This blog is dedicated to the amateur or beginner musician with music written in a simple and easy to read Alpha Notes format and with Chords for the left hand. This is to assist those with little or hardly at all note reading skills. This is a blog that shows all the chords in Alpha Notes format too which you can find the notes for the chords in one of the blogs. Please feel free to leave a comment or any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Enjoy!
When He Shall Come was composed by Almeda J. Pearce. 1 Thessalonians 4:17 says this: “Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (ESV).
Almeda Pearce’s husband Rowan was a Bible teacher who often
spoke on prophetic subjects. But it was a personal experience that particularly
drew Mrs. Pearce to the theme of this song. She suffered from haemophilia, a
condition in which the blood has an insufficient clotting factor, resulting in
excessive and dangerous bleeding problems. There was some hope that transfusions of her husband’s blood
would help, but his was the wrong type. In her discouragement Almeda felt the
nearness of death, but the Lord gave her a sense of His presence, and peace
returned. It was her renewed vision of the glories of the eternal kingdom, in
contrast to “this veil of night” in which we live, that inspired her hymn.
Finally, a blood donor was found that could help her, and she lived to the age
of seventy-three.
I am reminded of the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25. All ten appeared on the surface to have done the right things to be in the right place at the right time to meet the bridegroom. Five of those virgins did not bring enough oil to last until the bridegroom came, so they missed the wedding.
When Christ returns at the end of the age, or when he comes for us individually like he did for my aunt and four friends, there will be many who lived life trying to be safe and believing that they had done everything needed to be ushered into heaven. Tragically they will be caught unaware that of all of the things needed to be safe, they missed the only truly important thing—oil for their lamps. This is the Holy Spirit, given to all who believe in Christ, so their lamps will never go out.
Time is short for all people, whether Christ returns this year or in a thousand years. For many, their struggle to stay safe and be ready for the end will be futile because they never received oil for their lamps.
Will you join with your fellow members and friends in church to pray that God would add many more to his family of those whose lamps are filled and ready? Will you give so that many more will hear and receive the Good News that Jesus Christ has already come once to give them all that is required of them to be ready to meet him with joy “when he shall come” again?
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics:
When He shall come resplendent in His Glory, To take His own from out this vale of night, O may I know the joy at His appearing, Only at morn to walk with Him in white.
When He shall call from earth's remotest corners All who have stood triumphant in His might, O to be worthy then to stand beside them And in that morn to walk with Him in white.
When I shall stand within the court of Heaven Where white robed pilgrims pass before my sight, Earth's martyred saints and bloodwashed overcomers These then are they who walk with Him in white.
Thirty Pieces of Silver was written by Ira F. Stanphill. Ira Forest Stanphill (February 14, 1914 – December 30, 1993) was a well-known Americangospel music songwriter of the mid-twentieth century.
Ira Stanphill was born in Bellview, New Mexico. Stanphill's parents were Andrew Crittenton Stanphill and Maggie Flora Engler Stanphill. He and his family spent most of his younger years in Coffeyville, Kansas. He was saved when he was 12, and he graduated high school in 1932. He was called to preach soon after graduating Chillicothe (Missouri) Junior College at age 22. On April 28, 1939, the Southern Missouri District Council of the Assemblies of God ordained Stanphill to the gospel ministry.
Stanphill began preaching when he was 22., first in a summer traveling ministry with Christian Ambassadors of the Assemblies of God, then becoming director of youth and music at a church in Breckenridge, Texas. He later became music director at Faith Tabernacle in Oklahoma City, then became pastor of Trinity Assembly of God in Orange, California. In the early 1940s, he served as associate pastor at Full Gospel Tabernacle in Bakersfield, California. In 1949, he became music director at Bethel Temple in Fort Worth, Texas.
