1. HOLY SPIRIT COME
Holy Spirit, come
Bread of Life, fill my aching need
Holy Spirit , come
For I am nothing without your love
Breathe new life in me
Then my life will bring glory unto You
Holy Spirit, come
Words & Music: Wendy Corrick
© Copyright 1984 Wendy Corrick
2. COME AND FOLLOW ME
All your hopes and dreams fallen through
I’m calling you
Come and follow Me
Though your heart has cried endlessly
Lay your net aside, leave the sea
Now you’re free
To come and follow Me
I promise you sunshine
To guide you through the pain
You’ll see My best colors
Every time it rains
There’s a rocky road up ahead
Drop your load and I’ll be your bed
I’ll cover you and others who
Follow Me
Break My bread tonight when you sup
Drink the wine and I’ll fill you up
Take from My cup the strength you need
To follow Me
CHORUS
Though your heart has cried endlessly
Lay your net aside, leave the sea
Now you’re free
To come and follow Me
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1990 Improbable People Ministries
3. BURY YOUR HEART IN WOUNDED ME
Didn’t hear the last call sound
And my designated driver
Didn’t bother stickin’ round
It too all the strength I had
To lift my head and find my keys
When a hazy lookin’ stranger
Came and sat down next to me
He was clearly out of focus
As I nursed a watered gin
I could tell he’d known some sorrows
By the way he drank mine in
And he told me I was beautiful
I’d been waitin’ for that line
I half-wished he would hit the road
And half-wished he were mine
Hungry for something to fill me up
Some kind of guarantee
If you’ve got a love that can set me free
Won’t you bury your heart in wounded me
We talked there on those bar stools
So much pain and time to kill
But the hours passed like moments
Until the clock was standing still
And I swear if he’d have asked me
I’d have given him my soul
The more I emptied out my heart
The more he made it whole
CHORUS
He talked about his children
He wore each one on his face
He told me how their broken lives
Had brought him to this place
He said You know it really seems
A father’s day is never done
Sometimes you leave the ninety-nine
To take care of the one
He said Surely you’ve got someone
Who would give his life for you
As his face came into focus
I said I believe I do
Then I looked deep in his eyes
And saw a thousand smoke-filled bars
I guess some of us have broken hearts
And some have other scars
But I never noticed his
Until the stranger took my hand
He said Now I hope My Daughter
You’ll finally understand
Hungry for something to fill you up
Some kind of guarantee
If you need a love that can set you free
Won’t you bury your heart in wounded Me
I am the Love that can set you free
When you bury your heart in wounded Me
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1993 Improbable People Ministries
4.EASY LIES
I can’t help but ask questions that cut deep as a knife
Sometimes I walk away wounded from the answers I’ve found
Once I mined me a gem so solid and sound
I put the prize in my pocket moved on down the road
Shared the wisdom around tried to lighten the load
‘til someone out on the highway masquerading as wise
Tried to tell me my diamond was just a rock in disguise
Easy Lies
Comfortable truth
Hooks I swallowed whole
In my terminal youth
Propaganda with passion
Though I had no proof
Just easy lies
And comfortable truth
Once a Fuller Brush Witness came and knocked on my door
Selling spiritual fitness he said I shouldn’t ignore
"Can you get me to Heaven?" I pleaded through tears
"Wish I could," said the fella "It’s been booked for years."
"Got a room at the Hilton got a suite with a view
And it’s Heaven on Earth it’s the best we can do"
I told him my reservations trading treasure for tricks
Won’t give up my Father’s mansion for your Motel 6
Easy lies
Comfortable truth
Jumping into forever
With no parachute
Run it up the ol’ flagpole
And see who salutes
Those easy lies
And comfortable truths
I found myself at a meeting—a convention of gods
Now I’m no Jimmy the Greek, but tell me what are the odds?
