New Song 17: Let Your justice reign

New Song 17: Let Your justice reign
Let Your justice reign – Demo

I started writing this song several years ago. It was inspired by a small passage highlighted by one of my friends. He had used in the Sunday school class we were running.

Proverbs 31:8-9
Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute
Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy

This song has gone through many iterations. here is the original version.

Verse 1:
If we stand for those who cannot stand,
If we speak for those without a voice
If we pray, prayers for of faith, we’ll see a change

If we dance all over injustice
And cry out for everyone in pain
If we treat everyone as equal, we’ll see a change
Lives will be changed

Chorus:
Let justice reign, let justice reign
Open the eyes of the world, to see the suffering and pain

Verse 2:
If we lead the broken back to Jesus, and share the gospel with the lost,
If we show the love of the Father, lives will be changed
Lives will be saved

Chorus 2:
Let justice reign, let justice reign
Set our hearts on fire, to see justice reign again

Tag:
You’re calling us to the last, the least, the lost
To see justice flow like the river
Righteousness like a never-failing stream, never-failing stream

This was one of the two songs I had planned to submit for the new People’s Album so I requested a little bit of guidance from Tim Hughes. He highlighted a few key things. Firstly he felt the gap between the verse and chorus was too big. On the lyrics side he point out that it is God that saves not us and that world is very much aware of the suffering and pain and doesn’t really need its eyes opened to it.

I went back to drawing board and started work on the chorus again. This is the version I finally submitted.

Verse 1:
If we stand for those who cannot stand,
If we speak for those without a voice
If we pray, trusting in Your word, we’ll see a change

Chorus:
Let justice reign, let justice reign
Lord we cry out to You, to see this world changed

Verse 2:
We will lead the broken back to Jesus,
And share the gospel with the lost,
We will live as Your hands and feet, Lord You will save

Chorus 2:
Let justice reign, let justice reign
Set our hearts on fire, to see injustice end

Tag:
You’re calling us to the last, the least, the lost
To see justice flow like the river
Righteousness like a never-failing stream, never-failing stream

The song wasn’t selected but I thought I would post in on the worship central website to get a more opinions. I received a private message from Chris Sayburn who was interested in working on the song with me. He re-worked some of the verse and we had a few e-mails about it but no progress was made on the chorus. These were the changes.

Verse 1
If we stand for those who cannot stand,
If we speak for those without a voice
If we pray, trusting in Your word,
We’ll see change, We’ll see change

Verse 2
If we love those who know no love
If we give to those who cannot give
If we go, living out Your word
We’ll see change, we’ll see change

Verse 3:
We will stand for those who can not stand
We will speak for those without a voice
We will pray, trusting in Your word
We’ll see change, In Jesus’ name.

Verse 4:
We will love those who know no love
We will give to those who cannot give
We will go,living out Your word
We’ll see change, we’ll see change

Three years I came back to the song again with new ideas for the chorus. I finally settled on this

Chorus:
As we go, Lord You will save
By Your power, we’ll see lives changed
And as we live as Your hand and feet
Let Your justice reign
Let Your justice reign

Last week a gave a copy of this final version to the person who heads up the worship at my church. These are the final lyrics.

Verse 1
If we stand for those who cannot stand,
If we speak for those without a voice
If we pray, trusting in Your word,
We’ll see change, We’ll see change

Verse 2
If we love those who know no love
If we give to those who cannot give
If we go, living out Your word
We’ll see change, we’ll see change

Chorus:
As we go, Lord You will save
By Your power, we’ll see lives changed
And as we live as Your hand and feet
Let Your justice reign
Let Your justice reign

Verse 3:
We will stand for those who can not stand
We will speak for those without a voice
We will pray, trusting in Your word
We’ll see change, In Jesus’ name.

Verse 4:
We will love those who know no love
We will give to those who cannot give
We will go,living out Your word
We’ll see change, we’ll see change

New Song 16: Oh, how I love You

New Song 16: Oh, how I love You
Oh, how I love You – Demo

Recently I decided to flick through a small notepad I was given around 10 years ago. It has lots of song ideas and lyrics in it from over the years. I came across one page which had just a few lines and chords. I don’t remember how it went, as a result I just started playing what felt natural.

After a short time I had the melody I liked which could be sung in a higher octave as well.

Oh, how I love You
Oh, how I love You
Oh, how I love You Lord
How I love You Lord

A few weeks later I started working on a verses. It was very simple. I jiggled around with a few lines and come up with a little bridge. This song is probably not finished but this is how it stands at the moment.