In 1956, he was the founding pastor of Bethel Assembly of God Church in Lake Worth, Florida. In September 1962, he became pastor of the Assembly of God Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. In 1968, he was pastor of Rosen Heights Assembly of God Church in Fort Worth, Texas where he oversaw the construction of a new building and the re-naming of the church to Rockwood Park Assembly of God. After serving 13 years as pastor of Rockwood Park, he resigned to devote more time to evangelism and concerts. Stanphill was an evangelist, traveling to churches and Bible camps around the country, sometimes accompanied by his wife. They played and sang some of his compositions in addition to his preaching. In 1941, they joined the team of evangelist Raymond T. Richey. An ad for a crusade Stanphill held in 1964 described him as "Preacher of Old Time Religion." In addition to traveling throughout the United States, he preached in 40 other countries.
Occasionally as part of his crusades, he would ask members of the congregation to suggest titles for songs. Selecting one title from the suggestions, he would write words and music for a song during the service.
In the 1970s, Stanphill's ministry included a 30-minute weekly television program originally produced in 1973 by The Christian Broadcasting Network at its KXTX-Channel 33 Dallas TV studio and later called "Young at Heart" produced by WCFC in Chicago. In the 1990s, he appeared on several Southern gospel music videos produced by Bill Gaither. Those episodes (and others) included some of Stanphill's songs.
By the age of 10, Stanphill had already become a fluent musician, having learned to play the piano, organ, ukulele, and accordion. He went on to learn to play xylophone, guitar, saxophone, and clarinet. At 17, he was composing and performing his own music for church services, revival campaigns, and prayer meetings.
As a singer evangelist, Stanphill traveled the United States and Canada extensively and around the world to 40 countries over his career to preach and perform his music. Many famous secular singers have performed his works, such as Elvis Presley ("Mansion Over the Hilltop") and Johnny Cash ("Suppertime"). "I Know Who Holds Tomorrow", "I Walk with His Hand in Mine", and "We'll Talk It Over" are a few of his titles that are familiar and still performed today.
Stanphill composed more than 500 gospel songs. Recordings of his composition Mansion Over the Hilltop sold more than 2 million copies, and some of his songs have been translated into other languages. Room at the Cross is still sung and is in many hymnals. Stanphill founded Hymntime Publishers, Inc., and was the company's president. To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics: There's no satisfaction in riches or in fame If our Saviour is denied Every castle tumbles and life's a broken dream Without Jesus by our side.
CHORUS: Thirty pieces of silver, was the price they gave Thirty pieces of silver, just the price of a slave And my heart I have given, to this Christ betrayed And I know just how much he loved me By the price he paid.
From his ivory palace, he came to such as I But I scorned his love for me Sold him for the silver of things that I regret Sorrow, pain and agony.
"How Long Has It Been?" was written by Mosie Lister. In Southern Gospel music circles, Mosie Lister (1921-2015) was a legend. A Baptist minister, he was best known for writing the Gospel songs “Where No One Stands Alone”, “Till the Storm Passes By”, “Then I Met the Master” and “How Long Has It Been?”
Mosie was born into a musical family in Georgia, but he disappointed his family when it appeared he was tone-deaf. They instructed him in the violin, and he gradually learned to distinguish pitches. But, he wanted to do more than just tell the difference between pitches; he wanted to write songs.
Mosie came to fame as he worked with – and sang with – southern gospel quartets… arranging, writing, singing, and producing.
Mosie was concerned about so many people who had drifted away from the Lord. Once upon a time, they had told God they loved Him… but they hadn’t given God much thought in recent years. He thought about writing a song asking the question: “How long since you really prayed?”
He later said, “All of a sudden I realized this was what I needed to say. I just started writing as fast as I could.” In 10 minutes he had it finished. Within 5 more years, more than a million copies of this song in sheet music had been sold.
George Beverly Shea, Billy Graham’s soloist, often closed his concerts by singing this song.
To download the easy alphanotes and chords, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics:
How long has it been since you talked with the Lord and told Him your heart’s hidden secrets? How long since you prayed? How long since you stayed on your knees till the light shone through?
How long has it been since your mind felt at ease? How long since your heart knew no burden? Can you call Him your friend? How long has it been since you knew that He cared for you?
How long has it been since you knelt by your bed and prayed to the Lord up in Heaven? How long since you knew that He’d answer you and would keep you the long night through?
