David Crowder Give Us Rest

How to Learn and Play "Give Us Rest" by David Crowder Band

"Give Us Rest" is a worship song from the 2006 David Crowder Band album Deliver. It was written by David Crowder, Jeremy Edwards, and Brian Ketchum. The song is in the key of D major and sits at around 72 BPM. It's become a staple in many Protestant and contemporary Christian church services because of its straightforward chord progression and repeatable structure. The main verse and chorus chords are D - A - Bm - G. That's it. Most players learn it in about ten minutes. The bridge moves to G - D - A - G, which gives it a slight lift before dropping back into the final chorus. I remember trying to teach this to a friend's youth band back in 2009. The drummer kept rushing the bridge, and the whole thing fell apart. What worked for us was having the guitarist play just the root notes on the bass side while the drummer counted out loud for the first three practices. Once they locked in, the song played itself.

The vocal melody sits comfortably in the range of most worship leaders. If you're leading this in a service, start at the original key of D. If your singer is struggling, drop to C or B. Don't go higher than D unless you have a strong tenor. I've seen bands try to key it up for energy and it just sounds strained and kills the mood of the song.

What makes this song work live

The arrangement is deliberately sparse in the verses. The guitars usually play arpeggiated patterns or single-note lines. The chorus opens up with strumming. If you're playing this at church, don't overplay the verses. Leave space. The lyrics carry the weight here, not the instrumentation. The line "You are the God who gives us rest" lands much harder when the music is quiet leading into it. One thing people get wrong: the bridge isn't meant to be a build. A lot of bands treat it like a climax and crank the volume. It works better as a gentle transition back into the final chorus. Keep the energy level about the same or slightly lower, then let the last chorus breathe. The song is available on streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. Official chords and lyrics can be found on sites like WorshipCharts and CrossRhythms. If you need sheet music, the Hal Leonard book "David Crowder Band: Greatest Hits" has a piano/vocal/guitar arrangement for it.

A note on timing: The original recording uses a subtle swing feel in the guitar parts, but most churches play it straight. Either works. Just be consistent across the band. Nothing breaks a congregation faster than the drummer swinging and the guitarist playing straight eighths. One edge case I ran into: some pianists try to play this with full voicings in the left hand and it muds up the mix, especially in smaller churches with limited PA. Switch to single-note bass lines or octaves in the left hand. Keep the right hand handling the chord voicings. The song will sound cleaner and the vocal will sit better in the mix. If you're new to playing this song, practice it slowly at 60 BPM first. The original tempo hides mistakes. Slow it down, nail the transitions between D and Bm, then bring it back up. Most people rush this song unconsciously because it feels easy. Don't let that happen.