Until one day, Man and Woman chose their own will over the will of God. And darkness covered over the land. A Darkness of separation, of lost communion, of disgrace, of sin. Thorns and thistles infested the earth. Man toiled by the sweat of his brow to produce food. Woman gave birth to children in agony. Mankind fought with one another, murdered one another, and in the end died themselves.
What you need:
- Script: see a sneak peek and purchase the script on my Etsy store.
- Music: look through the music database below for plenty of options, including links to chords, sheet music, and performance tracks!
- Production guidance: check out my posts on budgeting a production, and also on staying organized through the process.
Who you need:
- Several narrators & singers: I had seven people up front for the majority of the program, and among them, they handled all the performance singing and the readings.
- Two to four special speakers: you’ll need readers for the Mary and Joseph monologues, plus one or two people for the other short voiceovers and call-ins.
- Instrumentalists: I had three pianists in this program.
- Worship leaders & instrumentalists: there are two slots for congregational singing at the beginning and end of the main program.
- Special effects: I used a recording of a baby cry and a recorded lamentation sung in Hebrew.
Music Database
You’ll need:
- The traditional “O Holy Night”
- A Creation Song
- A Mary Song
- A Joseph Song
- A Praise Song
- A Closing Song (if desired)
Here is a list of options for each category, opening with the one I chose when I produced this program. Depending on the tone of each song you choose to use, you may want to tweak the lyrics slightly or edit the script to flow in and out more smoothly.
Creation Songs
How it fits: The program begins in darkness with “Then God said, “Let there be light”, then all the lights go up and the ensemble sings a creation song. After the song, the instrumentalists continue with chording behind a layered reading of the 6 days of creation, then the ensemble sings the final chorus one more time.
Creation Song (Fernando Ortega)
Lyrics Preview:
He wraps Himself in light
As with a garment
He spreads out the heavens
And walks on the wings of the wind
Creation Sings the Father’s Song (Keith & Kristyn Getty)
Piano music | Chords | Chords option 2
Lyrics Preview:
Creation sings the Father’s song;
He calls the sun to wake the dawn
And run the course of day
Till evening falls in crimson rays.
His fingerprints in flakes of snow,
His breath upon this spinning globe,
He charts the eagle’s flight;
Commands the newborn baby’s cry.
God of Wonders (Chris Tomlin)
Chords | Piano music | Piano music option 2
Lyrics Preview:
Lord of all creation
Of water, earth, and sky
The heavens are Your tabernacle
Glory to the Lord on High
God of wonders, beyond out galaxy
You are holy, holy
The universe declares Your majesty
You are holy, holy
Indescribable (Chris Tomlin)
Lyrics Preview:
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Mary’s Song
How it fits: Readers read the Luke 1 account of the angel visiting Mary, then Mary monologues about the hope of a Messiah, the great contrast of God becoming man, and the sufficiency of God’s grace in times of fear. Then she sings.
Lyrics Preview:
I rejoice in God my Savior,
In the wonder of His favor.
For He has done great things for me;
He was mindful of His servant.
Every age shall call me blessed.
The Hope of Abraham come
In the giving of a Son;
For He who promised is mighty
In remembering His mercy.
Be Born in Me (Francesca Battistelli)
Chords | Piano music | Performance track
Lyrics Preview:
Be born in me. Be born in me.
Trembling heart, somehow I believe
That You chose me
I’ll hold you in the beginning,
You will hold me in the end
Breath of Heaven (Point of Grace)
Piano sheet music | Performance track | Performance track option 2
Lyrics Preview:
I am waiting in a silent prayer
I am frightened by the load I bear
In a world as cold as stone
Must I walk this path alone
Be with me now, be with me now
You’re Here (Francesca Battistelli)
Chords | Piano sheet music | Performance track option 1 | Performance track option 2 | Performance track option 3
Lyrics Preview:
You’re here, I’m holding you so near
I’m staring into the face of my Savior, King and Creator
You could’ve left us on our own, but you’re here
Don’t know how long I’m gonna have you for
But I’ll be watching when you change the world
I look at your hands, they’re still so small
Someday you’re going to stretch them out and save us all
Noel, Noel, God with us Emmanuel
He Who is Mighty (Sovereign Grace)
Chords | Piano sheet music and chord chart
Lyrics Preview:
Oh, the mercy our God has shown
To those who sit in death’s shadow
The sun on high pierced the night
Born was the Cornerstone
Unto us a Son is given, unto us a Child is born
He Who is mighty has done a great thing
Taken on flesh, conquered death’s sting
Shattered the darkness and lifted our shame
Holy is His name
Joseph’s Song
How it fits: Readers read the Luke 2 account of the census and the birth of Jesus Christ. Joseph then monologues about the marvellous works of the Lord, his inadequacy to raise a Holy Child, and he ends with the chilling realization of the suffering his adoptive child will endure as the Son of Man.
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (Casting Crowns)
Chords | Piano sheet music | Performance track
Lyrics Preview:
And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth I said
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, goodwill to men
A Strange Way to Save the World (4Him)
Chords | Piano sheet music | Performance track | Performance track option 2
Lyrics Preview:
Why me, I’m just a simple man of trade
Why Him with all the rulers in the world
Why here inside this stable filled with hay
Why her, she’s just an ordinary girl
Now I’m not one to second guess
What angels have to say
But this is such a strange way to save the world
Welcome to Our World (Chris Rice)
Chords | Piano sheet music | Performance track | Performance track option 2 | Performance track option 3
Lyrics Preview:
Hope that You don’t mind our manger
How I wish we could have known
But long-awaited Holy Stranger
Make Yourself at home
Please make Yourself at home
I Am A Carpenter (Klosner)
Lyrics Preview:
I am a carpenter, and I build with careful hands
I do my best to take each block of wood
and carve it into something strong and sturdy,
Something useful, something beautiful for the world
I am a carpenter, not a wise man, not a king
And yet, the angel told me in a dream
This Is All I Have to Give (Todd Agnew)
Lyrics Preview:
I’d always dreamed I’d build a cradle we’d lay you in when we brought you home, when we brought you home,
But there you lay, fast asleep in a feed trough; it was all that I could find.
