How to Sing Scripture In Your Worship Sets
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” Colossians 3:16 ESV
One of the first times I ever experienced someone singing straight from the Bible was probably Misty Edwards or Jon Thurlow in IHOPKC’s 24/7 prayer room. Initially, it was a little weird, but soon, something about it clicked with me. While those moments were unique environments centered around singing God’s Word, I’ve found tremendous power in singing scripture in weekly Sunday services, especially in spontaneous flow times.
In Isaiah 55:11-12, we read that God’s Word will never return to Him void. What a powerful passage, by the way. This may be one of the foundational reasons we should include scripture in our sets. Like the rain and snow, the Word of God brings life and fruit! No force from our enemy can rob it of its purpose; it will accomplish the very thing it was sent forth to do.
So how do you get started? Here are a few practical ways that you can begin incorporating singing scripture in your worship sets:
Start with small phrases. Take a few words from a verse and sing it to the same melody as a song you’re already singing.
Keep them easily catchable. Your melody doesn’t need to be complex. Simple and grabbable phrases will be much easier for your people to sing along with. It can even be multiple words sung over one unchanging note!
Try to match your theme. For example, if you’re singing Firm Foundation, you could sing the phrase “the Lord is my rock and my fortress” from Psalm 18:2. You don’t want to introduce a new thought when you sing a scripture.
Let the verses and chapters you read in your devotional times come out musically as you lead worship. Since first experiencing the power of someone singing scripture in a corporate worship setting, I have strived to include it in the sets I lead. Rarely do I lead worship these days without my Bible close by. In my church, for our response times after the sermon, I usually have it in my hand as we sing—ready to launch into something inerrant and infallible. We want our churches to experience the life-giving rain of the Word of God!
Father, thank You for speaking to Your people. Since the creation of the world, You have been revealing Yourself, and we thank You for that. Make the Holy Scriptures come alive in our hearts as we sit with them. Bring fresh revelation to us as we study and meditate on Your Word. Allow it to stick in our minds and flow freely from our mouths as we worship You. Amen.
