Choosing Songs for a Worship Service

Each week, worship pastors are faced with what outsiders would consider a simple, repetitive task: choose songs for this week’s services. It would be easy for us to just string together a random list of the most recent songs we’ve been wearing out on Spotify; but most of us will agree that there should be some more objective or nuanced reasons for choosing the songs we sing each week. We need to develop some sort of method for this important part of our job.

That being said, here’s a quick list of the main things I think about as when I’m choosing songs for a worship service. Different worship leaders put different emphases on different points, but this is more or less the order I use:

1. Team
2. Themes
3. Liturgy
4. Song History
5. Style Balance
6. Flow

This post is written assuming that you’ve already built up a list or repertoire of songs that already pass some basic tests for good worship songs. (Are they true? Are they beautiful? Are they sing-able?) I’ve written another blog post here about some of those tests and some of my thoughts on choosing new songs to add to your repertoire. For this post I’ll focus on some of the key things I try to keep in mind as I’m choosing songs from an already existing list, in order to plan a service.

1. Team: Who’s playing?

One of the most basic things that I need to know before choosing songs for a service is who else I’ll be playing with. Whether we have a full band (drums, bass, keys, electric, acoustic, vocal harmonies), a “coffee shop” setup (percussion, keys, acoustic), or just myself and an acoustic guitar, will really determine what types of songs I’m going to choose. Also, depending on the skill level of the musicians playing with me, I can choose songs that tend toward their personal strengths, or I’ll know when to stretch them by trying something they’re not quite as comfortable with. Know your team and you’ll have a much better feel for which songs they’ll be able to play well together.

2. Themes: What are we talking about?

The next thing I think about is the underlying themes of the service. If I know which Bible passages or topics are being discussed, I can take a moment to look them up and start to become familiar with the subject matter. Are there repeated words or phrases in the passage? Do any songs come to mind right away that use the same language or discuss the same topics? Often, just grabbing a piece of paper and writing down key words or phrases and grouping them together can be really helpful.

3. Liturgy: What songs will help to tell the Gospel story?

As Jesus’ church, we’re called to live in the good news of his Gospel and proclaim it to the world. Musical worship is one beautiful and effective way that we can do that. Each time I lead worship, I try to include the following primary elements of the Gospel within the service— even if they appear in different ways or in a different order depending on the setting.

On a very basic level, here are the elements I try to include each time I lead:

1. ADORATION:
   Praising the greatness and holiness of God.
2. CONFESSION:
   Admitting that we have rebelled against God, both in the things we have done and the things that we have failed to do.
3. ASSURANCE OF GRACE:
   Recognizing our need for Jesus to reconcile us to God, remembering Jesus’ work on our behalf, and rejoicing in the hope we have through him.
4. THANKSGIVING AND SUPPLICATION:
   Asking for God’s help, in Christ and through the Spirit, to live grateful lives that please Him.

Using this list can really help us as worship leaders to tell the Gospel story each time we lead. It can also help us to avoid falling into ruts of our own personal pet topics and never singing about anything else. I try to choose songs that fill in as many of these liturgical categories as I can, and then either read scripture or verbally connect the dots during the service to fill in the rest. For more information on this type of liturgy, see “Christ-Centered Worship” by Brian Chapell.

4. Song History: What songs have we sung recently?

It’s also important to think about the songs we’ve sung recently (or haven’t sung in a long time). Did we introduce a new song last week that should be repeated to help people learn it? Are there any songs that I should avoid using because we’ve sung them too recently or too often? This is where tools like a Song History spreadsheet can really come in handy (post coming soon). I’ve found it helps to keep track of all of our songs and when we’ve sung them so that I can avoid too much or too little repetition.

5. Style Balance: old/middle-aged/young songs, familiar vs. unfamiliar, complex vs. simple

Throughout the Bible we see our rescuing God calling and redeeming a wonderfully diverse group of people for Himself: people from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. This includes people from different ethnicities, people of different ages, people with different church backgrounds, and people with different musical tastes. I believe that as much as possible we should keep this in mind as we seek care for and lead our congregation in a wise and compassionate way.

Just talk to a single row of people at your church, and you’ll quickly find that their opinions and preferences can vary a whole lot. Some people only love songs from 400 years ago, some people only love songs from 20-30 years ago, and some only love songs that came out yesterday (or they’re currently writing in their heads!).

As I plan each service, I try to keep in mind the styles of the songs I’m choosing, trying not to weigh in too heavily on one category over another. Have I chosen only brand new songs, or have I included ancient hymns or “middle-aged” popular choruses as well? Are we only singing musically complex, syncopated musical forms, or have I included smooth, simple arrangements and melodies as well? Are we only singing vast, expansive theological treatises or are we also including songs that have a few simple truths and allow us slow down and soak in them? (The Psalms include both!)

6. Flow: What songs will transition well from one to the other?

Avoiding awkward pauses or jarring breaks in the service can be very important in order to help your congregation focus on drawing near to God instead of wondering what their worship leader is doing. There are at least two main things to consider when trying to plan for smooth transitions from one song to the next: keys and energy.

• KEYS: Putting two songs together that are in the same musical key is by far the easiest way to smoothly flow from one to the next without awkward pauses. In many cases, you can seamlessly flow from one song to the next without any silence at all. As you’re choosing songs, this is a good thing to keep in mind.
• ENERGY: In general, it’s a good idea to put songs with similar amounts of energy together. When planning a service, try to avoid jumping from a super energetic, fast song to a slow, contemplative one and then right back up to a really fast song. It would probably be a much better idea to do something like a slow song, then a medium song, then a fast song, or the other way around. If you think of the service as a landscape, try to avoid dropping people off of cliffs by jumping from a fast song down to a really slow song. In the same way, try not to emotionally slam them into walls by jumping from a really mellow song straight up into an extra energetic one. Instead, think gradual hills and valleys.

Plan Services with Others and Plan Two Weeks at a Time

Two quick  notes before diving in. In his incredibly helpful book, “Worship Matters”, Bob Kaulfin recommends enlisting the help of someone else when choosing songs, and choosing songs for at least two weeks at a time. I’ve found these to be two incredibly helpful pieces of advice (that I need to listen to more often).

Choosing songs with someone else can really make the song selection process much less arduous, and keep the process moving forward. If you’re having trouble choosing songs from week to week, grab a friend who loves Jesus to come along for the ride! Also, once you’ve finally sat down and gotten into the thick of things, you might as well capitalize on your efforts and plan two weeks in one sitting. If you’re excited to play a certain song, but it doesn’t fit the theme or group of musicians, make a note and see if it fits for next week.

As with many guidelines there are exceptions, but I hope these will be some helpful rules of thumb that you can use as you’re choosing songs each week. Choosing songs for a worship service can be one of the most arduous and repetitive tasks of the job, but it doesn’t always have to be painful. If you think I’ve missed anything or have any questions, give me a shout!