Introducing new music

If you happen to serve a worshiping congregation who actually welcome new music into their worship services, you need to remember to at least put them on your Christmas card list. I know many musicians, especially those of us who serve at smaller churches, may not be able to throw in Starbucks gift cards for everyone at that point but you really should be grateful.

The introduction of new songs into worship seems to cause an inordinate amount of blood pressure spikes among worship leaders and congregants alike. So why not stay with the same old stuff, forever and ever, amen?

I love great old hymns. I also love the music that was crucial to my own develop spiritually; mostly “Jesus music” stuff from the late 60s through the early 80s.

I don’t know what my kids were thinking when they had me sit down and listen to this new stuff they were listening to and using in their own worship services with their peers, but you know something? There is really some great material in what they brought me.

Bottom line is, new music freshens worship. It needs to be part of your discipline of music and worship. So with bated breath, let me offer a few hints on introducing a new song to your congregation.

First, I have found it helpful to have someone offer the song as special music before you introduce it as a song for congregational use. You can let the congregation know somehow that the music being done as a special today will likely become part of Congregational singing in the weeks to come. Another hand in introducing new music to a congregation is to teach the song in parts – just so much at a time. For example, you might begin with teaching the congregation the chorus of a song and ask them to sing that and only that one week. The next time you sing that song in worship, ask the congregation to join in singing the verses.

And please, remember throughout this process that you’re not training a group to sing at the Met – you’re trying to teach them a song worth their time and effort to sing as an offering to the Most High God.

More to come!

–Steve Wamberg