Verse 1:
Name above all names
What sacrifice You gave
Standing in my place
Took the sins of the world
And placed them on Your shoulders
Now I’ll never be the same

Bridge:
And my heart,
It cries out
And my soul,
Oh it sings

Chorus:
Oh, how I love You
Oh, how I love You
Oh, how I love You Lord
How I love You Lord

New Song Week 15: This is the God

New Song Week 15: This is the God
This is the God – Demo

I’m still catching up with the songs and I haven’t had time to finish the recordings yet but they will be coming soon. There’s not really a story to go with this song. The segments of the songs were pretty much created in the order below and haven’t really had any changes. The one major change was the line “And reaches out to the poor”; originally it was “and feeds the poor”.

Verse 1:
Love that goes beyond the grave
Grace strong enough to save
The Saviour that out lasts time
He’s overwhelmingly sublime

Chorus:
This is the God who welcomes all
Who loves the lost
And reaches out to the poor
The Saviour who gave it all
Through death that gave life
The perfect sacrifice

Verse 2:
The Father to the fatherless
He restores us in the quietness
Took our sin so we might live
And sacrificed Himself instead

Bridge:
He is awesome, He is worthy
He is glorious, and He is mighty
He is powerful, and He is strong
He reigns forever
His love goes on and on and on
His love goes on and on and on

New Song Week 14: So much higher

New Song Week 13: So much higher
So much higher – Demo – coming soon

About 8 years ago I was given a gift by a friend at Christmas. It was a small little square notepad. I kept it on my almost all the time and it was especially good for jotting down song ideas. The very first page I used contained the verse to the song. The next few pages contained several attempts at a chorus. No matter how much I tried I couldn’t find anything that I felt worked.

A month or two ago I came across my notepad again and started using it to jot more song ideas in. I’ve since started to go through it to look at some of my older song ideas and came back to this song. It’s great to come back to a song with fresh eyes, new experiences and new revelations. A new chorus flowed quite naturally while I played the verse. I can’t decide if it is finished yet but at the moment I’m happy with it.

Verse:
I’m giving up my life
To You my King
My hearts a sacrifice
An offering
I bow down, bow down

I’m giving up my heart
To You
Everything I am
And everything I do
I bow down, bow down

Chorus:
So much higher You must be
So we worship at Your feet
Bowed down
Crying You are Holy
Here I am, take all of me
For God You are everything
Jesus You are Holy

GameFest 2011: The Games Part 2

GameFest 2011: The Games Part 2

Here is the second half of my run down of games from Gamesfest. Move features highly and every game is a PS3 exclusive due out before Christmas.

Journey (PS3)

I didn’t even spot Journey was there initially, it was only on my third walk around the PlayStation area that I stumbled upon it. I picked it up already in the middle of the level with no idea what the controls were or what I should be doing. The vast open area seemed a bit daunting without any direction but I soon picked it up. The graphics were some of the best I’ve seen and the way your character glides through the air and sand is amazing. The premise seemed simply enough on the levels I played. The game certainly has the feel of a sequel to Flower.

Shadow of the Colossus HD (PS3)

I missed out on Ico and Shadow of the Colossus on the PS2 so I was quite keen to try at least one of them out with the HD re-release out very soon. The controls are very Japanese, triangle for jump rather than X is an example. Graphically is still looks like a PS2 game rather than a PS3 one but the controls are slick. The 3D was a little disappointing, there appeared to be layers of 3D as though everything was made from cardboard cut outs (the Sony 3D glasses also struggled to fit over the glasses I usually wear). This still looks well worth picking up as the combined release will sell for under £30.

Resistance 3 (PS3)

I already have Resistance 3 at home rented from Lovefilm; it may seem strange I still played some of the single player. My main reason wasn’t the game but the controller. I’ve played a little with the Dual Shock 3 at home but I’ve mainly used the Move controllers. At Gamefest I was able to try out Move using the Sharp Shooter add-on. Having already played the level before I was able to get a good idea of how good it is. It took a little getting used to, working out where some of the buttons were, but once you get the hand of it the Sharp Shooter is brilliant. Letting the gun lean into your body helps with accuracy. The reload buttons are nicely placed for quick re-load (on both side of the control so it will work for right and left hand people). It’s adjustable so you can it get as comfortable as possible. At £35 it is still a little pricey but it may be the only way to play future FPS.

Uncharted 3 (PS3)

I was a little disappointed that only the multiplayer was available. I’m not much of a multiplayer person, especially on shooters. Uncharted 3 played exactly as you’d expect. I couldn’t really fault it but I did keep feeling like this really isn’t the point of Uncharted. It’s the characterisation, plot and puzzles that make it such a great game. The multiplayer has none of this.

