A Review of The Gospel Story Hymnal
Music points our heart, soul, mind, and body to truths that endure, to the invisible reality of our Triune God at work in history and our lives. The stories of God's undeserved grace to us construed in well-written songs can speak to our hearts in ways nothing else can. Much as creeds succinctly delineate the truths on which we pin our faith, hymns pull our hearts together in unison as we praise God and proclaim his ways.
Enter The Gospel Story Hymnal. This beautifully illustrated, 275-page hardbound hymnal for $34.99 traces the Story of God using historic and contemporary hymns. Full-page, compelling drawings depict God's Word chronologically using the framework of Creation, Rebellion, Redemption, The Already/Not Yet, and Restoration. Each page features no more than one hymn with an explanation, a Scripture passage, and/or reflective questions. The authors organized the hymnal in three years for family study: Year One: The Lamb of God: Our Gospel Story; Year Two: The Character of God; and Year Three: Victory in Christ.
Is it a storybook, a children's Bible, or a Devotional? In many ways, it is all three. It marries God's stories with music that enhances both and introduces children to great hymns. Hymns appear in simple treble clef.
In my opinion, music is often the "flat side" of children's ministry curriculum. While a children's curriculum may include a DVD or CD with songs to learn, often children's ministers change the curriculum. This hymnal allows parents and the church to intentionally pass on the wealth of hymns to the next generation.
Corporate Singing
Many churches have replaced hymnals with PowerPoint screens. Without a hymnbook, a parent can't point to the words for a child to follow, and musical notation is also absent. This hymnal is a significant step to reversing that.
This hymnal invites the prepared child to join fellow believers in proclaiming the truths of God that define our lives and nourish our souls. When we sing the hymns of those who came before us, we share in the church of the past even as we face our journeys. Our struggles are not new. We travel paths that others have walked.
Families could view the worship program before Sunday and introduce their children to one congregational hymn. It's likely to be in this hymnbook. Bring it to church, and you and your child can follow the words and notes and join in.
Word & Wonder also offers a suite of church worship guides and coloring books on their resource page. Many are available free to download. These include Advent and Lent resources and an up-to-date liturgical calendar.
Britta K. Wallbaum and Lindsay Goetz created Word & Wonder to help people of all ages grow together in the truth of God's word and wonder of his love by providing theologically rich resources for inspiration, education, and transformation. Their hymnal is the first creation of what they hope to be "dozens of books and resources, and maybe someday a family retreat and worship center."
Since discovering this hymnal, I have used it as the primary song resource in my curriculum, The Children's Sanctuary.
The Gospel Story Hymnal can be found at wordandwonder.org.