How long has it been since you woke with the dawn and felt this day is worth living? Can you call Him your friend? How long has it been since you knew that He cared for you?
"My God and I" is a hymn which describes the close relationship which one who loves Christ can have as both the Father and the Son come unto him and make Their abode with him is “My God and I” (#93 inHymns for Worship Revised, #A inSacred Selections for the Church). The text and tune were first published in 1935 and attributed to I. B. Sergei. However, it was generally believed that this was a pseudonym. It is now known that the author and composers’ real name was Austris August Wihtol, who was born on Jan. 24, 1889, in Riga, Latvia, one of six children, and grew up a Lutheran. After receiving most of his education in Russia, he came to the United States and performed in concert extensively with the Latvian Singers, which he founded upon his arrival. In his youth, he had composed operas, symphonies, and other major works, but in his later years he devoted his time mainly to practical choral music. His first wife died in childbirth. In 1932, he met his second wife Elly, who had been born in the Netherlands and was an opera singer, when he was in California practicing with his Latvian chorus for a performance. She attended the Wiltshire Christian Church. They lived in Chicago from 1933 to 1944 and had one daughter named Charlotte, who died in 1988.
Wihtol actually composed the song “My God and I” over a thirty-year period. In fact, searching for the “perfect” arrangement, he produced hundreds of versions, including even an opera, before completing the present arrangement in 1932 at Glendale, CA. Not sure that this was still the masterpiece he wanted, he signed it with the pen name “I. B. Sergei.” Ten years later, he was browsing through a bookstore in Chicago and noticed a hymnbook with his hymn, which he had never released to anyone, in it. After he successfully defended his claims against copyright infringement, things went well for the Wihtols and their publishing business, which they established after returning to Glendale, CA, or moved with them, until the mid 1960s when Austris developed Alzheimer’s disease. The copyright was renewed in 1963 by Wihtol and then assigned to Singspiration Inc., at that time a division of Zondervan, in 1970. It is now owned by New Spring Inc. and administered by the Brentwood-Benson Publishing Co. of Nashville, TN.
In a booklet The Writing of “My God and I,” Wihtol said that the original inspiration for the hymn came from his youth back in his homeland of Latvia. “The concept of ‘go in the field together…’ began when I was a boy about seven years old. In our family there were two places of environment, the home and the field….The fields were a place of beauty and happiness.” Additional inspiration came a few years later when he met an orphan girl about sixteen years old named “Happy Anna,” who had escaped from a cruel, dirty orphanage, traveled about like a Gypsy, and would sing every day to the Riga harbor workers at noon to earn her meals. She was called “Happy” because in spite of her uncertainty of daily life, she had a constant smile and a cheerful attitude. Wihtol wrote, “Happy Anna brought to me a new conception of God…a God that is with me when I do the best acts of my life.” Wihtol died of a heart attack in Glendale on Apr. 3, 1974, at the age of 85, and Elly died in 1996.
Among hymnbooks published by members of the Lord’s church for use in churches of Christ, the song was added to the inside front cover of the 1956 Sacred Selections sometime in the 1970s and has appeared in the 1973 edition of the 1971 Songs of the Church, the 1990 Songs of the Church 21st C. Ed., and the 1994 Songs of Faith and Praise all edited by Alton H. Howard; the 1977 Special Sacred Selections edited by Ellis J. Crum; the 1978 Hymns of Praise edited by Reuel Lemmons; the 1978/1983 Church Gospel Songs and Hymns edited by V. E. Howard; the 1992 Praise for the Lord edited by John P. Wiegand; the 2007 Sacred Songs of the Church edited by William D. Jeffcoat; and the 2009 Favorite Songs of the Church and the 2010 Songs for Worship and Praise both edited by Robert J. Taylor Jr.; in addition to Hymns for Worship.
The song expresses the closeness of the kind of personal relationship that God wants to have with His people.
