How to Build a Contemporary Hymnal

About How to Build a Contemporary Hymnal

When I began serving as a contemporary worship leader at a Lutheran church, I was faced with a daunting task.

How do I pick contemporary music that is new enough, Lutheran enough, and fosters belonging in this community at this time?

Unlike traditional musicians, contemporary worship leaders do not have a hymnal to guide music selection. Hymnals provide music for every church season, holiday, and theme while being condensed enough to not become overwhelmed with too many options. In this resource, How to Build a Contemporary Hymnal, I provide steps on how to collaboratively construct a song library for your congregation, guidance on themes for the liturgical season, and suggestions of songs written by diverse songwriters. Whether you are using the Revised Common Lectionary or picking music based on themes from sermon series, this guide will help you to bring your worship teams and worshiping community to greater cohesion.

Picking Music that is New Enough

There was a disconnect between contemporary musicians. When it was their turn, each musician picked music without collaborating with the others. As I catalogued the songs that had been used in our contemporary worship over the prior year, I discovered that there was a new song introduced almost every week, and most songs were only sung once or twice in the entire year. The congregation was overwhelmed with having too much new music. We needed a hymnal. A song library that guides the choices for worship leaders so that we have a body of music that meet the various needs and themes of worship for the year and also fits the particular context of the congregation.

Picking Music that is Lutheran Enough

Sifting through contemporary music can be a pain. As a Lutheran, many of the songs I hear on the radio don’t reflect my theology, but there are songs that do. We just have to find them! After sorting through popular radio songs for the ones that have inoffensive theology, I then spent hours exploring streaming platforms and websites to find songs and artists that weren’t typically included.

Picking Music that Fosters Belonging

Every congregation has their favorite songs, the ones that where people’s hearts sing out from the opening line. The music we sing in worship communicates who we are, what we believe, and how we hope to be transformed.