DanceStar Party (PS3)

Following on from SingStar Dance, DanceStar Party comes as its own full game with a redesigned menu system and especially designed videos and animations during songs. This feels like a proper game rather than an add-on. It doesn’t try and reinvent the wheel; it’s a solid dance game using the Move controller. How much you’ll enjoy it really depends on whether you like the song list, there wasn’t much for me personally.

Medieval Moves: Deadman’s Quest (PS3)

With the absence of Sorcery we have had to rely on Medieval Moves for our Christmas Move game this year. It’s been created but the team behind Sports Champions; you can quickly see how they’ve brought in the gladiator duelling, frisbee toss and archery in to this game. It’s an on the rails game but don’t let that put you off, the action is fast paced and plays a lot better than the E3 demonstration suggested. It’s not the system seller Move needs but it’s not a bad game and it seems to have a bit of meat to it.

New Song Week 13: Your name and Your glory

New Song Week 13: Your name and Your glory
Your name and Your glory – Demo – coming soon

This was the last song that I introduced at Wymondham Baptist Church before moving to Gateway Vineyard in Norwich. It came in more unusual way for me. I’d previously given a CD of song to our former temporary church leader before our church split. He was very complimentary about the songs but suggested I include more scripture. One evening I decided to go through Psalms. I came across Psalm 102. Most of the lyrics are variations on the exact words in the NIV translation of the psalm.  You can see below which verses I’ve drawn on for the lyrics.

Hear my prayer, LORD;
   let my cry for help come to you.
² Do not hide your face from me
   when I am in distress.
Turn your ear to me;
   when I call, answer me quickly.

¹¹ My days are like the evening shadow;
   I wither away like grass.

¹² But you, LORD, sit enthroned forever;
   your renown endures through all generations.
¹³ You will arise and have compassion on Zion,
   for it is time to show favor to her;
   the appointed time has come.

¹⁵ The nations will fear the name of the LORD,
   all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.

Capo 4

Verse 1:
G
Hear my prayer O Lord
Em                 C                   G
    Turn Your ear to hear my cry
G
Do not hide Your face
Em            C                                G
     When I call, please answer me Lord

Bridge:
Em                                D
  My days are like the evening shadow
Em                          D
  My heart withers like the grass
Em                            D
  My hope’s secure for on Christ
Cmaj7                   D
  The solid rock I stand

Chorus:
G                                                                  D                                 C
You never change, You never fade            You’re always the same
G                                                                  D                                 C
You never change, You never fade            You’re always the same
G                                             D
You sit enthroned, Your forever renown
              Em                      D
You will,    rise with compassion
        G                                     D
The nations will fear, world leaders revere
Em                                   D
    Your name and Your glory

New Song Week 12: Time

New Song Week 12: Time
Time – Demo (Coming Soon)

It’s now been over 3 weeks since I last posted a song so I’m going to try a catch up over the next couple of weeks. I’ve been a bit short of time but have started writing some new songs. This is one of the oldest songs I’ve posted so far and it’s theme is quite fitting. I still lived at home when I wrote, I was very busy and I felt I never seemed to have enough time for “quality” time with God but it was something I was after. The lyrics have never really changed from the first draft. There isn’t a chorus as such as the lyrics change every time.

Verse 1:
C                               Am    C                        Am
I can’t seem to find the time, all I do gets on top me
C                                 Am     C                               Am
I know this loves worth more, all this can wait for You

Chorus 1:
Em                                   Am
Shouldn’t need to find the time
Em                      Am
Distractions fill my mind
G                          Am
I know all will be alright
C               Am
For You remain

Verse 2:
Oh how time goes by, still these passion burn within me
How I’ve pushed You aside, I want to change the way that I’ve been

Chorus 2:
You’re the center of my life
You’ve made my burdens light
I know all will be all right
For You remain

Bridge:
G                           Em
So I’ll push aside the works that keep me ground
G                                Em
Released from chains that have slowed me down
            Am                        Em                   C
And I’ll run for You, Oh I’ll run for You

Verse 3:
You’ve breathed in me new life
Already won the fight
I’ll give the time to make it right
So we’ll remain

3000 Trophies & Counting (Platinums)

3000 Trophies & Counting (Platinums)

Trophies went live on the PlayStation 3 on 2nd July 2008. It’s taken me just over 3 years but I have just reached the 3000 trophy milestone (about 80 a month or 2 1/2 a day). My first trophy was 3 years ago “First Treasure” on Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune.

Going through all 3000 is taken quite some time so I thought I’d just start with the Platinums to begin with (if you didn’t know, these are the trophies you received for getting every other trophy on the basic version of a full release game – some download games also have them).