You may have noticed that in stanzas 1 and 2, lines two and four rhyme, but in stanza 3, the corresponding lines do not rhyme (friends should and do/unendingly). Of course, hymns don’t have to rhyme to be scriptural, and I’ve even read of some modern hymn writers who lash out and rail against “the strictures of rhyming,” but the fact is that rhyme is a general characteristic of English poetry, including hymn poetry. Why Wihtol didn’t rhyme the stanza is beyond me. It seems that he could have written, “And good friends we shall be….Go on unendingly.” But that is really neither here nor there. There was a time when this hymn was criticized for being “too personal,” but today most people see nothing wrong with a hymn expressing the concept of a personal relationship with the Lord. With regard to my own soul’s salvation and hope of heaven, the two most important beings are “My God and I.”
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics:
My God and I go in the fields together, We walk and talk as good friends should and do; We clasp our hands, our voices ring with laughter, My God and I walk through the meadow's hue.
He tells me of the years that went before me, When heavenly plans were made for me to be; When all was but a dream of dim conception, To come to life, earth's verdant glory see.
My God and I will go for aye together, We'll walk and talk as good friends should and do; This earth will pass, and with it common trifles, But God and I will go unendingly.
"Let The Beauty of Jesus Be Seen In Me" is a song which encourages us to follow the example that Jesus left for us is "Let The Beauty of Jesus Be Seen" (#454 inHymns for Worship Revised, and #230 inSacred Selections for the Church). The text of stanza 1 was written by Albert W. T. Orsborn (1886-1967). No other information is available, except that it is dated around 1916. Orsborn is identified as an early Salvation Army leader; some sources refer to him as the "6th General." A Salvation Army collectable website lists an e-book entitledThe Poet General–Albert W. T. Orsborn C. B. E., by Bernard Watson, and Kingsgate Publishing has a compact disc of Salvation Army hymns by Herbert Booth and Orsborn. The original text read as follows:
"Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me, All his wonderful passion and purity. O thou Spirit Divine, all my nature refine, Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me." The text of stanzas 2-4 was added by George L. Johnson in 1934. The tune (Bridlington) was composed by Tom M. Jones (1891-1978). It was published in 1927. The composer is identified as "Rev." Tom Jones in some books. Older books say, "Copyright property of Rev. Tom Jones," while newer ones say, "Copyright–the estate of Tom Jones."
Among hymnbooks published by members of the Lord’s church during the twentieth century for use in churches of Christ, the song appeared in the 1937 Great Songs of the Church No. 2 edited by E. L. Jorgenson, using only the original stanza 1 with an arrangement of the tune made by Edwin E. Young in 1930; and the 1963 Christian Hymnal edited by J. Nelson Slater, in a version of two stanzas with both words and music arranged by the editor. Today it may be found in the 1971 Songs of the Church, the 1990 Songs of the Church 21st C. Ed., and the 1994 Songs of Faith and Praise all edited by Alton H. Howard, with an arrangement made in 1971 by Ben Cumnock; and the 1992 Praise for the Lord edited by John P. Wiegand. Hymns for Worship and Sacred Selections both have an arrangement made in 1934 by Cleavant Derricks and copyrighted by the Stamps-Baxter Music and Ptg. Co.
The song exhorts us to live in such a way that the influence of Christ can be seen in us.
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,
All His wonderful passion and purity;
O Thou Spirit divine, May I truly be Thine
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.
Let my wonderful Saviour be seen in me,
His amazing compassion and constancy;
His great love is my goal, By His Spirit’s control
Till me wonderful Saviour be seen in me.
Let the fruit of the Spirit be seen in me,
Grant me grace all sufficient that I may be
True and faithful each day, Ev’ry step of the way.
Pointing souls to the Saviour on Calvary.
"Just a Wayward Lamb" or "Soy la triste oveja" was written by Juan Ramon.Juan Ramón(born asEllery Guy Rech; 13 January 1940 – 30 July 2020) was an Argentine singer and actor.
Juan Ramón died of pneumonia in Buenos Aires on 30 July 2020.
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics:
Just a wayward lamb wand'ring from the fold,
Out upon the mountains so lonely and cold;
"Come and follow Me," hear the Shepherd's plea,
"Safely on my shoulders I'll carry thee home.
