Selecting the songs the congregation will sing in a worship service is probably the single most important part of planning worship (well, in my opinion, anyway). So I tend to take a lot of time on this aspect. Too, it isn’t an easy task. There is much material from which to choose, unless you limit yourself to one source, a hymnal for example.
If I have a scripture passage from which I know the Pastor will be preaching (and I almost always do), I will generally begin with the Scripture Index in the back of our hymnal (The Baptist Hymnal, 1991 edition). Every once in a while I get lucky and find a good match there. But, the scriptures the editors of The Baptist Hymnal selected to go with each hymn are almost always a poor match, so even if the index says there is a match to the scripture I’m looking for I always go to the hymn and make sure it really does match. Rarely does this work.
I then turn to the subject index and try to find matches based on theme. I’m usually more successful here (though not always), which is a good thing. Assuming I find a match and I know it will work well, I then try to find an updated accompaniment to the hymn. My two major sources for updated hymn accompaniments are Word Music’s Hymns for Praise & Worship and HymnCharts.com. If you haven’t come across HymnCharts.com, I suggest you give them a shot. The accompaniments are available in PDF and Finale formats; with the Finale formats you can change keys to whatever you need them to be. This was very helpful when we had a French horn player in our ensemble. Don (HymnCharts.com arranger) doesn’t include a part for French horn, so I just changed the key of the C instrument score to the appropriate French horn key and we were set.
Having successfully selected a hymn for the set, I then turn to trying to find one or two more songs. These songs may or may not be a hymn. For these sources I widen my search area to include Word Music’s Songs for Praise & Worship, More Songs for Praise & Worship, More Songs for Praise & Worship 2, and More Songs for Praise & Worship 3. Again I try to match scripture references (the scripture cross-references in these resources are much better than The Baptist Hymnal for some reason). I used to purchase a subscription to PraiseCharts.com, but the subscriptions are quite expensive and so now I just purchase charts or orchestrations on an as needed basis. If we were to add a service using mostly modern material, or if we had an influx of musicians who used electronic instruments, I might consider purchasing a subscription again, but for now, the a la carte option works.
When I look for these additional songs to add to the set, I’m looking for key relation (do the keys of the songs match any already-selected songs?) and mood (does the mood of the piece match or complement any already-selected songs). There are ways around finding a perfect song whose key doesn’t match something already in the set; I simply plan to say something verbally between the songs so the instruments can pause and start the new song fresh. I really don’t like awkard modulations or transitions between songs; they can ruin my concentration and the concentration of the congregation.
But the number one thing I’m looking for, the aspect that will trump all others even if the key is perfect and the mood and tempo are just right, is this: I’m look for solid texts. Texts that don’t water down theology, texts that don’t sound like they could just as easily be sung to my wife. I’m looking for texts that declare the majesty of God in specific ways. I’m looking for texts that point to the Cross. I’m looking for songs that are doctrinally-rich. And so I add to the resources I’ve mentioned above songs by Keith and Kristyn Getty, Stuart Townend, and Sovereign Grace Music. Songs from these resources are always worthy of consideration for inclusion in a worship service. The style may not be just right, but style is often adjustable within copyright restrictions. In other words, just because a song is pretty “edgy” on a Sovereign Grace CD doesn’t mean your musicians have to be that edgy.
The Hymn of Response (following the sermon) is usually, but not always, a hymn. This hymn is tied directly to the content of the sermon. We also usually use the opening and closing selections for the service for a month at a time. The selection criteria for these pieces is the same for the other pieces throughout the service.
A couple of final thoughts: I will sometimes include in a worship service a very simple song like “I Love You, Lord”. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this song except it isn’t very complex. I may match this simple song with a more doctrinally-full song to make a nice pair. But I probably wouldn’t let “I Love You, Lord” stand alone unless it were in response to something.
Also, doctrinally-rich music, by nature, is usually quite verbose. Hymns and songs by the Gettys and by Townend are usually easily learned and sung. Sovereign Grace songs will generally require a little more time for a typical congergation to get used to and learn well enough to be considered a part of the general congregational repertoire.
