Why You Should Care About Hymns

Many folks from the contemporary tradition believe that newer is better, to a fault. They think that if it didn’t come out this month (or sooner, if possible), it isn’t relevant anymore. Hymns are no longer useful.

 

They prioritize newness over quality, change over consistency. And we aren’t just talking about hymns here, it’s every aspect of worship. They invent their own prayers without considering the “words that Jesus taught us to pray,” or their own transition speech over traditional litanies.

 

That’s not a bad thing in and of itself, but when concern for appearance takes precedence over substance there’s an issue. Services sound and look great, but the congregation is spiritually malnourished. Why? Because…

 

1. We pick songs that have weak theology
2. We pick content that reflects only the context of today
3. It means that instead of refining what is known, we are fixated on finding what is new.

 

The first two are really more personal ideology, but the third is a matter of practicality. That’s what I’ll focus on in this article, the relevance of hymns from a practical standpoint.

 

 

You’re Working Too Hard!

 

Think of it this way: if discovering the newest trend is a leader’s primary goal, then the target is always moving. This means that lots of time is spent looking, time that could have been spent planning or teaching. Also, if we’re only focused on getting new stuff worked up, there is very little opportunity to perfect that work.

 

If you’re like me, you only get one rehearsal before a service, which means you need to hustle to get songs ready with the team. If there is nothing but new stuff all the time, the hustle never ends, it’s a constant sense of frantically trying to get ready without ever being able to breathe or feel comfortable with what you’re trying to do.

 

And what message does that send to the congregation? If you think your nerves and your personal hang-ups don’t make an appearance while you’re on stage, you are sadly mistaken. They know when you’re struggling during worship, and they’ll forgive you for it, but take a hard look at yourself and ask:

 

“Was that the best I could do?”

 

“Was that a worthy offering?”

 

Maybe it was, maybe you’re doing things to the best of your ability and you are happy with the worship experience you’re providing the church. But if you think you could do better, consider this…

 

What if you were able to let someone else start the hard job of teaching your song and you were able to just perfect it?

 

(Some of you already know what I’m about to say. “Prophesy!”)

 

That’s exactly what you get when you program old hymns!

 

 

Using Hymns Will Make Your Life Easier

 

The benefit is that you can build off what someone else already started. Your singers know the words, your instrumentalists know the tune and the road map. No surprises there. Now your job is to make it fresh instead of making it new. That’s a much easier task.

 

Not only that, but you know that it’s good music! Some of the greatest composers, arrangers and lyricists of all time worked on those hymns. Guys like Bach and Handel, Lowell Mason, Charles Weasley, Mozart. Gals like Fanny Crosby. Some of those names will be familiar to you, and some might not be. Not knowing the history of the church means we’re cutting ourselves off from a wealth of knowledge and experience that stretches back a thousand years.

 

If you believe as I do in the Universal Church, the idea that the Church (the “bride of Christ”) transcends both space and time, then think about what that means for our worship.

 

When I sing in worship, I like to think I’m connecting with all the people who will sing that song throughout all of time and space.

 

I’m connecting with my great-great grandfather as well as with my great-great granddaughter, people I’ve never met and will never meet until they put me in the grave.

 

I’m singing with them, and everyone else who has ever or will ever sing that song.

 

Now, with that in mind, is the congregational music you are participating going to be one of those songs?

 

Will it connect you to at least the future, if not the past?

 

Chances are, it won’t.

 

I can already hear some of you saying, “Well it sounds like he’s telling me never to try anything new and only do that old stuff.”

 

No!

 

I really am just speaking to those who in today’s church climate are taking newness to the extreme. I would like for those churches and those leaders to consider alternatives, like…

• Using modern instruments to perform standard hymns.
• Modernizing the overall sound of an old tune, maybe even alter the rhythms a little bit.
• Adding new choruses to ancient verse.

 

There are many ways you could spruce up the standard hymns, and there’s nothing holding you back from tapping into that great wealth of music other than your own reluctance and the limits on your imagination. Remove those restrictions and you may find your rehearsals go smoother and your congregations being fed better.

 

 

Do you agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments below what you thought. For more thought-provoking stuff, subscribe to our email list.

 

Go in peace.