I will lead in pastures, meadows green and fair,
If you follow Me I will guard thee with care;
Listen to My leading I will guide thee home,
Live with me forever, no longer to roam."
And with tears He led me gently to His side.
Jesus, the Good Shepherd, died upon the tree,
Suffered untold torment for sheep just like me.
He became the Lamb when He took my place.
O what boundless mercy, what infinite grace!
Now I’ve found contentment in His love divine,
Safe in the fold with the ninety and nine.
Thus I fear no evil, for He’ll guide me home,
Happy in His presence, no longer to roam.
Goodness, love and mercy always shall be mine.
"Just as I Am" is a well-known hymn, written by Charlotte Elliott in 1835, first appearing in the Christian Remembrancer, of which Elliott became the editor in 1836. The final verse is taken from Elliott's Hours of Sorrow Cheered and Comforted (1836).
John Brownliedescribed the hymn's story in his bookThe Hymns and Hymn Writers of the Church Hymnary:Charlotte's brother, the Rev. H. V. Elliott planned to hold a charity bazaar designed to give, at a nominal cost, a high education to the daughters of clergymen supported bySt Mary Church:
The night before the bazaar she was kept wakeful by distressing thoughts of her apparent uselessness; and these thoughts passed by a transition easy to imagine into a spiritual conflict, till she questioned the reality of her whole spiritual life, and wondered whether it were anything better after all than an illusion of the emotions, an illusion ready to be sorrowfully dispelled. The next day, the busy day of the bazaar, she lay upon her sofa in that most pleasant boudoir set apart for her in Westfield Lodge, ever a dear resort to her friends." The troubles of the night came back upon her with such force that she felt they must be met and conquered in the grace of God. She gathered up in her soul the great certainties, not of her emotions, but of her salvation: her Lord, His power, His promise. And taking pen and paper from the table she deliberately set down in writing, for her own comfort, "the formulae of her faith." Hers was a heart which always tended to express its depths in verse. So in verse she restated to herself the Gospel of pardon, peace, and heaven. "Probably without difficulty or long pause" she wrote the hymn, getting comfort by thus definitely "recollecting" the eternity of the Rock beneath her feet. There, then, always, not only for some past moment, but " even now " she was accepted in the Beloved "Just as I am".
Billy Graham converted to Christianity in 1934 in a revival meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina, led by evangelist Mordecai Ham hearing the altar call song "Just as I Am". This song became an altar call song in the Billy Graham crusades in the latter half of the twentieth century. Graham used the title of the hymn as the title of his 1997 book - Just as I Am: The Autobiography of Billy Graham.Michael W. Smith sang the song in a tribute to Graham at the 44th GMA Dove Awards.
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics
Just as I am, without one plea But that Thy blood was shed for me And that Thou bid'st me come to Thee O Lamb of God, I come! I come
Just as I am, though tossed about With many a conflict, many a doubt Fighting and fears within without O Lamb of God, I come, I come
Just as I am, and waiting not to rid my soul of one dark blot to thee whose blood can cleanse each spot O Lamb of God, I come, I come
Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind Sight, riches, healing of the mind Yea, all I need, in Thee to find O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
Just as I am, Thou wilt receive Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve Because Thy promise I believe O Lamb of God, I come, I come
Because Thy promise I believe O Lamb of God, I come, I come
"Have Thine Own Way, Lord" is a Christian hymn with lyrics by Adelaide A. Pollard and music by George C. Stebbins. It was first published in 1907 in the "Northfield Hymnal with Alexander's Supplement". Later that year, it also appeared in two other popular hymnals, Ira Sankey's "Hallowed Hymns New and Old" and Sankey and Clement's "Best Endeavor Hymns".
In 1902, Adelaide A. Pollard was hoping to go to Africa as a missionary but found herself unable to raise the needed funds to make the journey. Greatly discouraged, she attended a prayer service one evening and as she sat there, she overheard an elderly woman say "It really doesn't matter what you do with us, Lord, just have your own way with our lives." The elderly woman inspired Pollard and she contemplated the story of the potter from Jeremiah 18:3 and, upon her return home that evening, wrote all four stanzas before retiring for the night.
