51 Hymns I Could Sing All Year

We all have them in our churches...choosers. Those who only sing for the hymns they love/know/grew up with. On one hand I get it, those hymns "do it for ya" and not all hymns are created equal; some aren't as poetic or theological, some tunes are more impactful or work better with their text than others. On the other hand, I'm horribly against it. It totally breaks down communities, puts more pressure on those trying to sing, often creates a barrier to that hymn ever having a chance of impacting you like the "golden oldies", and by and large seems to be missing an important element in the concept of worship. And there are a myriad of excuses from not reading music to being too old, and while many of those excuses show why learning/singing new songs can be difficult at times, they in themselves do not actually preclude one from being able to sing new songs.

But I do wonder sometimes, what would a "chooser" hymnal look like? Based on some of what I hear as a pastor, I get the impression that we don't even have a single chooser approved song some Sundays. So that led me to choose the number 51. In the past I have actually created a fuller list of my "chooser" hymns, that is, if I were given total control and preference towards creating a hymnal what hymns I would choose to make a comprehensive yet not overly extensive list (for those wondering, I think most congregations could actually do quite fine with a hymnal of about 200-250 hymns if they are all used, thematically balanced, and fit your context. Most hymnals have way more than that because of the diversity of contexts and needs it is meeting and the vastness of music out there). But for this chooser hymnal I'm gonna pick 51, because that accounts to less than a hymn a week - meaning not only can they all be sung in a year, but really you have to. So allow me here to provide you with a list of 51 songs that if that was all we sung all year, I would be in chooser heaven because I just love these songs. I like the vastness of the hymn world, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have favorites. So while I'm sure I will forget some wondrous hymns, here are the first 51 I love that come to mind (in no particular order).

For those wondering, I chose not to include any hymns I myself have written.

1. Oh, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing
2. Praise to the Lord the Almighty
3. Now Thank We All Our God
4. All Creatures of Our God and King**
5. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing**
6. Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed
7. Be Thou My Vision
8. Rejoice Ye Pure in Heart
9. He Leadeth Me*
10. My Hope is Built on Nothing Less
11. For All the Saints
12. What Wondrous Love is This
13. Abide with Me
14. Shall We Gather at the River
15. A Mighty Fortress is Our God
16. Just As I Am
17. Holy Spirit, Ever Dwelling
18. Go, My Children, with My Blessing
19. Crown Him with Many Crowns
20. Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty
21. O Come, O Come Emmanuel
22. Prepare the Royal Highway
23. From Heaven Above
24. How Great Thou Art
25. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing
26. I Love to Tell the Story
27. This is My Father's World
28. When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
29. Children of the Heavenly Father
30. Precious Lord, Take My Hand
31. Great is Thy Faithfulness
32. I was There to Hear Your Borning Cry
33. Earth and All Stars**
34. Canticle of the Turning
35. Lift High the Cross
36. Oh, Praise the Gracious Power
37. I Know that My Redeemer Lives
38. All Hail the Power of Jesus Name
39. Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates*
40. Were You There
41. Near the Cross
42. When Israel was in Egypt's Land
43. In Christ Alone*
44. My Life Flows On in Endless Song
45. Sweet Hour of Prayer*
46. I the Lord of Sea and Sky
47. Will You Come and Follow Me 
48. Thy Strong Word
49. Christ Has Arisen, Alleluia
50. Come, Thou Almighty King
51. Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer

*indicates hymns not in the hymnal Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW)

**indicates songs where off the top of my head I prefer a different tune/text to the one in ELW.

So there ya go, a mix of seasons, moods, great theology and powerful praise. Spirituals, traditional and contemporary hymns, even a "praise song". Sure I probably forgot something, it was hard to only have 51 (my initial list was closer to 60). But such is what happens when we become choosers. No doubt we sing some great songs, but we also miss great ones too. The other issue is our choosing rarely is representative. While there may be some crossover, I'm sure for most there are some songs here they wouldn't choose to sing, and some they are wondering why I would leave out. 

It was a fun exercise though, because I do love these hymns. And I won't lie to you, I grinned a little bit at the thought of singing only these year round, because any time I sing these songs, I just love it. 

But then again, it's not just about me and the songs I love to sing.