The Digital Hymnal — Why We Record, by Worship & Arts Pastor Mike Cosper

Sojourn’s Pastor Mike Cosper, on why we record our original worship music:

The role of music in daily life has shifted dramatically in recent years. A few generations ago, it was not unheard of to gather in a home around a piano and sing Christmas Carols or hymns. The guitar or piano sitting in the corner of the room wasn’t mere decoration or part of someone’s private hobby. It was a part of the fabric of the family. Music was a rallying point. Communities would gather and sing both inside and outside the church.

Mass media culture has changed those dynamics. Recorded music has replaced the songbooks and hymnals. Musical literacy is far lower than ever before. Access to recorded music- first through record stores and now through the internet – has made the expectations of listeners higher ever. Now with iPhones and streaming data, one can immediately access music performed by world-class musicians, recorded and produced at the highest quality instantly and from anywhere.

Into this climate comes the church. As a pastor, I’m called to shepherd the church in their life-long worship, a part of which is their gathered worship. They gather to hear the word preached and to celebrate the word dwelling richly amongst them by singing Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Col. 3:16). Singing is a deeply rooted practice of the church. It’s every bit as essential as praying and preaching – and commanded as often.

So how does the church learn to practice this discipline in this new media-saturated world? How does technology change the way we sing or the way we equip ourselves as a church to sing?

Fortunately it’s not the first time that a major technology shift affected the church. Around the time of the Reformation, another major technological shift began with the invention of the printing press. It was the spread of this technology that enabled the rapid spread of The Bible into the hands of ordinary people, and which led to the cultural momentum and backlash against Rome. John Foxe once wrote, “either the pope must abolish knowledge and printing, or printing must at length root him out.”

The printing press also led to the wide availability of hymnals. In the 19^th century, Christians carried two books with them everywhere they went – the Bible and the Hymnal. From this reformation and post-reformation era came some of the greats – Charles Wesley, Anne Steele, Cowper, Gadsby, and Watts. Hymns were sung at church, at public gatherings, and in homes, filling the fabric of life with songs that were theologically rich celebrations of the Gospel.

The pastors of that day and age seized the opportunity to use that technology to equip their people. The presence of the hymnal in the hands and homes of the people allowed them to come to their gatherings ready to sing, familiar with the songs, having already spent time meditating on the words.

This is our hope at Sojourn Music. First and foremost, we’re writing songs for the people who gather together to sing and celebrate the gospel as Sojourn Community Church. We hope that by recording them, we can equip the church to sing with boldness and with understanding. We hope that the songs we write are rich theologically and interesting enough to have sticking-power on iPods and in car radios. We hope that an hour spent listening to our songs leaves people with thoughts and words that help them to know and love their Savior more.

Not every song is going to work as a congregational hymn. Some serve better as food for listening and meditation – though Sojourn has surprised us in the past by singing along with music from previous records that we wouldn’t have expected (like “Faithful” from These Things I Remember). These songs also may not work well in other congregations – and that’s all okay. Our first priority has been to try to serve our people by recording music that we think is faithful to the musical and cultural language they speak. To whatever extent we succeed in that, we thank God.

So the challenge we’re taking up with this record – and in other ways that will be emerging soon here at sojournmusic.com – is to be a voice in the midst of all of our media-saturation that equips our church to sing and worship, and that fills our days with big thoughts about our great God and his glorious Gospel.