalem
So the LORD will surround
Those who put their trust in Him
 

Those Who Trust

BAND OF SURVIVORS 

Hard pressed on every side
Crushed yet we don't despair 
Perplexed, bewildered
Rejected everywhere
Persued, exhausted
In peril from the sword
Wounded and left for dead
Struck down but not destroyed

A band of survivors
Scattered through every land in every age
A band of survivors
Trusting in God, living their lives on the edge

Hunted each way we turn 
Distressed yet we don't give in 
Focussed on things eternal 
Eyes fixed on things unseen
Watching and waiting 
Within no trace of fear
In spite of all these things
We remain and will endure

A band of survivors
Pilgrims in every land and every age
A band of survivors
Trusting in God, living our lives at the edge



Band Of Survivors

TRIBUTE TO THE MASTER ARTIST 

Where did you find such harmony of colour
When you first began to paint the dawn
Blending sight and scent and sound together
To compliment the rising sun?
What is the hidden combination 
To unlock the secret of the colour wheel?
Where did you find such inspiration 
When you designed the blueprint for the dawn?

I try to match you stroke for stroke
To the embarrassment of a blushing canvas
Shades of crimson alizarin
Wash into a sea of cerulean blue
Whatever made me think I could capture
Something of the beauty of creation’s rapture
Try as I may I can never reach 
The quality of handiwork 
In your “Morning” masterpiece


Hemlock in the furrows

Sons Of Korah