Quick Study: Worship Songwriting

Do a quick study on songwriting today.

You can do this video study in just one evening. We focus on the big question: How do I take a song from my initial idea to a finished, strong worship song? NOTE: This study is best done over 4 weeks – but the principles can be learned in a few hours). The full Study requires an All Access Membership. Songwriting changes lives – let's write.

Introduction: Songs Are A Place We Go (4:16)

Download this PDF Study Guide and get started.

It is only 50 pages long, has all the reflection questions, and will guide you through these videos. In facts, the Study is about 6 articles long. Download it, print it, or read it on your screen (iPad, Kindle, etc.). If you print it, you can take good notes. (Downloading this Study requires an All Access Membership.) After you've downloaded and printed, you're ready for the videos below. Comment at the bottom of this page as you go. STUDY DOWNLOAD:

Session 1: The Qualities Of A Great Worship Song (4:00)

Read Session 1 in the Study Guide. What are the top 5 qualities of "great" worship songs? What makes a song live and breathe – and serve our own worship, that of our church, or the wider Body of Christ – in a corporate worship setting today? (Requires an All Access Membership.)

Session 2: Getting Started With Your Song Vision (5:48)

Session 3: The Rewriting Phase & Song Forms (4:22)

Read Session 3 in the Study Guide. What is the rewriting phase of songwriting, how do we do it, and why can it take songwriters one day, or 5 years, to finish one song? What does "throw it back up on the hoist" mean when it comes to songwriting – and why is it such an important part of the songwriting process? (Requires an All Access Membership.)

Session 4: Finishing, Using & Testing Your Song (6:12) + Conclusion (3:58)

Read Session 4 in the Study Guide. Once your song is complete, at least for now, how do you go about getting good feedback on the song? How do you know when the song is finished? How does co-writing work? Do you just throw your song out there for everyone to hear, or is there a better way to get feedback that serves the song, the listener, and the writer? (Requires an All Access Membership.) Can you learn to write better songs? Should you write songs if you don't believe you're necessarily called to do it? If you are called, how do you get out of songwriting ruts?

Bonus Tool: How To Use The Songwriter's Toolkit (1:45)

Read about the Tool in the Study Guide. The Songwriter's Toolkit is designed to serve your songwriting for a lifetime of songwriting to come. (Requires an All Access Membership.)

Bonus Tool: How To Evaluate Someone's Song (2:35)

Read about the Tool in the Study Guide. No one likes to hear their baby called "ugly." Songs are like our babies; we're very sensitive about feedback. Is there a way to evaluate one another's songs that is both honest and encourages, rather than destroys, a songwriter? (Requires an All Access Membership.)

Bonus Tool: How To Start A Songwriting Circle (3:05)

Read about the Tool in the Study Guide. One the best ways to write songs is to do so with a group that is committed to the same learning and growing process. This video will teach you how to start a Songwriting Circle. (Requires an All Access Membership.)

What's Next?

You finished – and hopefully finished a song, too! Doing a study like this is no small potatoes; way to go for it and stay with it. Now – may your next 30 songs be shaped by what you've invested in learning here! If you would like to get a piece of paper, saying you completed all 6 studies below to give to someone in your life, or to hang on your wall, just email us at support@worshiptraining.com confirming that you 1) read all the Study Guides, and 2) viewed all the videos for each study (All Access Members only). We'll send you a PDF of completion that you can put your name on in any way you like. Now, since you completed this module, you'll have a feel for how you do these other great studies. Get started on your next one today! Complete All 6:

1. Worship Leading (skills, sets, bands, and character) - leaders & teams
2. Worship Ministry (leadership, 9 roles of the ministry leader, tools) - leaders
3. Worship Songwriting (from your idea to your song) - songwriters
4. Worship Values (the 5 values that guide what we do) - leaders & teams
5. Worship Theology (big ideas about worship) - leaders & teams
6. Worship History (the many ways we've worshipped) - leaders, pastors, & teams