Getting Your Grace Finds Me Right on Guitar
The song is in G major and moves through a fairly standard progression, but the strumming pattern is where people tend to mess up. The verse chords are G, D/F#, Em, C, G, D/F#, Em, C. The chorus shifts slightly with the addition of Am7 going into D. Most people learn it slowly first because the bass movement in the D/Fchord trips people up when they're trying to keep time. Here's the full set. Verse: G - D/F- Em - C. Pre-chorus: Am7 - D. Chorus: G - D/F- Em - C - G - D/F- Em - C, then back to Am7 - D and resolve on G. The bridge goes Em - C - G - D for a couple bars before looping back. That's really it. The song sits around 74 BPM in the recorded version, but I'd suggest practicing it at 60 first so your left hand has time to track those Fbass notes without rushing. I ran into a specific problem when I first tried playing this for a small group. The transition from Em to C in the chorus felt cramped because I was keeping my fingers planted too long after the Em shape. My workaround was to lift all fingers slightly off the strings during the switch rather than completely leaving the fretboard. It reduced the motion and made the change about half the time it was taking before. Not a perfect fix but it kept the groove moving without the awkward pause that kills a worship song in real time.
One thing beginners consistently miss is that the D/Fchord isn't just a D chord with a different bass note for effect. In this song the Fin the bass creates a descending line G to Fto E to C across those first four chords. If you play the D/Fas a regular open D shape, it works fine functionally, but it loses that smooth descent. A proper D/Fis fingers 1 on the high E string, 2 on the G string, 3 on the B string, and you omit the low D string. Alternatively you can just barre the top four strings at the second fret which is faster for people with smaller hands. I use the barre version live because it's one less finger decision to make when I'm also watching the lyric sheet. Another nuance that isn't obvious from most chord charts online is the timing on the Am7 into D in the pre-chorus. The Am7 should land on beat 4 of the bar leading into the D on the downbeat of the next measure. Most tab sites show both chords on the same count and that throws off the whole forward motion of the section. The pre-chorus is doing actual harmonic work here — it's building tension before the chorus release. If you rush it or play it flat, the chorus doesn't feel like it lifts at all. The bridge is straightforward enough that I won't overthink it. Em to C to G to D. Two cycles. Just make sure you're not letting the Em ring through into the C chord. Mute with your picking hand slightly between changes. It's a subtle thing but it makes the progression sound cleaner, especially on an acoustic where the strings resonate longer.
If you're playing this in a band context, tell the keyboardist or synth player to avoid doubling the root on the D/Fchord. That's a common live sound problem where both the guitarist and keyboard are playing Fin the bass and it just sounds muddy. The keyboard can play the D triad over whatever root the bassist is doing instead. There's no downloadable pdf of official chords from Matt Redman's publisher that I've found that's actually accurate. Most of the chord sites have the D/Ffigured wrong or omit the Am7 in the pre-chorus entirely. I ended up transcribing it myself by ear from the album version and the live recording from the Reborn DVD since that one has the clearest guitar part. The live version has slightly more pick attack which makes it easier to hear the individual chords. The song runs about three minutes and twenty seconds. That's short enough that you'll want to nail the transitions rather than adding extra fills, because there's not much room between sections. Keep it simple. The arrangement on the record is sparse for a reason — the melody carries it, not the guitar work. Your main job is to stay out of the way and keep time.
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Summary of the Chord Progressions
Verse: G D/FEm C (repeat twice) Pre-chorus: Am7 D Chorus: G D/FEm C G D/FEm C Am7 D G
Bridge: Em C G D (repeat twice) That covers it. The hardest part is really just getting comfortable with the D/Fshape until it's automatic. After that it's mostly about feel and keeping a steady pulse through the whole structure.
