Recently someone asked me what five songs I think are important for every child in the church to know; songs that they would memorize and carry with them throughout life. What a wonderful, thoughtful, question! As I considered my response I wondered if it wouldn’t be more helpful to provide a list of things to consider when choosing songs to sing than an actual list of songs; that way the church could create a list that fit their context. So after some thought, here is a list of things I would consider when creating a core group of songs for children.
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September 28, 2021
Six Considerations When Choosing Songs for Children
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I’ve been thinking about the spiritual discipline of waiting lately as we are working on the next issue of Reformed Worship and waiting is one of its themes. Sometimes our waiting is short lived like when the Amazon package arrives on my doorstep early, even before I had begun to wait. And sometimes our patience is tested as it seems that the waiting knows no end.
In RW 139:11, the Sing 10 column introduced fourteen congregational songs for Ascension and Pentecost. Ruth-Ann Schuringa, one of the contributors for the resource article, provides background information and performance practices on the three songs that she recommended. —editors
“I pray that we will remember that on Easter Sunday we proclaimed a unified gospel message one that needs to continue to unify us as together we work to bring Christ’s healing to a hurting and divided world.”
In many traditions, the Good Friday prayer of intercession serves as an annual opportunity to bring before God all the burdens and concerns of God’s people. As such, this congregational prayer is often long and wide-ranging. This prayer has been written for Good Friday in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
I am a frequent lurker — and occasional participant — in an online discussion group on Facebook. It is comprised of worship pastors and other people responsible for the liturgical life of their gospel communities. We ask each other questions. Not ivory-tower abstract questions, but real-life theological/worship-leader questions. For example: “Does anyone have suggestions for a worship resources that address issues of racism and justice?” and “Is it permissible to just change lyrics to a song we’re going to sing this Sunday?” (I may tackle the latter in a subsequent post!)