Stochastic Worship

Author: David

  • Nehemiah

    Nehemiah

    To those of you who are unfamiliar with the story: Nehemiah is a Jewish exile serving as cupbearer to the Persian king Artaxerxes. Upon hearing about the dilapidated state of Jerusalem’s walls, he is deeply distressed and prays for guidance. Granted permission by the king, he returns to Jerusalem and rallies the people to rebuild the city’s walls, despite facing strong opposition from neighboring enemies like Sanballat and Tobiah. Nehemiah’s leadership, strategic planning, and reliance on prayer help complete the reconstruction in just 52 days.

    This is what my playlist focuses on.

    But the backstory is even more bizarre! Ninety years earlier, the Temple was rebuilt. Ninety years! For nine decades the walls lay in ruins, leaving God’s people vulnerable, open to attack; limiting their ability to live as a community by harming their ability to look after those who most needed assistance.

    There’s a message here for the modern church. Nehemiah teaches us that when God stirs your heart, it’s for a purpose bigger than you. Through prayer, boldness, teamwork, and trust, broken things can be made whole — and God’s name is glorified.


    In a world full of brokenness (inside and outside the church), Nehemiah’s story is a call to rebuild what matters most: faith, community, and hope. But it starts with prayer.

  • Jonah

    Jonah

    My latest playlist.

    Too many people write this off as a simple story, fit only for children. They forget the fact that Jonah was a historical figure, mentioned in 2 Kings 14 – a patriotic prophet who foresaw victory and restoration of Israel’s fortunes.

    You would have thought he would have been eager to predict doom and destruction on Israel’s enemies – but instead he did something totally illogical. He tried to run away from God. A situation he explains in chapter 1, verse 9 of his story. Jumping into a boat to evade the One who created both land and sea is insane. But Jonah did it.

    It’s as if he’s declared to the Almighty, “I refuse to fulfill my destiny! What are You going to do, kill me?” This is why we see Jesus referring to the sign of Jonah. After three days of contemplating his fate, Jonah resolves that God is God, and that he must do His will – whatever the cost to his dignity.

    And What a cost! Imagine this haggard and bleached specimen, dried out and dusty from his travel inland to Nineveh, calling out that this huge sprawling metropolis will be swept away in God’s judgement.

    And then all heaven broke loose! As Jonah waited for destruction to fall; the city turned in repentance, God stayed his hand and Jonah, the great prophet was made to look like a presumptuous fool. The man who got it wrong.

    And here’s the kicker. Jonah had seen God’s mercy from that first instant when he was called to speak truth to power in Nineveh. He knew that if he spoke out, and the people turned from evil, God would spare them – spare the mortal enemies of Israel; so that when Israel turned from God, there would be an alien nation ready to deliver God’s judgement to them.

    You can appreciate his flawed thinking. “If I don’t preach, they will be swept away without warning, and my own sinful people will be safe for another generation.”

    Jonah must have realised the futility of trying to run away from his fate. After all, no-one is indispensable. God could have raised up any number of successors to Jonah and sent them to Nineveh. But He wanted Jonah. Looking back through the lens of the Gospel story we glimpse why.

  • St. George’s Day

    St. George’s Day

    The Patron Saint of England – adopted because he was seen the purest example of chivalry for us to emulate.

    Of course, I’ve curated a song – it focuses on the story we’re most familiar with, slaying a dragon.

    [Verse]
    Riding through fields of green so wide
    Armor gleam under the sunlit tide
    Banner high with a lion’s might
    Against the shadows he rides tonight

    [Verse 2]
    In troubled lands with fear so near
    A beast of legend bred from fear
    Villagers whisper ‘neath the starlit dome
    A hero’s come to bring the dragon home

    [Chorus]
    With sword ablaze and heart so pure
    He faces flames so fierce and sure
    A hero born of ground and stone
    To slay the dragon take the throne

    [Verse 3]
    Darkened skies where shadows creep
    Dragon’s roar shakes the valley deep
    Glistening scales like night’s own coat
    Saint George lunges at the foe’s throat

    [Bridge]
    Roaring clash the earth it shakes
    Steel and claws their courage makes
    Victory sweet in dawn’s embrace
    Saint George stands with a proud face

    [Chorus]
    With sword ablaze and heart so pure
    He faces flames so fierce and sure
    A hero born of ground and stone
    To slay the dragon take the throne

    For those of you who prefer St. Edmund; king, martyr and previously recognised as Patron Saint of England, I have a song praising his courage in the face of his murderous Viking captors as he refused to bow the knee to their gods.

    There’s a certain odd symmetry of a royal martyr whose banner was a white dragon on a red field, being supplanted by a princess-rescuing dragon slayer whose emblem is a red cross on a white field.

  • Happy Easter!

    Happy Easter!

    Here’s a playlist.

    For those of you who want to shout out, “Hallelujah, Jesus is Risen!” Here’s a few different ways of singing those words…

    And most important of all, have a great day. Meet with others and enjoy the reality of having a fresh start, thanks to Jesus’ death and resurrection.

  • The Lent Cross Challenge

    The Lent Cross Challenge

    Earlier I mentioned the Lent Cross Challenge promoted by the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Each day, throughout the Lent season I have shared a new song generated by the prompt given for scriptural mediation.

    It has been an interesting experience. Some of the songs have certainly helped me express my thoughts as I’ve considered the meanings of the Bible verses and their direct relevance to my own life. Here’s a link to the playlist.

