songs we love.

I have had the pleasure of using and singing “All Who Are Thirsty” in worship countless times and it seems to be a really versatile song when it comes to when and how to use it.   The words invite us to come as we are, “thirsty” and “weak”, to Jesus.  In the gospel of John, Jesus himself invites us to do the same:

³⁷On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. ³⁸Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” ³⁹By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. (John 7:37-39)

Indeed, Jesus does satisfy us through the power of the Holy Spirit when we come to him.

I think this song works particularly well during communion.  There aren’t a whole lot of words to learn, which makes it easy to sing and to be praying or meditating at the same time.  The lyrics serve as a reminder of what coming to the table and eating the bread and drinking the wine means for us as Christians.  Jesus died for us and in doing so, cleansed us of our sins.

The words of “All Who Are Thirsty” remind us of our baptism, where we are literally washed, and help us to reflect on the meaning of baptism and Christ’s death and suffering, which is also part of what we do during Lent.  So I think that’s another possibility for using this piece.  I’ve used this song during Advent, as well, especially the chorus.  I definitely get a sense of anticipation in that part of the song that I think is also present in the season of Advent, as we await the birth of our Savior.  One thing that I’ve done to help people get there on their own is, after singing the chorus a whole bunch of times, move into the refrain of “Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel.  It’s a tricky transition to make because of the change from 6/8 to 4/4, but if you’ve got strong leaders who know exactly how it’s going to happen, the congregation catches on pretty quickly, in my experience.  Once they hear the “Rejoice!” part, they’re golden.

I like the variety this song can bring to worship because of its meter.  There aren’t a whole lot of songs (that I can think of off the top of my head, anyway) that are in a compound meter.  (Now watch: I’ll get done writing this and then I’ll run across dozens of them…)  It’s not a terribly fast song and I think that, coupled with the waltz feel, really contributes to what the lyrics are all about.  It’s a prayer and I think it really does feel like one.

The chord progressions are fairly simple and easy to prepare by any sort of ensemble.  I think it’s important to keep in mind that this is a more introspective song and that the make-up of the ensemble should reflect that.  So I think that (acoustic) guitar, bass, and a really light, simple drum beat could be really effective.  Especially if the drum waits to come in till the second time the verse is sung, or something.  A piano or keyboard could be a really nice layer, especially in the 1.5 measures between lines of the chorus where there’s no singing.  A violin or cello would also sound really great and could add harmony to the chorus or could provide an obbligato part on the chorus or bridge.  Really the song just lends itself well to all sorts of creativity and could be prepared in a number of different ways.  I’ve heard at least three recordings of this song and they’re each different and unique and bring different flavors to the song.  So have some fun with it and let its purpose in your worship drive what you do with it.

Where to find it:

-          ccli.com (# 2489542)

-          praisecharts.com

Notable recordings:

-          Brenton Brown – Introducing Brenton Brown EP

-          Jeremy Riddle – Home Again

-          Kutless – Strong Tower

Hear it now:

Download on iTunes