Ken Boer
Founder, Worship Planner

Over the years, as I planned worship services, one factor that was always simultaneously important and nebulous was what time felt right to repeat a song. The most important factor in my song choice was the content of the lyrics. The flow of songs, Scripture and prayer made a difference. Melody, tempo, key, feel and the abilities of that week's musicians were important factors, too.

But whether for various reasons, some songs felt alive while others did not. Sometimes this was a spiritual thing, answering "is there anything the Spirit wants us to emphasize this week?" But there was also a practical side to how the congregation would process the lyrics. Some songs felt “fresh.” Some felt “stale.” Why was that?

A Solution

One book that clarified the way I was feeling was Song Cycle by Jon Nicol. In this book he suggest that most contemporary congregational songs have an “arc” to them.

The first few times you do a song, it feels new.  Many congregation members are half engaged with the Lord because their brains are also learning the lyrics, rhythms, and melody. They like it, but it’s not natural yet.

Then the next few times you do a song, it feels just right. It’s fresh. It’s known. It’s alive. It’s in the sweet spot.

But then, after a while (and this length can vary from months to years depending on the congregation), it starts to feel old. It’s wonderfully true, but the way it says it isn’t fresh. It feels like it has a shelf life date that isn't going to last forever. Do the song too much, and people get sick of it. But if you slow down how often it shows up, and you might be able to keep it around longer in the end.

Putting It Into Practice

Worship Planner gives you a practical way to deal with shelf life. For every song, you can assign a rhythm, which might be 1 to 3 weeks for new songs, or once a quarter for songs that are favorites. Worship Planner knows your Planning Center song history and does the math for you.

Depending on the settings you enable, it can keep track of where a song is in this cycle, too. The first time you do a song, it usually goes the “New” category, to be repeated every 1-3 weeks.  After a while, you move it to “Favorite” (4-8 weeks) and then eventually the “Slow Burn” (9-16 weeks) category.

Worship Planner helps you keep track of songs you want to keep around, like hymns that you want to keep doing twice a year.  All of these settings are customizable to fit your own church context.  If you plan services with other leaders in your church, this can be a great way to keep a consistent song repertoire even as leaders rotate.

Tracking a song's rhythms can be a powerful way to help your congregation enjoy singing to the Lord even more.  After planning this way for 6 years, I’ve found it’s helped so many more Sunday mornings feel “just right.”  I don't need to introduce as many songs, because the ones we know have more staying power. When I do introduce a new song, there's less chance I forget about it. And songs that I want to keep around but I don't naturally pick (like some hymns) have found a lasting place in our repertoire.

As you give this method a try, in concert with other more important factors like lyrical content, you may find that your planning is simplified and your congregation is more happy.  Give it a try.  If you're not already signed up, join Worship Planner today with a 14 day free trial.