    As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not the only person who has been using AI-generated music as an aid to focus my thoughts on the meaning of Lent. There are even people on Suno who have been faithfully posting a daily song to accompany the Bible reading plan they’ve been following.

  • The thief on the cross

    The thief on the cross

    A song about Jesus’ crucifixion based on the point of view of the thief on the cross? What could possibly go wrong? For those of you who wonder whether it is sensible to hand over hymn writing to a machine, this gives you an insight into how bizarre errors can creep into the process.

    The song is Outcasts at Twilight. Eventually, I’ll correct the error, but it’s so subtle it’s worth leaving in as an example of what to look for.

    The song’s lyrics are:

    [Verse 1]
    I saw him stand before the crowd
    A king in chains yet unbowed
    The governor asked what to do
    Condemned the one they called true

    [Verse 2]
    They gave him thorns and scarlet robe
    A mocking smile a painful probe
    He carried wood upon his back
    Up to the hill the sky turned black

    [Chorus]
    Oh the irony a thief like me
    Watching him die to set us free
    He offered peace in dying breath
    In midst of pain and facing death

    [Verse 3]
    They cursed him spat and cast their lots
    While I hung here haunted by my thoughts
    Yet he whispered words of grace
    Promised me a sacred place

    [Bridge]
    Forgive them father he cried loud
    As sunlight broke through stormy clouds
    The curtain tore the earth it quaked
    A sacred promise he did make

    [Verse 4]
    As darkness fell the day was done
    And cold the stone they laid upon
    Hearts were heavy eyes were red
    In borrowed tomb he rested dead

    It’s the timeline that’s all over the place, like a poorly produced movie where you get more enjoyment spotting the continuity errors.

    Does it matter if way too many liberties have been taken in the name of artistic license? It lessens its impact as an apologetic tool. It distracts the worshipper from the primary aim of a spiritual song – to focus on their relationship with God.

  • A Suite for Good Friday

    A Suite for Good Friday

    Good Friday? If you don’t know how the story ends, it’s the most horrific time. The one person who you thought could change the world has been arrested, tried in a kangaroo court and executed in the cruelest way imaginable.

    But let’s spare a thought for the real victims of the story – or so they would portray themselves. A religious and political establishment who correctly identified the Author of Righteousness as an existential threat to their comfortable status quo.

    What if you looked at the events of Holy Week from their eyes? After their attempts to discredit Jesus have resulted in further exposing themselves as corrupt and foolish; they find a suitable patsy who will betray Him. They feel that their problem is dead and buried…

    Then, all heaven breaks loose!

    Here’s a short playlist of four songs telling the story of the Passion from their viewpoint. Because, truth be told, if we were in their position, we would have done the same.

  • A song for Maundy Thursday

    A song for Maundy Thursday

    It’s a day of mixed emotions with so much to unpack. The name comes from Jesus’ mandate – a new commandment: to love one another. We have foot-washing: the master is the servant. The last supper with predictions of Jesus’ betrayal. Prayer at Gethsemane, Jesus’ arrest and trial, then finally the cock crows and we know how deeply our failure has run.

    How do you capture all that in a song?

    I like how Washed Feet and Heavy Hearts came together in expressing some of this:

    [Verse 1]
    Feet in hands bowed low and humble
    Echoes of a love so true
    Servant’s heart beats out the thunder
    In a room of mixed up views

    [Verse 2]
    Bravado walks on shaky ground
    Lips that laugh but hearts are torn
    One of twelve to weave the crown
    Betrayal’s breath on hope is sworn

    [Chorus]
    Washed feet and heavy hearts
    Grace in the face of falling stars
    Boundless love still lights the dark
    When faith is found in Jesus’ scars

    [Verse 3]
    Tables set for bread and wine
    Yet shadows cast by hidden fear
    Promises of soul divine
    Shattered when the dawn is near

    [Verse 4]
    Silent whispers of what’s true
    A Kiss to break our holy ties
    Love that’s denied in shades of blue
    Fading as the rooster cries

    [Chorus]
    Washed feet and heavy hearts
    Grace in the face of falling stars
    Boundless love still lights the dark
    When faith is found in Jesus’ scars

    The song was originally generated as the 13th song in my suite of songs following the chapters of John’s Gospel. It pairs well with The Arrest in the Garden – another song from the same suite.

    However, for those who prefer a rock ballad style the musical style of Denial’s Edge from my Luke’s Gospel suite might be more to your taste. All of these are in my Holy Week playlist.

  • The Playlists

    The Playlists

    One of the reasons why I began working on this site was to help organise the curated playlists of AI-generated worship music I’ve been working on.

    Here’s a link to an ever-expanding set of my playlists on Suno.

    I’ve tried to categorise them as:

    • Books of the Bible
    • Chants
    • The Church Year
    • People
    • Stories
    • Books
    • Themes

    Feel free to explore them: remix, experiment with your own ideas and comment on or like any individual songs or playlists while you are there.

  • Happy Holy Week

    Happy Holy Week

    Yes, there’s a playlist!

    We begin this week with Palm Sunday, but beneath all the rejoicing that the king is here, there’s a deeper, darker undercurrent. We know Jesus has to die.

    To a corrupt establishment, it’s a necessary political expedience. They tell us we cannot afford the luxury of a populist iconoclast who, if left unchecked, would overturn their comfortable status quo.

    It’s worth exploring musically.