What this song does in a room
"This Is Our God" sneaks up on a congregation. The first verse is restrained, almost like Phil Wickham is telling a story over coffee. People are listening more than singing. Then the pre-chorus tilts the room toward the chorus, and the chorus lands like a public testimony service.
Something shifts when a sanctuary sings the title phrase together. It stops being a description and becomes an identification. The room is publicly claiming Jesus as their God, their Savior, their Healer. That is a churchwide testimony moment, not a song.
The bridge is the place where most worship leaders feel the temperature change. People who came in tired, distracted, or skeptical end up singing words they did not expect to sing. The song is doing the work of turning an audience into a witness stand.
It is a slower song that achieves what most fast songs aim for. Conviction with celebration. Surrender with strength.
What this song is saying about God
The song operates inside Psalm 145:3. "Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable." The chorus is essentially a singable version of that verse. The congregation is being trained to declare God's greatness as their first move in worship, not their last.
Ephesians 2:4 and 5 is sitting underneath the verses. "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ." The personal testimony language in the verses lines up with this Pauline pattern. The song is not just celebrating salvation in the abstract. It is naming the before and after. The you-were-dead-but-now-alive arc is the spine of the lyric.
The bridge moves the room into 1 Peter 2:9. "You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light." That is exactly what the bridge does. It proclaims. It names Jesus as Savior, Healer, Deliverer, and God in a public way that mirrors what Peter describes as the church's vocation.
The song is forming people who think of themselves as witnesses, not just attendees. That is a significant pastoral move. Most worship songs invite people to express emotion. This song invites them to take a stand.
When a congregation sings "this is our God," they are doing what the church has always done. They are testifying that the same God who saved them in the past is still saving them now.
Where to place this song in your set
This song is built for the back half of the set. Place it after a teaching moment, a testimony, or a baptism. It does not work as an opener because the verses are too restrained and the room needs to be warmed up before the chorus can land with full weight.
It is also a strong response song after the sermon. If the message touched on salvation, the cross, or God's faithfulness, this song gives the congregation a place to respond. The bridge can be repeated as long as the room needs it.
For baptism Sundays, this is one of the best songs in the modern catalog. The personal testimony shape of the verses gives the freshly baptized person a song to lean into, and the rest of the room gets to witness with them.
For a healing service or prayer night, the bridge gives space for the Healer language to land. Be ready to repeat it.
Avoid placing it back-to-back with another slow song that builds in the same way. Two slow builds in a row exhaust the room. Let it be the moment.
Practical notes for leading this song
The verses are conversational. Lead them at speaking volume. Resist the urge to add vibrato or vocal stylings. The song wants honesty more than polish.
For the production side. The build into the chorus is everything. Make sure your band knows where the dynamic step happens. Bass and drums should hold the verses spare and step in fully on the chorus. If your drummer is comping through the verses, talk about pulling back to just the floor tom or shaker until the pre-chorus.
Audio: this song has a lot of reverb in the original recording. Do not chase that sound at the cost of vocal clarity. The congregation needs to hear the words clearly to sing them.
ProPresenter: the bridge has four declarative phrases that build. Put each one on its own slide so the room reads them as a list. Combining them shrinks the impact.
Lighting: hold a single color through the verses and chorus one. Open up on chorus two. The bridge can take a build, but do not flash. The song is testimony, not a concert.
Band: keep the tempo at 78 bpm. The song wants to drift slower as the bridge repeats. Lock the click and trust the song.
If you have a key change available, the bridge into the final chorus can take a half-step lift if the room is engaged. Do not force it. Read the room first.
Songs that pair well
Songs to lead into this one: "Goodness Of God" for the same testimony shape. "Living Hope" for the salvation thread. "Same God" if you want to extend the bridge moment into another song.
Songs to lead out of this one: "Build My Life" gives the room a quieter landing. "King Of Kings" lifts the energy back up if you need to close strong. "Yes I Will" works as a continued declaration if the room is still leaning in.
Before you lead this song
You are about to ask your congregation to take the witness stand. Stop and remember what God has actually done for them, and for you. The song works when it is honest. Let the verses stay quiet. Let the chorus do its job. Let the bridge land.