Three Free Downloads for St. Patrick's Day... and beyond!

The “Communion Hymn” is a song we wrote for congregations to use during communion. The opening verse prepares us for what is to come, while the following two verses focus on the bread and the wine. The final verse is meant to be used during the time of response at the closing of a service.

The hymn’s verses can be used in varying ways, depending on how a church serves communion. At our home church we simply sing the first two verses before taking the bread as a preparation, then sing the last two after drinking the wine as a response. I know other churches that sing each of the four verses one at a time, then have musicians play around the melody in between each one until the leader is ready to move to the next verse. It can also be sung in its entirety without interruption.

While the winding melody does take a few playings for congregations to get used it it, “Communion Hymn” has become a moving and well-loved song.

When Stuart Townend and I wrote “The Power of the Cross”, we wanted the song to be a narrative journey that leads believers "on the road to Calvary." The hymn is essentially about the suffering of Christ. Through use of visual imagery, it asks us to consider some of the horrors the Lord endured on our behalf.

In addition to realizing the suffering Christ endured, the song also helps us understand what it means for Christ to "bear the weight of our sin"—to bring about our forgiveness.

The final verse takes us a step further as we respond with:

O to see my name
Written in the wounds
For through your suffering I am free

Death is crushed to death,
Life is mine to live
Won through your selfless love
This is the power of the Cross"

We hope “The Power of the Cross” will be useful in any service, but also especially beneficial on Good Friday, during Holy Week, for communion and as a response at the end of a message. We often pair it with the hymn "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross", which flows nicely out of the final chorus.

The vision set forth by early Christians in the New Testament is one where people of every generation and background gather for worship. Our hymn echoes this call as it invites believers all over the world to join together—no matter their circumstances—and unite their voices to worship the Risen King!