A New Hymnal... and a Tired Old Song

I was on the floor of the conference tonight when the study commission report was presented seeking authorization for a new hymnal.
I got to vote on it.
But, before the vote, some quite interesting debate was had.
And, eventually, creation of the new hymnal was authorized... barely!

Now, I'm 34, and I'm a big proponent of contemporary and emergent worship forms... but I was disturbed by some younger adults speaking against the creation of the hymnal.

Sometimes when we feel left out, we act very quickly to leave out others, and I doubt we even realize what we are doing.
Will that cycle ever be broken? By and by, Lord, by and by!

Some people, commenting on the inclusion of praise/contemporary music in a new hymnal said, "They will be out-of-date before the hymnal is ever published."
One problem with that: "Lord I Lift Your Name on High" is STILL on CCLI's top 10 list.
STILL. It was the number 1 most popular praise song every year from 1997 to 2003, and has been in the top 10 every year since. It is currently #9. (sources: ccli.com & wikipedia)
It was written in 1989... the year our last hymnal was published.
Hmmm.
Truthfully, I don't like that song all that much... but it happens to be one of the favorites of a prominent member of my church who is 15 years younger than me.
Yes, I said younger than me.
Hmmmmm.
I guess it's hard to say Lord I Lift is "out-of-date."
Or if it is, what makes it so? You'll have to have a pretty good argument to convince me, given what I've cited above!

Regardless:
As a 34-year-old pastor who pushes contemporary and emergent worship, I voted for the new hymnal, and I see great value in it.
The church I serve has two strong-and-growing traditional services (and a strong-and-growing contemporary service) that deserve a new hymnal worship resource. There is a very wide age-range in every worship service in the church I serve... from Millenials to Builders in traditional AND contemporary. And there are people worshiping in my church that are most connected to God when they are singing, or hearing, traditional hymnody.
And for some of them, it is newer hymnody that carries them to the throne of their Lord.
It IS time for a new hymnal. Why on earth did it get such opposition?

Sometimes the road to being respected is giving respect.
The path to having one's desires for relevant worship music respected
means respecting someone else enough to give them music that makes THEIR worship relevant.
To them. Not to you, or to me. To them. Your, my, brother and/or sister in Christ.

This post may not have been ABOUT General Conference, but it was certainly caused by today's legislation.
I hate to see the Tired Old Song of disrespecting someone else's worship music...
no matter WHO is singing that out-of-tune, dissonant, caterwauling melody!
(or how old they are)

with a Joyful Noise,
Jon