Told me I could be mighty roam the universe free
But then Baba Rum Raisin spoke through god number three
Said I wasted the effort riding here on a bus
"You could have astral projected leave the flying to us"
Well, there’s only one God and I know I’m not Him
Trade my diamond for crystal? I won’t go out on that limb
Easy lies
Comfortable truth
Hooks I swallowed whole
In my terminal youth
Propaganda with passion
Though I had no proof
Just easy lies
And comfortable truth
Well I’ve heard all the stories: "I’ll come back, get it right"
"When life’s over it’s over" "Just follow the light"
They’re all warm and seductive, make you wanna believe
It’s designer religion designed to deceive
Well the truth is the truth and a lie is a lie
God left us a blueprint so we’ll never die
It’s the diamond of Hope Love Mercy and Truth
Walk a mile with me and I’ll share it with you
Easy lies
Comfortable truth
It’s the River of Life
We’ve learned to pollute
When it flows from the Savior
Then we have no use
For easy Lies
And comfortable truth
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1998 Improbable People Ministries
5.WHAT I THOUGHT WAS ME
From truth I didn’t want to see
From a voice that called inside of me
And blinded by the colors
Of a world that set my heart ablaze
I traded my tomorrows for todays
And God I know You’re making me
Into all I never thought I’d be
But fool that I am like poor Lot’s wife
I turn and look back on my old life
And echoes of voices call to me
Of people and places I wanted to be
And right or wrong I sometimes miss
What I thought was me
What I thought was me
The gypsy and the dreamer
Were images I wore awhile
Clothes that all too soon went out of style
Then You held up a mirror
And I saw what You always knew
That I was really nothing without You
CHORUS
Yet I know these dreams are never real
Just whispers in my head
They don’t bleed and they can’t feel
The price You paid for me
So I take them to the Throne
And lay them at Your feet
‘Cause You’re the only strength I have
When I’m feeling weak
And echoes of voices call to me
Of people and places I wanted to be
And right or wrong I sometimes miss
What I thought was me
What I thought was me
It was never me
What I thought was me
Words & Music: Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1990 Improbable People Ministries
6.I WANT TO MAKE HISTORY WITH YOU
Terrified at the thought of today
Take pictures ’cause no one will ever believe
That we started out quite this way
There’s a reason we’re joining together
At the moment I haven’t a clue
It’s all I can handle to walk down the aisle
And nervously mumble "I do"
I want to make history with you
Explore each new mystery with you
Record our adventures
From diapers to dentures
Yes, I want to make history with you
There are children, no doubt, in our future
I hope they’re not coming too soon
And meantime I can’t help but noticing how many
Exits there are in this room
I see carpools and teenage rebellion
But I can’t see the honeymoon suite
Right now I don’t know if I’ll take one more step
Or just beat a hasty retreat
CHORUS
I thought I was ready
But I’m so unsteady
Will I see this wedding through?
I walk down the aisle
And it seems like a mile
‘til I see your broad smile
And I see His too
I see His too
In a moment we reach for tomorrow
In the moment I reach you I know
There’s a lifetime to work out the details
And the doubts are all melting like snow
When the calendar’s lost all its pages
And the trip Home is long overdue
We can look back and say "What a fine yesterday
Thank God I spent each one with you.
CHORUS
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1994 Improbable People Ministries
7.IMPROBABLE PEOPLE FOR IMPOSSIBLE TASKS
When God said Moses look my way
You got to travel home and tell Pharaoh
Let my people go oh no
Let my people go
Well Moses looked at the Lord and His burning brows
And he should have known the Big Guy meant business now
Instead he said my tongue is dull and slow
And man I’m really old oh no!
God I’m truly old!
Moses don’t you know that you’re a cosmic bore
What you listing all your limitations for?
I made your mouth I made your tongue
And I know you’re far from young
I want improbable people for impossible tasks
Don’t assume I haven’t gathered all the facts
Just trust that I’ll help you through all that I ask
Improbable people for impossible tasks
She was a couple of years shy of the century mark
And Sarah never ever even seen a stork
When God said from you because I’m King
Israel will spring I’m King
Israel will spring
Now Sarah looked at the Lord as though he were daft
Me changing diapers that’s crazy she laughed
My body’s barren, my wrinkles won’t quit
And Abe would have a fit that’s it
Abe would have a fit
Sarah don’t you know the power of your Lord
What you listing all your limitations for?
I know your begetting days are through
And that’s why I picked you
Chorus
There’s no one so humble who can’t hear His words
God’s touched executives and called upon nerds
He uses the blind and comes out of the blue
So don’t be surprised if someday He calls on you
CHORUS
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1990 Improbable People Ministries
8.REDEEMED
Holy in the Father’s eyes
You see in me the child you died for
You see in me the one you love
I’ve been redeemed
I’ve been redeemed
Bought with a price
And ransomed from my sin
You rescued me
You rescued me
Bought with your blood
Held in your holy hands
I’ve been redeemed
You rescued me
Words & Music: John Barnett
© Copyright 1997 Mercy/Vineyard Publishing
9.I WAS THERE
How much you mean to Me
I miss you and I hope you feel the same
I’ve sent you other letters
But I know they go unread
Could we sit down and sort through all the blame
I know you think I turned My face
When trouble filled your life
But isn’t it the other way around
I have found a thousand ways
To love and build you up
But still I’m just the God who let you down
Where was I when your sole defense
Was a weak and smothered prayer
Where was I in that time of need
You thought I didn’t care
When the evil swept right through you
And you felt like no one knew you
When the deed was done unto you
I was there
Do you love your son and daughter
Does it hurt each time they fail
Don’t you want to pick them up before they fall
Just multiply that fear
By all the people in the world
Imagine you’re the father of them all
Would their suffering be wrong
If it helped them count the cost
Would you let them face the trials so they’d know
