A hunt for new songs has a mixed sense of frustration and excitement. The possibility of finding something fresh, is often mixed with the struggle to select songs that will connect with your church community & culture, as well as honour and glorify God. Obviously, the two are not incompatible, but don’t always come together neatly.
I know that those tasked with selecting new songs often find it a struggle, and if you’re asking your team for suggestions (which is a great way to go) you will always get personal preferences which are often plagued with styles that you have to sift through.
I often answer people’s question about song selection, with two considerations
- If possible and appropriate, lean into songs that are written by your own people? It’s the reason I launched “Song Writers Retreat” and believe so much in it. People in your home community will more readily embrace a song written by one of their own. Of course, it must fulfil certain criteria (see below) but once that is covered, it is often well embraced.
- Consider what songs have connected with your church culture in the past (stylistically, culturally, thematically)?
Having said that, here’s some criteria that might help you decide whether a song will be suitable for your particular church community
- Do the lyrics glorify God and honour Him and are they true to Scripture? We are to worship in Spirit and in truth, so the lyrics need to bring glory to God, and be true (verifiable by God’s word). It doesn’t mean that you have to sing exact Scripture, but that what you are singing is His revelation. Remember, we can teach each other when we sing! (Ephesians 5:19)
- Is the melody memorable and singable? The songs that work well have fairly simple melodies that are memorable – they stick in your head (like a lot of advertising jingles!) and the range doesn’t require people to screech to sing!
- Does it fit a current theme of your church? Maybe your church has an annual theme, or a preaching series and a particular song might help undergird the theme, and perhaps help people remember key truths.
- Does it fit into one of the following headings: Praise, adoration and exaltation, worship, response or special (like communion, prayer etc). Whilst songs can range across a number of purposes, it can be good to think through where they might fit in a song mix. You may also want to consider have a spread of themes as well, such as: The cross, God’s greatness, thankfulness, commitment and heaps more.
- Can your church culture handle the songs you want to do? I think every church needs to be challenged culturally, and maybe stylistically because change in and of itself is inevitable. However, we need to be aware of what we are doing and why. We should mix in style or cultural changes with what is familiar and loved.
With all those considerations, and I’m sure you have some more, sometimes a song just works. Sometimes you will think it will be a winner, and the people just don’t seem to respond. That’s OK – I’ve done my share of songs I thought would work, but only lasted one week… as well as songs I thought would last a week or two, but ended up being faves!
Song selection is more an art than a science. Do it prayerfully and be considerate of your church family.
Selecting new songs for your church is an art more than a science, and needs to be considered prayerfully with an awareness of your church family. I mean, when we cook a meal for our family, we do our best to take into consideration their dietary needs, the personal tastes and preferences, as well as challenge them with a new recipe from time to time. Perhaps song selection is similar.
Share your wins and ‘oops’ moments when it comes to song selection so we all get to learn from your experiences.
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