Choosing Congregational Songs

Tasked with choosing songs for your church service? Here are some tips to help you select congregational songs that will lift the spirits of everyone present, and help prepare their hearts for the message! Many song directors or song leaders either have a difficult time selecting songs for the church to sing, or simply do not have the experience necessary to know how to choose the right songs for the right time.

It is important to remember that in all cases, song selection falls under the leadership of the pastor, and therefore if he expresses a desire that is contrary to any of these guidelines, he is the one to be followed.

Things to Consider When Selecting Songs

There are many things to consider when choosing congregational songs, the first of which is the energy level of the song in question. "Onward, Christian Soldiers" has a much higher level of energy than a song such as "I Surrender All."

Another important aspect of congregational singing is the message of the song. For instance, a song describing an altar call is probably better suited to later in the service. Every song in the hymn book conveys a message. Sometimes the message is of commitment, sometimes of God's love, sometimes of the Resurrection. No matter the message of the song, you must consider it so that you can properly lead the song for the congregation.

It is also important to consider the key in which a song is written. You don't want to strain the voices of the congregation on the very first song and have them struggling to sing out on the rest of the songs. To the opposite end, you also don't want a song that is in a key that is too low. When folks sing a song that is too low, they cannot sing out as much, and this drains the energy right out of the services.

Different Types of Songs

If you have every simply flipped through a hymn book, you have probably noticed that visually, many songs do not appear to be the same! Most hymn books contain three main categories of songs: the hymn, the Gospel song, and the chorus. Some older hymnals may also contain Psalms put to music. Let's take a look at each of these types, and how we can identify the differences.

We will examine hymns first. Some common examples of hymns are "Crown Him with Many Crowns," "Holy, Holy, Holy," or "Fairest Lord Jesus." Hymns tend to sound very sober. They tend to use complex harmonies and larger, more involved words. They also tend to include much more doctrine than Gospel songs or choruses.

Now let's focus on Gospel songs. Gospel songs are songs such as "Glory to His Name," "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms," or "I'll Fly Away." These are usually happier songs, but are almost always songs of testimony. A song of testimony is a song that tells others of our relationship with God. The structure of Gospel songs usually contains a verse and then a chorus. They use simple chords and simple words, and usually focus on one idea or doctrine.

The last category of songs that we will discuss is that chorus. "Every Day with Jesus," "Christ Paid a Debt," and "His Name Is Wonderful" are all examples of a chorus. These are usually short, simple songs that are excellent songs to teach children, but also contain great doctrine blended with a catchy tune.

Different Styles of Services

You have probably noticed that the "feel" and energy level of a Sunday morning service is very different from that of a Wednesday evening service. Much of this is dependent on the preference of the pastor, but should he leave this duty to you, then here are some ways to consider selecting songs for different services.

Sunday morning services tend to be slightly more formal and "high-churchy" than Sunday and Wednesday evening services. Therefore, we could select songs such as "Holy, Holy, Holy" or "O God, Our Help in Ages Past" for morning services.

Sunday evening services tend to be a time where all the tired workers come back to be refreshed, encouraged, and refocused for the week. Now it would be helpful to select songs that relate to soul winning and dedication. "Work, for the Night Is Coming" is an excellent example of a Sunday evening song.

And, finally, we come to the midweek service. Many folks are frustrated and weary from several days of taxing business and other duties. Midweek services are a wonderful time to sing about the goodness of God toward us. For instance, we could choose songs like "My Saviour's Love" for a midweek service.

Song Placement

Now we come to the part in which we actually choose the order of the song service. As a general rule of thumb, the speed of songs should gradually decrease the further into the service you progress. There is a subconscious element of "settling" that occurs in the hearts of people as the speed or tempo of songs slow down. It literally has a physical effect on the congregation.

It would be a terrible idea to open a service with "Just As I Am." It would equally be a terrible idea to have as the final song before the sermon "Win Them One by One." These songs simply do not fit in those positions.

Here is an example order of songs for a Sunday morning service. Let's say there is no choir, and so we will open with two congregational songs. "Crown Him with Many Crowns" and "Blessed Assurance" would be two excellent options. Then, as we progress further through the service, we could choose a song such as "At the Cross." For the final song before the sermon, "Like a River Glorious" would provide a confident but calming atmosphere to set the emotional mood for the pastor.

Here is an example of songs we could choose for a midweek service. Usually, since people are worn out by now, it is better to not have them standing and singing for as much time as they would on a Sunday morning. So for our example, we will only choose three songs: one opener, one in the middle, and then one right before the message. For our opener, "When We All Get to Heaven" is a great choice. Further through the service, we could choose a song such as "The Longer I Serve Him." For the song right before the message, "His Name Is Wonderful" could be an option.

Bringing It All Together

As was mentioned in the beginning, all of these recommendations are subject to the desires of the pastor.

Now that you are armed with all this information, the best way to choose a song would be to follow this process:

1. For what service am I selecting songs?

2. How many songs will we sing?

3. Will all of the songs be before the message? Will we sing one final congregational at the end before dismissal? Will we sing a song during the invitation?

4. What is an energetic song(s) that will begin the service with excitement?

5. What is a settling song that will go before the preaching?

You may also find it helpful to organize the songs that your church sings into various categories to avoid searching through the index every time you have to select songs. Microsoft Excel is very useful for this, but you could even simply take scrap paper and label it with the following categories: Sunday AM Openers, Sunday AM Mid, Sunday AM Final, Sunday PM Openers, Sunday PM Mid, Sunday PM Final, Midweek Openers, Midweek Mid, and Midweek Final. You will find that many songs fit into many different categories. Of course, you could organize it however you find most useful, this is just a suggestion.

Now you have some basic steps that will take your song service to the next level! Keep in mind that these are just suggestions, and by no means should you follow these arbitrarily, as there is an exception to every rule. Always seek the mind of your pastor!

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Thank you for stopping by! We hope this article was a blessing and a help to you.

Aaron Dempsey

I Cor. 15:58