What this song does in a room
Four piano chords and a kick drum, and the room knows what is coming. "Great Things" arrived in 2018 and within six months had become one of the most-sung opening songs in modern worship rotations across the English-speaking church. The reason is structural. The chorus is built for collective declaration. The melody sits in the friendliest possible range. The lyric "you have done great things" is short enough for a four-year-old and theological enough for a seminary graduate. By the time the song hits its first chorus, you can watch the room arrive as a congregation. The 84 bpm pulse moves with energy but does not push past where the people can follow.
What the song does in a room is assembly. It gathers a scattered crowd into one declaration. That is a meaningful pastoral function, especially in the opening minutes of a service when people are still putting down phones, settling kids, and shifting their attention. The song builds the room before the rest of the set asks anything of it.
What this song is saying about God
The theological frame is testimony. The song is anchored in Mary's Magnificat: "The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name" (Luke 1:49). That is not a vague statement of praise. That is a young woman, pregnant with the Messiah, naming specific, particular, history-bending things that God has done in her life. The song asks the congregation to step into that same posture. Not generic gratitude. Testimony.
The bridge widens the lens: "Oh, hero of heaven, you conquered the grave." The song moves from personal testimony to gospel proclamation in the space of one bridge. That is theologically deft writing. Phil Wickham keeps the song accessible enough for a Sunday morning crowd to grasp on the first listen, while embedding the historical particulars of the gospel (cross, grave, resurrection) into the most-repeated section. The congregation that sings this song faithfully ends up singing the gospel, even on weeks when the sermon does not lead them there.
Scriptural backbone
Luke 1:49 is the load-bearing text: "The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name." Mary is singing in response to news that has rearranged her life. The song borrows her language and gives it to the congregation. The point is not metaphor. The point is that the same God who did great things for Mary is doing great things for the church.
Psalm 126:2-3 sits alongside: "Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, 'The Lord has done great things for them.' The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy." That is the corporate version of Mary's solo testimony. The post-exilic community looks back on what God has done and sings about it publicly enough that the nations notice.
Together, these texts give the song its frame. Testimony, sung corporately, loud enough to be heard outside the building. That is a meaningful worship leadership claim.
How to use it in a service
This song belongs in the opening slot. Use it to assemble the room. Pair it with a more reflective second song so the service has dynamic range. It works well as a follow-up to a celebration moment: a baptism, a missions report, a testimony shared from the front. The song gives the congregation a place to respond to whatever just happened.
It also works as a closer on weeks when the sermon ended with a call to remember God's faithfulness. Use it after Thanksgiving Sunday, after an anniversary service, after a season of corporate spiritual breakthrough. Do not stack it next to another up-tempo anthem in the same key; the song will lose its distinctiveness.
Resist using it as a Communion song. The energy is wrong for the Table. The song is built for declaration, not reflection.
Things to watch for as the worship leader
The tempo trap is real. At 84 bpm, "Great Things" wants to drift up to 88 or 90 once the band gets excited. The song is built on a specific pocket, and pushing the tempo collapses the dynamic structure. The verses need space, the chorus needs lift, and that contrast only works if the tempo holds.
Watch the key. E male and G female sit well for most voices, but the chorus's top note (a high E in E) can strain thinner voices by the fourth chorus. Drop to D if your worship leader is a baritone or if your congregation includes a lot of older singers.
The repetition trap. Phil Wickham's recorded version has multiple chorus repeats and a sustained bridge. Do not feel obligated to play all of them. Two verses, three choruses, bridge, two more choruses is plenty. When you stretch the song past that, the congregation disengages.
Avoid the over-stylized vocal trap. Wickham's recorded vocal is full of stylistic flourishes that work in a studio but pull congregational singers off the melody. Sing the line straight. Let the congregation own it.
Watch the bridge's energy. The line "you have done great things" repeated under a building band can become a stadium moment, but the point is testimony, not spectacle. If the band is louder than the room, the song has failed its actual purpose.
A note for the team behind you (techs, vocalists, band)
Drummer: the kick pattern is the song. Four-on-the-floor under the chorus, syncopated and pulled back under the verses. Snare on 2 and 4, with a building tom pattern entering the bridge. Hold the tempo. Do not push.
Bass: simple root movement under the verses, locked with the kick under the chorus. The bridge can open into more melodic movement, but stay supportive. The song is not a bass showcase.
Electric guitar: the opening verse wants a delayed single-note line or sparse rhythmic chord stabs. The chorus opens into power chords or big sustained voicings. The bridge wants a melodic line that supports the vocal, not a guitar solo. Set your delay to a dotted eighth around 178 ms at 84 bpm.
Piano/keys: piano carries the verse, pads carry the chorus. The intro figure is iconic; get it clean.
Vocalists: tight harmonies on the chorus, unison on the verses. The bridge supports a high harmony above the lead. Keep the harmonies clean and supportive; this is not a song for vocal runs.
Tech: FOH, this is a modern band mix with the drums forward, the bass present, and the lead vocal sitting clearly on top. Make sure the congregation hears itself on the chorus; if the band is louder than the room, pull the band back. In-ears: every musician needs a strong click and a strong drum mix to hold the pocket. Lighting: this song supports an energetic, celebratory look with brighter washes and color movement on the chorus. Resist strobe; this is joy, not chaos. Slide tech: the bridge's repeated line needs to be on screen with confidence so the congregation can declare it without looking at the worship leader's mouth.