1. Ashes Cricket – Simple, enjoyable cricket game
2. Buzz Quiz TV- Buzz has always been a favourite in my house by I ended up with some of these trophies by accident due to a game glitch
3. CSI: Fatal Conspiracy – a christmas present in 2010, not an awful detective game based on the TV show but should have been so much better (merge it with LA Noire and you’ve really got a game)
4. Dante’s Inferno – from the Dead Space developers, based on The Divine Comedy. It’s a God and War style button smasher. Great at the time but not in the same league as God of War III.
5. Fifa 09 – This took many hours. Having an online section disabled by EA almost made this impossible but it was earned in the end
6. Hannah Montana The Movie – one of my first and it only took 4 hours. Not a bad game if you’re 5 and like Hannah Montana, not so great for me
7. Heavy Rain – one of my favourite games. I really enjoyed Fahrenheit and Heavy Rain with it’s great plot and multiple endings was a pleasure to play over and over again.
8. Infamous – one of the first platinum I was really proud to have earned. It required two play throughs but spread over enough time both were enjoyable.
9. Lego Harry Potter: Year 1-4 – I love Lego games. Each one takes about 30 hours to platinum but that makes it great value for money
10. Lego Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues – the PS3 Lego game with trophies, not as good as the first Lego Indy
11. Lego Pirates of the Caribbean – a return to Lego form, I had to play this careful so I had enough time to see the fourth film before playing the game.
12. Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars – having not seen the TV series the levels meant less to me than other Lego games but the RTS elements were an interesting change
13. Mini Ninjas – silly little platformer but has plenty of charm
14. Prison Break – this didn’t keep to the TV series as much as I would have liked. It had good elements in the game but fell short of capturing what made the series great
15. Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time – the third PS3 Ratchet game but the first with trophies. A great excuse to play more Ratchet and Clank
16. Sly Cooper 1 – an HD upgrade of the PS2 classic. I missed out on it on the PS2 but the HD collection was a great christmas present
17. Sly Cooper 2 – A nice upgrade from the first game, very good to see number in the works
18. Terminator Salvation – the game was just ok, a bit of a slog at times and the story telling wasn’t great but neither was the film
19. Toy Story 3 – one of the surprises of this generation. The Toy Box mode was brilliant and the story levels carefully chosen.
20. Trivial Pursuit – just like the board game and a bit disappointing
21. Up – not in the same league as Toy Story 3 but a decent enough game for kids.
22. Cars 2 – Rather the following the movie the game takes many aspects of the film and creates a cross between Mario Kart and Need for Speed. A very enjoyable 3D split screen racer with the added fun of the Cars characters.
23. LA Noire – I wasn’t actually trying to get the platinum for this but I got so close while playing the game I thought I may as well. The detective nature of the game was something I really enjoyed.
24. International Cricket 2010 – The last Platinum, this is the follow-up the Ashes cricket game.

There were a couple of games that glitched on me preventing me getting the platinum. EyePet didn’t store all the costumes when installing the Move add-on and Assassin’s Creed II glitch when I found all the glyphs but the trophy didn’t pop up.  I tried for ages on Batman Arkham Asylum but in the end just couldn’t do the very last challenge,

By the time I actually finished writing this I’ve almost picked up number 25. Phineas and Ferb is a very short game that keeps some of the charm of the TV show, it a very large number of hidden trophies.

GameFest 2011: The Games Part 1

GameFest 2011: The Games Part 1

There were queues of 3 or more hours for games like Modern Warfare 3, Battlefield 3, Syrim, Assassin’s Creed etc… which I duly decided to skip. That didn’t stop game getting to play some of the best new games out this year at GameFest 2011 at the NEC in Birmingham. Here are the first 6.

Ratchet & Clank: All for one (PS3)

Despite downloading the beta this was my first trial of All for One. I was playing the game in two player mode (with my Dad who has little R&C experience). Despite adding multiplayer for the first time this was a typical Ratchet & Clank experience. There were a few good uses of co-op swinging action to traverse the course and the controls were as solid as ever. I assume this was an early build as the characters didn’t look quite as sharp as previous titles. The only thing I didn’t like too much was that the characters were a little too small on the screen; this was primarily due to having to accommodate extra players.

Fifa 12 (PS3) – also available on all consoles

The version of Fifa 12 they had available in the PlayStation area was the demo currently available for download on the PSN store. I sat down with one of my brothers for a game. I had the edge having already tried the demo and the new defending moves. Fifa has improved in just about every area but as usually you’ll need to fine tune your ability to some subtle changes. Getting the ball of players is a little harder than before but it is always harder to score one you get near the box. A few weeks of play will probably change that.