Five years later George Stebbins wrote a tune titled "Adelaide" to accompany the text.
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics
Have Thine own way Lord Have Thine own way Thou art the potter I am the clay Mold me and make me after Thy will While I am waiting yielded and still
Have Thine own way Lord Have Thine own way Search me and try me Master today Whiter than snow Lord wash me just now As in Thy presence humbly I bow
Have Thine own way Lord Have Thine own way Hold over my being absolute sway Filled with Thy spirit till all can see Christ only always living in me
"Just a Closer Walk with Thee" is a traditional gospel song that has been performed and recorded by many artists. Performed as either an instrumental or vocal, "A Closer Walk" is perhaps the most frequently played number in the hymn and dirge section of traditional New Orleansjazz funerals. The title and lyrics of the song allude to the Biblical passage from 2 Corinthians 5:7 which states, "We walk by faith, not by sight" and James 4:8, "Come near to God and He will come near to you."
The precise author of "A Closer Walk" is unknown. Circumstantial evidence strongly suggested it dated back to southern African-American churches of the nineteenth century, possibly even prior to the Civil War, as some personal African American histories recall "slaves singing as they worked in the fields a song about walking by the Lord's side.". Horace Boyer cites a story that repudiates this claim, stating,
“On a train trip from Kansas City to Chicago, composer Kenneth Morris exited the train on one of its stops to get some fresh air and heard one of the station porters singing a song. He paid little attention at first, but after he re-boarded the train the song remained with him and became so prominent in his mind that at the next stop, he left the train, took another train back to the earlier station, and asked the porter to sing the song again. Morris wrote down the words and music and published the song “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” that year, 1940, adding a few lyrics of his own to provide more breadth. Within two years the song became a standard in gospel music, eventually becoming a standard in Jazz, and then moving into the realm of American folk music, known and sung by many (Boyer, 75).”
Songs with similar chorus lyrics were published in the 1800s, including "Closer Walk with Thee" with lyrics by Martha J. Lankton (a pseudonym for Fanny Crosby) and music by William Kirkpatrick, which was published in 1885. Some references in Atchison, Kansas, credit an African-Americanfoundry worker and vocalist, Rev. Elijah Cluke (1907-1974), for the current rendition of the song. "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" became better known nationally in the 1930s when African-American churches held huge musical conventions. In 1940 Kenneth Morris arranged and published for the first time the well-known version after gospel musicians Robert Anderson and R.L. Knowles listened to William B. Hurse direct a performance of it in Kansas City and then brought it to Morris' attention. Morris added some new lyrics and a choral arrangement. In the 1940s, a boom of recordings recorded the number in many genres, ranging from Southern gospel to jazz and brass bands.
The first known recording was by the Selah Jubilee Singers on October 8, 1941, (Decca Records 7872) New York City; with Thurman Ruth and John Ford lead vocal; Fred Baker, lead baritone; Monroe Clark, baritone; J. B. Nelson, bass vocal; and Fred Baker on guitar. Rosetta Tharpe also recorded the song on December 2, 1941 (Decca 8594), with Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra.
The revived interest in traditional New Orleans jazz resulted in multiple recordings of the number, including a 1945 session by Bunk Johnson's Brass Band featuring numbers Johnson had played in New Orleans before he left in 1915.
In 1958, an unreleased home recording was recorded by Elvis Presley, made in Waco, Texas, on May 27.Presley's studio version can be heard on Just a Closer Walk with Thee (2000) (Czech CD on Memory label). Tennessee Ernie Ford made the charts with it in the late 1950s. By the end of the 1970s, more than a hundred artists had recorded the song.
To download the easy alphanotes and chords sheet music, look here. Enjoy!
Lyrics
I am weak, but Thou art strong; Jesus, keep me from all wrong; I’ll be satisfied as long As I walk, let me walk close to Thee.
Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.
Through this world of toil and snares, If I falter, Lord, who cares? Who with me my burden shares? None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.
When my feeble life is o’er, Time for me will be no more; Guide me gently, safely o’er To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore.
