Choosing Music Wisely for Ministry Training Area (MTA) entries
IFCA Youth Ministry has one primary goal with MTA presentations: to encourage and equip students to better use of their giftedness in the context of local church ministry.
The style of music that is used for worship varies from church to church. It is not our intent to impose a musical standard on individual congregations throughout the IFCA fellowship.
With this in mind, we would like to suggest some qualities to consider when choosing music to use as an MTA entry at regional and national IFCA Youth Ministry events.
Excellent sacred music will contain qualities that make the music worshipful and spiritually edifying. We would ask you to consider these
qualities when choosing pieces for your music MTA entry.
- Lyrics that uphold and exalt the Triune God
- Melody that creates a worshipful environment
- Harmony that supports the message and spirit of the piece
- Rhythm that supports the piece but is not dominant or abrasive
- A song arrangement that is intended to be sung as a vocal solo (or duet) and which corresponds to the singer’s vocal range
- Message that is doctrinally correct
- Presentation/Decorum: tasteful and honoring to the Lord
- Appropriateness: responds to the occasion and purpose of being used in a corporate worship gathering
- Edification: directed toward the hearer, and not self
Objective: That it is a ministry, not a performance
Philippians. 4:8, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.”
These guidelines are meant to help singers wisely choose music that will glorify God, edify the saints, and allow them to both use and hone their gifts. Any singers who are unsure whether their song choices meet these guidelines should contact the IFCA Youth Council at mta@ifcayouth.org.
We would like to offer the following list of suggested songs which we believe meet all the above requirements and which we heartily recommend as vocal MTA submissions.
1) Any of the hymn arrangements from “The Sacred Solos of Dan Forrest”
- This resource includes 10 hymn arrangements in three different vocal ranges as well as performance example recordings and accompaniment recordings.
2) Any of the arrangements from “Classic Hymns for Two Voices” or “Classic Hymns for Two Voices II”
- This resource and this resource each include 10 arrangements of both classic hymns and newer songs and each is intended to be sung as a duet, but could work as a solo. Both books are for medium voices (can be sung by most) and can be ordered with a performance CD.
3) Any of the arrangements from “Contemporary Classics for Two Voices”
- This resource includes 10 arrangements of some well-known contemporary songs and can be ordered with a CD. It is written for two medium voices (can be sung by most).