The Worship Artist

On Oct. 31st, 1517 Martin Luther nailed the 95 Thesis to the church door which sparked the Reformation. So in honor of Reformation Day, I thought I’d post one of Luther’s prayers that should strike a cord with any who are involved in church leadership:

Lord God, You have appointed me as a Bishop and Pastor in Your Church, but
you see how unsuited I am to meet so great and difficult a task. If I had
lacked Your help, I would have ruined everything long ago. Therefore, I
call upon You: I wish to devote my mouth and my heart to you; I shall
teach the people. I myself will learn and ponder diligently upon You Word.
Use me as Your instrument — but do not forsake me, for if ever I should
be on my own, I would easily wreck it all.

Source

Choosing a song for a congregational worship gathering should be more than finding a catchy and unique tune. Today, there is an overwhelming number of songs to choose from. The congregation wants to offer the very best to their God, thus the plethora of resources allows the gathering planner to be picky. Numerous questions should be asked in considering music, but we will explore two primary questions.
1. What does the text say? Before listening to the melody, it is imperative that the text is evaluated. Music is influential; reading the text before hearing the music will guard against perceiving poor lyrics more highly than one ought. The text must be able to stand on its own, it is the only part that actually says something. Text should also be supported by Scripture either by quoting, paraphrasing, or at least reflecting Biblical concepts. The planner should be able to articulate, to any member of the congregation, as to how the song aligns with scripture.
2. Will the song be used for congregational singing? If so, can people sing it? Corporate worship is to be just that–corporate. Thus, one should attempt to include everyone as best as possible. A good rule of thumb is to make sure the melody mostly fits between Bb (below middle C) and D (13 whole steps above middle C).
The previous two questions will narrow down song options greatly, but one should also consider the context of the church and community (does the song stylistically fit within the demographics of the church and community) and the variety of songs (do they reflect the various attributes of God). Bottom line, we can and should be picky with the songs we choose.

No other relationship comes close to this one. It is utterly unique. The Son is absolutely unique in the affections of the Father. He is the “only begotten” (John 1:14, 18; 3:16; 1 John 4:9). There is the Son, by eternal generation, and there are other “sons” by adoption. “When the fullness of time came, God sent forth his Son…to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5). Only in “receiving” Jesus as the Son are others empowered to become “children of God” (John 1:12). Jesus often referred to God as “my Father” and “the Father,” but he never referred to God as “our Father” except once, when teaching the disciples how they should pray (Matthew 6:9). Once he used the remarkable expression, “my Father and your Father…my God and your God” (John 20:17). The relationship between God the Father and his eternal Son is utterly unique.

The Pleasures of God by John Piper, page 32