Disney Universe (Xbox 360) – also available on PS3 and Wii

We sat down to watch a 30 minute presentation about the game which unveiled a few levels not previously announced (we spotted Aladdin and Hercules). Afterwards we got a chance to go hands on. I actually had two plays (my wife had three; even my Dad had someone to one tuition for the game). Disney Universe is basically a proper 3D platform version of LittleBigPlanet minus Sackboy and only Disney costumes and worlds. That isn’t a bad thing. The levels are a mix of co-op and verses, both at the same time. You need everyone to work together to progress but every level is a competition for top score (scoring points for kills, collecting coins etc…). With it being Disney it has quirky elements, how much you enjoy it may also depend on how much Disney you know. It is certainly a great four player family game.

The Adventures Of Tin tin: The Secret Of The Unicorn (PS3)

I’m not certain whether every level is the same but in my brief time playing Tin tin it was limit to just a side scrolling platformer. The controls were crisp, as were the visuals but the actual game lacked that a spark. I did get to try some combat and some stealth takedowns, both were satisfying. The game shows promise but what I saw didn’t show quite enough.

Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure (Wii)

This was probably my worst experience of the day. They appear to have turned Spyro into a vehicle to sell toys rather than video games but this is unlikely to meet anywhere near Pokemon levels. We played Spyro on the Wii which wasn’t great from a visual or gameplay stand point (Xbox 360 and PS3 both looked better on-screen but we didn’t get a chance to go hands on). In front of the console was a circular stand where you placed Sypro characters. You require one of these to be on the disc to play and I overheard a rep say that using new toys will provide the user with new levels. An interesting take on DLC but the game felt very tired and old. There was a lack of sign posting which we had no idea where to go. The level we were playing seemed to suggest that this won’t be an open world 3D platformer as every route was down a narrow path which limited any real feel of exploration. Spyro hasn’t been same since it left Insomniac and this doesn’t look like a return to form.

Sonic Generation (3DS and PS3) – also available on Xbox 360 and Wii

I first started off playing this on the 3DS (only my 2nd experience with 3DS). This was much better than when I played Ridge Racer. Being a platform meant that I found it easier to keep the console in the right place for the 3D; the 3D was actually pretty decent and it’s the first time I’ve seen the real benefit in a handheld. The downside was that the size of the screen meant the game suffered. The graphics looked great as you go through the various iterations of Sonic but you had to squint to see it all. That’s a fault of the console not the game but Sonic did seem a little small on the screen. The PS3 version has even more impressive graphics and if it gets 3D included (which would be amazing) then it would be the ultimate experience for the game. The only issue with the game is that it does feel like we’ve been here too often before. If you haven’t already bought Sonic then this is a great addition to your collection.

England in safe hands?

England in safe hands?

Since the loss of David Seaman after the World Cup in Japan/South Korea England have been desperately in search of a new number one. For a time Paul Robinson, David James, Robert Green and Scott Carson have all held the shirt with other keepers like Kirkland and Foster have also fought for the position. None of them present the right skills or ability to hold on to the shirt of much time or be able to compete with other world class keepers.

Since David Seaman lost the England shirt we have also see a big decline in English keepers at top teams. Liverpool have tried more than most to establish an English keeper as their number one but have regularly been let down (Carson, James, Kirkland). Robert Green has been linked with Arsenal and Spurs but in the end has had to settle for two relegations from the Premier League. Ben Foster has been a cup winner at Manchester United (where he struggled to get games) as well as Birmingham where he was also relegated. He has now taken Scott Carson’s shirt at West Brom who has had to find football abroad. David James decided to drop down a division when he left Portsmouth and has been unable to get a call up since.

The few good keepers we do have are also turning their backs on playing for England, both Paul Robinson and Ben Forster are in international retirement/taking a break from international football. Times are worrying.

At present there are only four first choice English keepers in the Premier League which includes Joe Hart, the current number one, but the competition is limited.

1. Joe Hart – Manchester City – Current England number 1.
2. Paul Robinson – Blackburn Rovers – International Retirement 3. Ben Foster – West Brom – Taking a break from International Football 4. John Ruddy – Norwich City – No caps

There are a few other English keeps in the top flight but they are struggling for football. Stockdale at Fulham has needed to go to Ipswich on loan to find football and is now playing in one of the leakiest defences in the country. Another is Declan Rudd who has only just got his first under 21 call up and has played just 30 minutes of Premier League football for Norwich following John Ruddy’s red card.

It’s a tough time for English keepers as they struggle to make it at top teams and England must wonder what will they do if and when Joe Hart gets an injury.