O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;
bow down before him, his glory proclaim;
with gold of obedience, and incense of lowliness,
kneel and adore him: the Lord is his name. – (John Monsell, 1863)
Sunday there was such a lot going on I’m more inclined to write a couple of short articles than one disjointed rambling screed.
So let’s begin with how uplifting it was to see Rebekah in the choir loft during worship. She has always loved to sing, always had a beautiful voice, but being part of the choir never worked out while she occupied the pulpit.
Rebekah’s singing cred goes all the way back to madrigals in high school (she even got to sing at Walt Disney World’s grand opening – if you look closely maybe you can spot her in the choir). But my favorite story is when she and her sister made some cutting remark about their mother’s voice in church (Nell famously couldn’t find a note on any known scale) and were told: “I don’t sing for you, I sing for God. From now on you girls will be singing in the church choir.”
Then there were the Sundays in Pensacola when I took my guitar and we would lead worship together at the women’s jail. They called us “Paul McCartney and Joan Baez.” Rebekah really does have a lovely voice.
The joy of supportive community:
– video cued up to the anthem
So here we are now, maybe actually retired this time (we’re not sure), just being part of the life of a solid, faithful, historic church community at the heart of a historic town, worshipping and fellowshipping and serving with the friends we have come to love.
And I look up into the choir and I hear Rebekah’s voice and I cannot help but smile. – DEREK