The Earth is the Lord’s (Psalm 24:1-2)
“The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it,
the world and those who live in it,
for he has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the waters”
This is a curricular song for a Freedom to Lead (FTL) curriculum on the topic of stewardship. This scripture set to song reminds the listener to begin with the core truth that everything belongs to God! (We all need to be reminded!)
Pastor Mamadou Diouf led a team of Serer musicians to compose, rehearse and record this song in Dakar, Senegal. We recorded with Mamadou’s team four different times over three years and each time there were some changes in personnel. It was fun to have young Alouise on djembe for this song (he also played guitar on some other songs).
This curricular song is a great example of what Mary Lu and I call “strategic songs.” These are indigenous songs created to advance the ministry of the local church in strategic ways. Strategic songs can be designed for scripture memory, discipleship, leadership development (as in this example), public service/public health initiatives or in some other way to build bridges between the church and local culture using the ethno arts. Our passion is to see local musicians and artists embrace an ongoing strategic partnership with church leaders to advance local ministry through the ethno arts. This song, created for “The Garden Project” leadership development curriculum from Freedom to Lead International is a powerful tool in marginally-literate communities for both teaching and for memory. Once they learn the song they will remember it word-for-word!
Enjoy!