Are you interested in upgrading your worship folders? If so, you’ll think through two issues: 1) content to include and 2) matters of design.

What’s best to include in a worship folder?

1. An outline and the weeks announcements
2. The flow of the service, with texts of choral music
3. Number 2 plus hymns

A Worship the Lord issue (#73, July 2015, page 4) urges the second option above. “Printing the entire service every week allows for great variety in an accessible format.” Jumping around, using only the hymnal, “is nearly impossible for a first time visitor without pedantic instructions….”

What is good worship folder design?

For assistance from a professional graphic designer, see material by Ian Welch. Pages 1-3 of the article above are also useful.

Numerous examples of worship folders are available online from the Commission on Worship. These were originally provided as resources for worship variety. Some of them also serve as good examples of worship folder design. (See “Sample Service Folders” under Planning Resources.)