High Street Hymns began in the fall of 2006 as a one time project to capture the original music of Christ Church’s 5PM Service (a.k.a. Anglican College Ministry). We had no idea what would happen or how our music would be received. Now four years later, we are preparing to record our fourth CD and we are astounded by what God has done. But before continuing, we felt the need to be more intentional about what High Street Hymns is all about and where we hope it will go. In doing so, a few things became clear, which led to the formation of High Street Hymns as a non-profit music ministry.

1. High Street Hymns is first and foremost a ministry. Our goal is touch hearts and minds with the love and grace of God, primarily through the forgotten poetry of the Church. By writing new music for long-forgotten hymn texts, we hope to infuse the Church with songs that are both theologically rich and musically accessible. The words we sing each Sunday matter tremendously. They reach into the deepest places of our souls and form us, preaching the Gospel to us again and again.

2. We want to do more than release CDs. We’ve already begun to expand what we do to include hymnsings, worship leading and now workshops. We’re excited to be developing more resources for worship leaders and churches, like the High Street Hymns Hymnal. In the future, we’ll work to create more written resources, such as white papers, while looking at ways to serve the Church using new media. We also hope to be a connecting point for worship leaders looking to integrate hymns into their services.

3. Charitable donations help cover the costs of touring. Our heart is to be a blessing to the Church and we have the privilege of visiting churches all over the country. Yet, there are many smaller congregations and start-ups that cannot afford to cover our expenses. Donations will allow us to offer our ministry for free or at a heavily reduced rate for these congregations, who often need the most help with their worship services.

4. Remaining independent is critical to our mission. Although much good has come out of the Christian music industry, we recognize that it is an industry, not a ministry. At the end of the day, we hope to make decisions based on the good of the ministry and not the bottom line alone. We will inevitably interact with the Christian industry, but our goal is to not be dependent upon it. Securing our funding from private donations gives us the ability to make records and operate without relying on the Christian music industry, which we believe will make us a healthier, more effective ministry.

In the coming months, we will be recording a new CD and touring throughout the U.S. Along the way, we’d love your support — your prayers especially. There are so many ways to support us, like spreading the word or hosting a hymnsing. And if you’d like, by making a tax deductible donation. We look forward to many years of ministry and service to the Kingdom of God.