[This post is part of a series on Your Guide to Selecting and Leading Songs for Worship. Check out the rest here.]
I never knew the phrase “we should do more hymns” would feel like a stab in the heart. It hurts even more when it’s followed up with the leg sweep of “we don’t like your songs”.
So as I lie there bloodied and battered down, I wonder, “Do these people know how much time I put into worship for Sunday morning?” Praying through the setlist, scheduling the band, preparing for a great rehearsal, praying for God to move, showing up early, getting nervous, pouring my heart out.
And then I hear it echoing through my head like an annoying baby toy: “we should do more hymns, we should do more hymns, we should do more…”
I know that was maybe slightly dramatic. But in all honesty, it’s how we as worship leaders feel when it comes to hymns: it’s an all-out war! The elder segment of the church desire the rich theology of the songs they sang when they were saved, while the young people desire the new, fresh expressions of worship because they just don’t “get” the hymns.
What do we do? Since Jesus sang all hymns, shouldn’t we? 🙂 Or, since hymns are so difficult to worship to shouldn’t we just keep it simple and pursue His presence? Do we exclude one camp for the sake of the other? I’m of the belief that the generations should worship together – that the old and young should stand together, exalting our Savior who was, and is, and is to come.
This debate calls for a strength and humility on both sides: The young need to respect the old(er), appreciate the heritage of the faith they now stand in, and flippin’ sing some hymns! I also believe the old(er) need to respect the passion of these young Christians and understand that they are the future of the church.
Since I am a young worship leader, I want to close this post with some thoughts for other young worship leaders on how to navigate these hymns wars. You’ll always hear rude comments. Everyone will not ALWAYS be pleased. But these pointers can go a long way:
- Sing hymns as often as you can (I try and add 1 per week)
- Sing hymns as medleys with newer songs
- Study hymns and hymn writers. Develop an appreciation for the past.
- Utilize modern arrangements for hymns. Check out this album
- Write your own ‘adaptation’ of a hymn (here’s one I did)
- Occasionally sing hymns with nothing more than a piano (It’s easier for the old(er) to engage with)
- Tell stories behind the hymn as a sermon intro (Our video guy, Brian, made this video for our Christmas Eve services)
- Explain to your congregation the heart behind some of your favorite modern worship songs
Question: What are your thoughts on singing hymns in church? Leave some comment love below.
Great post! This is a constant war in the church today… I think that there are some great hymns, but they are definitely old. I think that we should respect them and occasionally sing them. I do however think that hymns turn away a lot of people… personally, I get a alot of people around my age saying that hymns just don’t make sense to them. It is more worshipful for them to sing newer upbeat songs because they connect with them musically and spiritually.
Brandon, you should try some hymns that have additional choruses added to them. Some examples: Amazing Grace (my chains are gone), Jesus Paid it All (Kristian Stanfill), It is Well With My Soul (Todd Fields). It helps to make hymns a bit more ‘worshipful’ and easier for the young to engage with.
Thanks! I will…
Hymns are awesome. There really isn’t a “war” at our church over hymns and choruses, but I make sure that we use hymns. Most of the time we work our own arrangements or use one that has been done recently, but lately we have taken some and stripped everything away and used the more traditional melody.
Good insight, John. Which hymns have you done recently?
The fact of the matter is..that “worship” of any kind is pleasing to God and accepted with a sweet savor…the music, the hymn, the tune, the words. Everything that goes into a song service, is lovely, true, blessed, uplifting. People don’t know how to be flexible and roll with what is placed in front of them. Old or young, TRUE WORSHIP basically in song, comes from so many other postures. The lifting of hands, the surrender of heart, the tear on the cheek, the tongue expressed..I see it like this. We are all born in the shape of a square. The things that happen to us during a lifetime such as disappointments, failures, hurts, rejections, hates, sins, attacks, on and on. These things in time chip away the sharp corners of our life one by one. Through out a lifetime we are eventually left with nice rounded sides more like a ball. No more sharp edges to be caught in the berms and holes in the road of life..then we are prepared to roll wherever we need or are asked to go with perfect knowledge we will get to our destination without getting stuck…Your worship and music is fine..it is the ‘receivers’ that need to allow the corners they so proudly profess to be knocked off. They need to learn how to surrender and roll!!
I love the analogy Lois! Thanks for that.
Good stuff here David. In my church, we sing a lot of hymns but we tend to modernize them most of the time. Check out Ascend the Hill’s newest album Hymns (Take the World But Give Me Jesus). That album is my number one favorite worship album and it’s all modernized hymns. I think a lot of people (older but now younger) flock towards hymns, not always for their chart-toping sound like the newer songs, but for the deep rich truths of the Bible put to songs that are not always present with the modern songs.
I agree, Chris. Thanks for the album recommendation as well. I’m going to pick that up.
I’m a young worship leader (29 yrs old) and I love hymns. I do them and it makes the older folks happy and it let’s ms getting away with “rocking out” a bit more which the younger folks like (plus the the thees and thous sound artsy) the group I’ve found that don’t like them are the middle age folks who are either CCM (chris Tomlin) only in their musical out look or can’t get past the old Maranatha chorus’ of the 70’s and 80’s… they (by and large) hate the hymns.
Interesting point, Adam. It’s the 70’s Maranatha stronghold! 😉
Brandon,
Im the opposite, Im young but I connect with very little of “modern CCM worship” music. I’m actually limited by the pastors at my church (which I willingly submit to) on the ratio of hymns I’m allowed to do. the versions of “praise to the Lord the almighty” and “how great thou art” that we do are some of most energetic and youthful songs.
on iTunes a band called “Proto Evangelion” has a great modern hymns alternative rock album (their version of all creatures is great.) and a church called “trinity vineyard” has a great folksy hymns album. mars hill church in Seattle podcasts a lot of their worship for free which is 80% modern hymn.
Thanks for the suggestions, Adam! I look forward to checking those out pronto. You are incredibly unique in that your pastors have to limit how many hymns you do. Wow! Are they actually requesting more modern songs?
The questions of hymns or no hymns represets a bigger question: who get their way in a church’s stylistic expression? the older, the younger or the middle. younger guys (and I’ve been really guilty of this in the past) have a tendency to want to put the previous generation on the ice berg while the older generation who got church they way they wanted it dont seem to think the same should apply for their kids and grand kids. few churches strike a true balance on this point.
Adam, I’d love to get your input on this discussion: https://www.davidsantistevan.com/2011/08/older-generation/
David, yeah I’m probably one of the few guys who have that restiction 🙂 it’s actually a good one in the long term as change too fast can backfire on you.
I like the hymns for a lot of reasons but there are a lot of folks from backgrounds (church and music) different than mine who have a hard time connecting with them & I need to serve them too.
If you’re part of a Christian sub set culture that only listens to CCM radio you’ll naturally want more Tomlin etc, but most people listen to country, pop or rock and so their natural musical expression (for the non institutionalized) is naturally along those lines. it’s all about finding that balance I guess.