A Vermont Church Sings the Word of God and Writes Its Own Worship Hymns, Taking “Bible Study to a New Level”

Whiting Community Church in Whiting, VT

On Resurrection Sunday, April 5, 2026, members of Whiting Community Church, a small congregation in Addison County, Vermont, gathered to sing “Christ, Our Living Hope,” a hymn that no other congregation had ever sung. 

The hymn was not drawn from a newly published hymnal or a contemporary worship release, but was written and arranged in 2026 by church members through the leadership of Pastor Brett Cody and was the result of an expositional study of the New Testament book of First Peter.

Jennifer Reed, one of the participants, observed, “Writing hymns with other church members has taken Bible study to a new level. It has deepened my spiritual insight; the hymns become prayers. The hymns have so much more meaning when it’s something you created with your community of church members.” 

Church member Pat Williams described the experience as meaningful. “It was beautiful to sing back God’s words to him with everyone else who is there to worship. Our singing fills my heart.”

Whiting Community Church has been developing its own original hymns as part of a broader effort to integrate biblical study, congregational participation, and worship. The initiative grew out of an idea Cody first explored more than five years ago while leading a men’s Bible study.

“After the men proved they were more than capable of summarizing the content of an entire book of the Bible, it occurred to me that we might be able to render those summaries into poetry and form a hymn from them,” Cody said.

The idea took formal shape after Cody, a native of Victoria, Texas, enrolled at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in 2022. As part of his Doctor of Ministry work, Cody developed what he calls a “Biblical Exposition Hymn Writing Methodology,” which he implemented with members of the church. Roughly one quarter of the congregation participated in the project.

Members of Whiting Community Church, a Baptist Churches of New England member, met to develop their own original hymns,  as part of a broader effort to integrate biblical study, congregational participation, and worship.

The group’s first hymn, “Jesus Christ, Our Gospel, Our Salvation,” focused on the Gospel of Mark and was first sung during a worship service on October 20, 2024. Participants studied the entire gospel and condensed large portions of Scripture into one-sentence summaries that were then arranged into hymn stanzas and set to music. The process took seven months to complete.

Brett and Sabrina Cody

Cody, who has been pastor of the Vermont fellowship since May 2014, presented the project as part of his doctoral defense in February. His thesis will be published following graduation in May.

Church leaders say the project has influenced not only congregational singing but also broader worship planning. Elder Bill O’Neill said the process has deepened the church’s engagement with Scripture.

“It has been encouraging to take part in something our own church has written, knowing these words arose from our shared life in the word,” O’Neill said. “My hope is that as we introduce it, the church family will not just learn a new song, but more fully enter into the joy, reverence, and unity that come from proclaiming these truths together.”

Members involved in the hymn-writing process have also applied what they learned to other aspects of worship. Following the Mark project, members of the worship team began identifying themes from the biblical books being preached and developing what they describe as “book-specific liturgies” to accompany sermon series.

Congregants who did not participate directly in the writing process have also responded positively. “I am so excited to sing our hymns,” said church member Bonnie Betourney. “It is such a blessing to be part of a church that worships and loves Jesus Christ in such a unique way.”

One of the most significant outcomes has been the way creativity has become part of the church’s shared life. Before this began, fellowship tended to center on things other than creativity. Stepping out in vulnerability to create hymns together has brought unexpected blessings to the church’s life together.

Watch and Worship With the Original Hymns of Whiting Community Church:

Cody hopes the project will encourage other pastors and congregations to consider collaborative creative work within the church. He points to Colossians 3:16–17  (ESV) as a guiding framework: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

He noted that Scripture calls believers to “let the word of Christ dwell richly” among them in every aspect of life, including creative expression.