The hymnal's other meter
The compound-meter hymns get the attention because they swing, but the plain waltz is everywhere in the hymnal, and the 3/4 family is larger. Ninety-three songs in this index live in simple triple meter, and the list reads like the spine of a century of congregational singing: Great Is Thy Faithfulness, Be Thou My Vision, To God Be the Glory, and nearly every carol your church sings in December.
Simple triple meter gives every beat equal weight: one-two-three, one-two-three. No swing, no subdivision games, just the gentle forward lean of a waltz. It is the meter of steadiness, which is probably why the hymn writers reached for it when the text was about faithfulness. Every title below links to a full page with keys, BPM, scripture references, and leadership notes.
The core 3/4 hymns, with keys and BPM
Great Is Thy Faithfulness (Bb, 72 BPM). The flagship. Lamentations 3 set to a tune that never hurries, because the mercies it describes arrive every morning without hurrying either.
Be Thou My Vision (D, 72 BPM). The ancient Irish text on the SLANE tune. The meter carries the pilgrim quality; resist the urge to straighten it into 4/4, which several modern recordings do at real cost to the melody's shape.
To God Be the Glory (G, 90 BPM). Fanny Crosby's doxology at the bright end of the waltz range. Wants momentum, not weight.
O Worship the King (D, 82 BPM) keeps the waltz lane bright and regal, a comfortable landing place for congregations that have sung it for generations.
The invitation hymns lean on 3/4 too: I Need Thee Every Hour (Bb, 74 BPM) and Come Ye Sinners (D, 82 BPM). The meter does pastoral work here; a waltz cannot pressure anybody.
The carols are almost all here
If your December sets feel like one long waltz, this is why: O Holy Night (C, 58 BPM), What Child Is This (Em, 72 BPM), The First Noel (D, 76 BPM), Away in a Manger (G, 72 BPM), We Three Kings (Em, 76 BPM), Once in Royal David's City (G, 84 BPM). Plan Christmas Eve knowing the meter is doing half your transitions for you.
The modern writers never left 3/4
The waltz did not die with the hymnal. In Christ Alone (D, 68 BPM) is the most-sung modern hymn in the world and it is a waltz. How Deep the Father's Love for Us (D, 72 BPM) and Sandra McCracken's Thy Mercy, My God (D, 76 BPM) keep the old meter under new production. Which means your congregation already sings in 3/4 every month, whether the band has noticed or not.
3/4 or 6/8? Sixty seconds to be sure
Tap the biggest pulse you feel. If each tap holds three little notes inside it, you are in compound meter and belong in the 6/8 guide. If every tap IS the beat, equal and even, you are waltzing. The classic confusion pair: Blessed Assurance feels like 3/4 but is 9/8; Be Thou My Vision feels like it might swing but is a true 3/4. The distinction decides what your drummer plays, so settle it before rehearsal, not during.
Leading 3/4 with a modern band
Drummers raised on 4/4 worship tend to treat the waltz as a problem. Give the kit the "one" and let brushes or floor tom breathe through two and three; a backbeat has no home in this meter and forcing one flattens the song. Acoustic guitar carries 3/4 better than electric; a simple bass-strum-strum pattern is the whole engine. And watch the tempo ceiling: a waltz above roughly 90 BPM starts feeling like a carousel, which is fine for To God Be the Glory and wrong for almost everything else.
The full simple-triple catalog with keys and BPM lives at worship songs in 3/4, the compound family at worship songs in 6/8, and a complete hymn-forward service plan at the Hymn Sunday guide.