Friday, April 5, 2013

Flashback Friday: My Ultimate Youth Group Song List


Music has always been an important part of my ministry.  I was fortunate enough to learn the art of leading group singing from Beth Phillips Massey and Martha Ratledge Farlow at Quaker Lake Camp.  The skills I learned there were then fine-tuned by lessons I learned from Young Life,  J. David Stone and the great Yohann (YO) Anderson.  You don't just randomly select songs to sing; you choose songs in an order and of a variety that will lead the group where you want them to go.  I became quite adept at moving groups from wild, crazy songs into deep worshipful music without them ever being truly aware where they were going.  And I loved every minute of it!

Several years ago I was asked about my song-leading style, and in the course of my explanation I was asked a most interesting question.  If I was given the opportunity to lead music for a group of teenagers that knew every song that I had ever led a group in singing (a list of over 300!), which songs would I pick- and what order would we sing them in?  It was a wonderful hypothetical query that I had no answer for at the time.  Today, however, I am going to take a shot at it!  So here it is- my Ultimate Set of Youth Group Songs.  I have chosen 25 (and a bonus or two- you know me and lists, I always cheat!), which would be over 90 minutes of singing.  That might even wear out the Kissimmee gang, and they did love to sing!  Here they are; if you find yourself singing along, I understand...
  1. Lahina
  2. Lean On Me
  3. Pharoah, Pharoah
  4. Big House
  5. Eat Right!
  6. Shine
  7. Let Me Be There
  8. Undignified
  9. I Want To Know You (In the Secret)
  10. He's Alive!
  11. We Are the Family of God
  12. Ain't No Rock
  13. The All Day Song
  14. Radical Man
  15. The Happy Song
  16. Lord I Lift Your Name on High
  17. Blessed Be the Name/Holy Is the Lord
  18. Awesome God
  19. Peter, Peter
  20. My Glorious
  21. Hope Set High
  22. Create In Me
  23. Prince of Peace
  24. It is You/ Oh God, You Are My God/Seek Ye First/Sanctuary
  25. Sing Alleluia To the Lord
So how did I do?  Which songs were your favorites?  Which songs did I leave out that you would have chosen?  I would love to hear your opinions, because there were few things that connected us more- with God and with each other- than music!  Now I think I will break out my guitar and sing a few of these.  But it won't be the same without you to sing along...

Because of Jesus,

5 comments:

  1. I'm totally singing 2, 3, 4, 7, 14, 16, 18, 19, 21, 24, 25 in my head! Looking forward to singing these for real in about two weeks!! :)

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    1. That's a lot of singing, Lauren! Can't wait to see you!

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  2. Quite possibly my absolute FAVORITE memories of youth group are singing those FANTASTIC songs!!! They still hold a VERY special place in my heart...along with laughing (and crying) together, scavenger hunts, playing some of those bonker games like "hook up" (I think it was called) among MANY others, and those Christmas parties (at the Schoolfield's AMAZING place)!!! It made my teenage years not so crazy and confusing. I knew we were all going through the same thing TOGETHER! We were growing in Christ TOGETHER! And the leaders made it such a safe place! Truly, it was wonderful and I REALLY miss those days! Can anyone else say that about their teen years?! Thanks for the memories FUMC-Kiss!

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  3. Alas, my Quaker-bred friend omits "One Tin Soldier." For shame!

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    1. Jacob, I confess to having a love/hate relationship with "One Tin Soldier." We sang it SO much in my own teen years that I just couldn't sing it for a very long time. When we rediscovered it in Kissimmee I was thrilled to introduce it to a new generation. I do LOVE the message, but it is one I grow weary of fairly quickly. But thanks for the reminder that it is indeed a great song!

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Thanks for reading,and thanks for your comment!