Blessed Are: Original Song by Paul Smallman based on the Beatitudes
Paul Smallman
Former NCEL Worship Director
Songwriter of Blessed Are
Earlier this month, we sang a little bit of Blessed Are during the Song of Confession time. We planned this song because it fit really well with that Sunday’s sermon theme: The Beatitudes. Back in the fall of 2021, our former worship director, Paul Smallman, wrote the song, and the Worship Arts Ministry would like to share some of his words about it here:
Paul Smallman: Blessed Are was written as a meditation on the Beatitudes. When we originally sang it, we focused on a few each week as a part of a call-and-response liturgy, but always ending with the chorus or the call to rejoice and be glad. I remember finding this surprising, looking at the passage that we are called to rejoice for being persecuted (my emphasis added). But also, we are reminded that Christ was also persecuted; we receive in the promise of his presence with us here now the reward of all things being made new in heaven. I like that the music of this [rejoice] section is still somber but takes on a more celebratory note as we close.”
Here’s a short sample of the song from the first time the song was sung at NCEL on September 05, 2021:
Church, this is a great example of the kinds of contextualization we often do for our public worship at NCEL: a specific song written for a sermon series that blesses us.
Perhaps God is nudging you to write something for our context. If you are reading this and think, “hey, I get inspired sometimes too! Can I submit a song, poem, etc.?” The answer is yes. Please get in touch with Kyron (kwalker@newcityeastlake.com) or Libby (loneil@newcityeastlake.com). We are excited to explore the possibility of facilitating a place for you to share your work with the church!
Blog Post by Kyron Walker, NCEL Worship Arts Director
