Songwriting is my favorite part of music. I love being able to put your heart on paper and lift your voice with a melody from your soul in adoration of Jesus. It was God who made us to sing and make music, and it is God who is worthy of our worship and adoration. How cool is it that you and I can create a song with our own style, imagination, melody, and unique lyrics? When a songwriter realizes that their gift is not just for them but can be used to help others encounter Jesus and get to know Him in a deeper way, there is no other type of music creation that is more satisfying.
Key Points to What It Takes to Write a Heartfelt Worship Song:
The most powerful worship songs come from a person who is a worshipper. If you want to write songs for Jesus, you must spend time with Jesus in prayer and worship. You must make Jesus your obsession, and you will carry the fragrance of intimate time with Jesus into the songs that you write. There is no substitute for this truth. The Holy Spirit will anoint the songs you write if you will spend time with Him and write the things that He puts on your heart to write.
Message/Theme: Scriptural, heartfelt, and genuine. A worship song must be grounded in Scripture because songs have the ability to carry doctrine to the heart of a person and shape their belief in who they are and who God is. Lyrics must come from the heart and the head. The most effective songs combine strong theology with impactful melody and lyrics that move the heart closer to Jesus.
Melody: The melody of your song must carry the message of the song well and in a moving way. The melody must also fit the theme of the song. It's difficult to feel joyful when the music sounds melancholy and sad.
Lyrics: The lyrics must fit the tempo of the song and flow well together. Lyrics that do not flow well together or establish a good rhythm in the song will ruin or hinder the song as a whole. Lyrics can also vary in rhythm and space at different parts of the song.
Structure: It is helpful to think of songwriting as fitting within a structure. Most songs that are written today have a similar structure: verse, chorus, bridge, etc. When writing worship songs, you may want to follow a similar structure.
Singability: A very important part of writing a worship song is the importance of keeping the song memorable and singable. A worship song with too many lyrics or too complex a rhythm will make the song hard to sing and hard to remember. When it comes to songwriting, less is more. Many people hinder themselves from writing a song because they overcomplicate the process. Start simple, and you will be surprised how profound a simple song can become if it communicates the timeless truth of God’s Word with a singable melody and memorable lyrics.