I’d always hoped you’d have my eyes, maybe a little bit of the skill of my hands,
But, as I look into your eyes, I see your hands created mine.
Praise Song
How it fits: Readers summarize the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on Golgotha, then the triumph of the Resurrection. They then read a paraphrase of the John 1 passage about the light of all mankind, ending with “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Let There be Light (Point of Grace)
Performance track | Performance track option 2 | Piano sheet music
Lyrics Preview:
He spoke after centuries of silence
In the midst of a still, starry night
And Emmanuel came down among us
And the Father said, Let there be light
Let there be light, let it shine bright
Piercing the darkness with dazzling white
Hope for the hopeless was born on that night
When God sent His Son and said, Let there be light
Gloria (Michael W Smith)
Lyrics Preview:
Come to Bethlehem and see
(Gloria O sing Gloria)
Him whose birth the angels sing
(Gloria O sing Gloria)
Come adore on bended knee
Christ the Lord the newborn King
Piano sheet music | Performance track | SATB Choir
Glory in the Highest (Chris Tomlin)
Lyrics Preview:
You are the first, You go before
You are the last, Lord, You’re the encore
Your name’s in lights for all to see
The starry host declare Your glory
Glory in the highest
Glory in the highest
Glory in the highest
Let There Be Light (Jesus Culture)
Lyrics Preview:
When You speak
Darkness has to bow
Confusion has its final hour
When You speak
Mountains rise and fall
Its tears down every wall around me
Closing Song
How it fits: the script doesn’t have a song here – we closed with a layered reading inspired by the praise around the throne of heaven recorded in Revelation 4. Our church then went to candelighting and the congregational singing of Silent Night, so putting another song in here didn’t work for us. If you wanted to use another song that has the feel of the Revelation 4 passage, here are some options:
Agnus Dei (Michael W. Smith)
Lyrics Preview:
Alleluia Alleluia
For our Lord God Almighty reigns
Alleluia Alleluia
For our Lord God Almighty reigns
Alleluia
Holy Holy
Are You Lord God Almighty
Worthy is the Lamb
Worthy is the Lamb
Chords | Performance track | Performance track option 2 | Piano sheet music | SATB option 1 | SATB option 2
Worthy the Lamb (SoundForth/David Rasbach)
Lyrics Preview:
Tis the Church triumphant singing
“Worthy the Lamb”
Heaven’s throughout with praises ringing
“Worthy the Lamb”
Thrones and powers before Him bending
Incense sweet and voice ascending
Swell the chorus never ending
And singing “Worthy the Lamb”
Revelation Song (Kari Jobe)
Lyrics Preview:
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Holy, holy is He
Sing a new song to Him who sits on
Heaven’s mercy seat
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty
Who was and is and is to come
With all creation I sing praise to the King of kings
You are my everything and I will adore You
Chords | Piano sheet music | Performance track option 1 | Performance track option 2
And just a few more…
How it fits: these are songs that fit the overall themes of the program but might not slide as neatly into one specific slot or another (or maybe they do, and I missed it!). Since the program as written is only about 50 minutes long, you could flesh out a portion of the script and add another song pretty easily. Consider this bonus material for your creativity!
Good (Matthew West & Leigh Nash)
Lyrics Preview
If I could, I’d rewrite history
I’d choose differently
If I could, I would
I’d leave out the part where I broke Your heart
In the garden’s shade
Fix the mess I made
If I could, I would
Can You hear us cry?
Wishing we could turn back time
To feel Your breath when branches move
Take one more sunset walk with You
Must each tomorrow hold
Such brokenness untold?
Can’t imagine how You could
See all of me and say it’s good
One Child (Natalie Grant)
Piano sheet music | Performance track | Performance track option 2
Lyrics Preview:
He stands beside her, he’d share her pain if he only knew how
He whispers, “I love you” as he gently strokes her brow
He’s so scared, but he’s so blessed
There’s a thundering pride pounding deep in his chest
For he knows
One million chains could never hold back this moment in time
One thousand dreams could never dream what this moment truly means
Heaven and earth, they cradle the Infinite Joy born on this night
For it only takes one Child to forever change the world
Shadows of the Dawn (Gray Havens)
Lyrics Preview:
It’s veiled and stands behind the shroud
The final day when trumpets sound
Sometimes I glimpse into the fog
And listen for the song
Til then I’m waiting for the day
In the shadows of the dawn
This My Soul (Gray Havens)
Lyrics Preview:
A voice came and spoke to the silence
The words took on beauty and form
The form took its shape as a garden was born
Then man from the dust came reflecting
All goodness and beauty and life
But he lowered his gaze
As he listened to the face of low desires
This my soul you were born
You were born into
What this man has done
It all extends to you
Let the words shake on down along your spine
And ring out true that you might find new life
And that’s a wrap! I hope you find the perfect fit and style for your church and your specific program. Let me know what you chose! designorganizecreate@gmail.com