Skipping Verses in Hymns
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I had a secretary who would occasionally and humorously say, “Sometimes I feel as neglected as the third stanza in a hymn.”
When you sing hymns in your church, do you sing all the stanzas in the hymns? If you omit some, why do you do it?
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We skip some and it drives me nuts. You end up losing the idea of the hymn often times.
Usually, we sing all the verses. Occasionally, to close out a service or during a communion service we might sing just a verse or two verses from a hymn.
Dave Barnhart
I am the music director at our church, and I quite often skip verses. We are very deliberate in our music. All of the music is centralized around a particular theme and Scripture. If a particular verse does not necessarily go along with the theme, I will often skip it. Sometimes I want to end on a verse that is not the final verse because it holds the same thought as the first verse in the next song. I will also skip verses if it is not correct theologically….that is a must! There are many reasons why I do this, but it is not just a simple random skipping of a verse.
I want people to think about what they are singing, and not just make it mechanical. For this reason, I will often skip the chorus and only sing it with a couple of the verses. I am the type that if I sing the same chorus 5 times over, I will tune out. Skipping the chorus or a particular verse forces us to pay attention to what we are singing. I’m sure some may find it annoying, but if they are engaged with the theme or applicable Scripture then the text is what they will be paying attention to.
I want people to think about what they are singing, and not just make it mechanical. For this reason, I will often skip the chorus and only sing it with a couple of the verses. I am the type that if I sing the same chorus 5 times over, I will tune out. Skipping the chorus or a particular verse forces us to pay attention to what we are singing. I’m sure some may find it annoying, but if they are engaged with the theme or applicable Scripture then the text is what they will be paying attention to.
When I was a song leader I tried to keep the congregational singing within fairly consistent time parameters so that the pastor/preacher could enjoy ministering without feeling rushed. As a result, I would adapt on the fly sometimes, skipping a verse or two if necessary, depending on the overall flow of the service.
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