Would you have the faith to let the fire
Burn away the dross
And the courage to stand back
And watch them grow
Where was I when love was lost
And you thought it wasn’t fair
Where was I when sin crept in
And caught you in its snare
When the evil swept right through you
And you felt like no one knew you
When the deed was done unto you
I was there
I was there
Through every ache and episode of savage loss
I was there
I earned the right when My blood
Trickled down the cross
Please lift the veil of anger
Long enough for you to see
Nothing touches you My child
Which hasn’t first pierced Me
Where was I when your sole defense
Was a weak and smothered prayer
Where was I in that time of need
You thought I didn’t care
When the evil swept right through you
And you felt like no one knew you
When the deed was done unto you
I was there
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1993 Improbable People Ministries
10. AT THE CROSS
Where accused and condemned
Find mercy and grace
Where the wrongs we have done
And the wrongs done to us
Were nailed there with him
There on the cross
At the cross (at the cross)
He died for our sin
At the cross (at the cross)
He gave us life again
At the cross (at the cross)
You died for our sin
At the cross (at the cross)
You gave us life again
Words & Music: Randy & Terry Butler
© Copyright 1997 Mercy/Vineyard Publishing
11. I JUST WANT TO SEE YOU THERE
I bought the best rosé that I could find
But the silence like the bottle breathes between us
We both know I’ve got much more on my mind
You’d rather sit and talk to me about the weather
And how the soaps have lately got you down
But when I start to talk about forever
I know you’re getting picture without sound
I just want to see you there
Please don’t ask me not to care
I don’t want to sit at His table
Next to an empty chair
I just really want to see you there
I know that you don’t really think I’m blind or crazy
Though sometimes I believe that I must be
What kind of lunatic throws out all reason
And gives her life to someone she can’t see
I wish I had more faith so I could just let go
Or short of that composure to pretend
But I think the time is short and yes I’m scared
I need to know we’ll meet again
CHORUS
So in a quiet moment
Won’t you ask Him if He’s real
Then reach out and touch His face
CHORUS
Words & Music: Michael & Sally O’Connor
© Copyright 1991 Improbable People Ministries
Once upon a time, long, long ago, in a land where time and life insurance were its most precious commodities, there lived a young minstrel girl named Sally. Sally loved to sing and she loved to play her lyre, for it was portable and the piano had not yet been invented.
One day she wandered into a Gregorian chant writing class and met a handsome prince who was the most fascinating chant writer in the group and also, coincidentally, not a bad copy writer for newsletter flyer advertising. These had always been the qualities she had thought to look for if, indeed, she ever met a handsome prince. So she married him and had him sign a prenuptial agreement which granted her exclusive performing rights to all art he created.
She soon realized that art, without a noble purpose behind it, is an empty exercise. “I wonder,” she mused as she belted out “Rome; Rome” for the hundredth time in a smoke-filled den of iniquity,… “I wonder if there is something greater than singing “I Did It Caesar’s Way” on Monday nights for tips and ale? But she dismissed this thought as preposterous when a wobbly patron tossed a shekel in the jar perched atop her lyre and brought her a wineskin brimming with possibilities.
Then one night, as Sally lay dreaming of great success and lucrative lyre string endorsements, someone came and touched her with Love in a way that had never been written about before in the great chants of the day. When she awoke He was still there in the room with her, calling her His own, His child, a Daughter of the King. Sally knew she had found her True Great Prince and the guy in the bed with her, her collaborator for life, would himself meet the True Great Prince and come along for the ride.
And what a ride it was. Sally immediately stopped singing chants and began opening her heart to stories set to music. It was a new and unique art form, one which Harry Chapin would rediscover centuries later. Her art was now substantial, her heart filled with purpose. She wanted to tell every person she met about her True Great Prince. So she took to telling these melodic stories in houses of worship, prisons, supermarket openings—wherever two or more were gathered, which you could always count on in the checkout lines.
She realized she could sing until she was an old minstrel girl and still only reach a fraction of a fraction of the people who needed to hear the story of her True Great Prince and how He had called her to spread His story. How could she tell this tale in a way that everyone who had ears could hear?
And then her collaborator for life hit upon an idea which would bring her dream alive. She would give a concert, invite the people of her town and hope that more than just the minimum would show. He would hire many scribes to record the often funny, sometimes heartbreaking stories of her life as it had changed since giving herself to her True Great Prince. But these scribes did not document the event in the current alphabet of the day. No, they were instructed to transcribe each word to a series of zeroes and ones, an early form of binary code which, when recited back in the proper sequence, would reproduce the concert in breathtaking digitally recorded splendor.
Well, of course, you know what happened. The minstrel girl gave the concert, shared her stories and many lives and hearts were changed by the True Great Prince. Her collaborator for life discovered a way to place the zeroes and ones on a flat two hole plastic sprocket listening device so that those who had attended the concert would have something to take home with them. Something to share with loved ones who couldn’t or wouldn’t attend the concert in a house of worship, but might feel exceedingly comfortable listening in the comfort of their own living room.
There were new songs and old favorites. There was laughter and tears. There were hearts in transition and lives given rebirth. And those who followed the True Great Prince lived happily ever after. But this was long, long ago in a land where time and life insurance were precious commodities.
—From a 1996 IPM press release