First Presbyterian Church of Athens Blog

Senior Adult Ministry: Senior Spotlight

2012-02-01T11:48:00.004-05:00

Bill Flatt

Interview By: Hannah Walters

The great William (Bill) Perry Flatt was born in Newburn, Tenn. on June 17, 1931. He grew up on his family’s cotton farm where he regularly attended the local Methodist or Presbyterian church (wherever the pastor was that week) and he spent his childhood summers making rounds to the four surrounding churches. His chore was to draw water which he claims was his “ambidextrous talent.” Not only did he grow up in a church and family-oriented environment, living within five miles of his grandparents, he was also was surrounded by what would end up being his life career: agriculture.

His love for agriculture started when Bill was six years old and he began working on his family’s farm picking cotton. Most of us pray for fluffy white snow to let us get out of school. In Bill Flatt’s childhood, kids got out of school for fluffy white cotton! School kids would get several weeks off to work on their parent’s farm and they got paid by the pounds of cotton picked. Devoted to the church at an early age, Bill began tithing with his first earnings as a cotton picker because like his grandmother would tell him, “Billy, the first ten percent you earn goes to the Lord!” The other money he earned, that he didn’t give to the church, Bill saved for college.

First, Bill attended Bethel College, a Cumberland Presbyterian College where he met his lovely wife, June. They married when he was just seventeen years old. He was later a Deacon at Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Knoxville after they transferred there to attend the Univ. of Tennessee. June was editor of the campus newspaper. With no more cotton fields to pick in the city, Bill worked as a traveling salesman to make money to pay for both his and June’s tuition. After receiving his undergraduate degree, Bill attended Cornell Univ. in Ithaca New York, where he earned a PHD in Animal Nutrition, Biochemistry and Physiology.

Being a triple major doctorate-degreed man, or as one could say, the Agriculture Guru, Bill and June moved to Beltsville, MD just outside of D.C. to work. There he was head of an energy metabolism lab where he worked to increase the efficiency of dairy cows to produce as much milk as possible with the least amount of feed.

Finally, in 1969, Bill and his family moved to Athens. At first, his daughters wanted to attend the Tuckston Methodist church. After they graduated and moved out however, Bill and June began attending Athens First Presbyterian Church in 1973. As he says, “Sunday, it was time to go to church. It was something we did, you know.” He describes this devotion to attending worship as enabling him to question his fundamental faith in a good way so that he can grow and really understand and strengthen his beliefs.

As clearly an avid church-goer, Bill has many favorite practices. His favorite verse is the classic John 3:16 and his favorite hymn is “Amazing Grace.” In fact, in a year he spend working in Scotland to verify the agriculture research he’d done here in the States, Bill says he heard “Amazing Grace” performed many times on the bagpipes. Not only is Bill Flatt a great Christian, he is also a great athlete! When he was in his sixties and taking care of his wife, June, who had tragically developed a debilitating disease called Guillain-Barre syndrome, Bill realized he needed to get active because, in his words, “I needed to be healthier so I could live longer to take care of June.” He achieved this by working out devotedly to Richard Simmons “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” workout video. Bill works hard at everything he does, he even got a call from Richard Simmons himself on Bill’s eightieth birthday and Richard sent him his newest workout video for free!

Obviously we can all look up to Bill Flatt on how to live our lives. Devoted, hard-working, intelligent, kind, and always happy, Bill Flatt is a beacon of light to strive towards, fellow Christians.

Pre-race Worship Service Draws a Crowd

2011-10-24T12:52:00.045-04:00

Attendance doubled at our second annual 6 a.m. pre-race worship service before the Athens Half Marathon. Close to 100 people huddled together in the Atrium to keep warm on chilly morning to enjoy a brief time of singing, prayer, and inspiration.

Many runners who attended came from other cities, and expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to enjoy a worship experience before tackling the hilly 13.1 mile course.

Elders Bertis Downs, Kitty Donnan, Denise Horton and Drew Brantley served as readers. Julie, Sam and Claire Thompson led the singing and accompaniment. Parish Associate Bob Googe inspired us all with a timely message. After the service, participants enjoyed Jittery Joe’s coffee and access to clean bathrooms and free parking.

Here are comments we received from runners who attended:

“It was simple, meaningful and helped me throughout the race, and the day in general.”

“It was a great way to start a great day.”

“It was a terrific service and a great way to start the Half-Marathon.”

“The service this morning was wonderful. Thank you, again, for perfect start to race day.”

First Presbyterian had 24 members or relatives of members complete the race. Two members came home with age-group winner awards – Mary Catherine Smith and Carol Robinson.

Here’s the order in which they crossed the finish line:

Mary Catherine Smith
Jessica Ward
Andrew Whitehead
Julie Osborne
Julie Thompson
Christina Iwane Dunn
John Dunn
John Eric Schleicher
Richard Williams
Denise Horton
Bob Googe
Tommy Jackson
Madie Fischetti
Daniel Thompson
Steven Havick
Sam Thompson
Chuck Toney
Dan Horton
Ashlee Schleicher
Katie Pinson McNeil
Kielly Dunn
Carol Robinson
Sarah Latimer
Bertis Downs

Thank you to coordinator Megan Sperr, co-captain Drew Brantley and Jessica Owens, Elizabeth Brantley, Kitty Donnan, Addie Downs, Chuck Hunt, Jimmy Klein, Bryan Owens, Claire Thompson, Leslie Trier and Allison Shelton who represented First Presbyterian Church at the mile 12 water station.

Let's Cheer On Our First Presbyterian Runners!

2011-10-20T10:15:00.007-04:00

On Sunday, October 23 at 6:00 a.m., our church will host a community pre-race worship service before the 7:00 a.m. second annual Athens Half Marathon. The Rev. Julie D. Thompson and The Rev. Bob Googe will lead a brief 15-20 minute worship service in the Atrium before they line up to run the marathon. All runners, volunteers, and fans from the community are invited.

Proceeds from the race will benefit AthFest’s music and arts education programs in local schools. The race begins at South Thomas Street behind the North Campus Parking Deck. It will wind through the UGA campus, through several of Athens’ distinctive neighborhoods, and along the North Oconee River before returning to downtown for the finish on Clayton Street.

More than 25 First Presbyterian Church members and relatives of members have entered to run, including:

Bertis Downs
Christina Iwane Dunn
John Dunn
Kielly Dunn
Madie Fischetti
Bob Googe
Steve Havick
Dan Horton
Denise Horton
Tommy Jackson
Sarah Latimer
Katie Pinson McNeil
Julie Osborne
Carol Robinson
Ashlee Schleicher
John Eric Schleicher
Mary Catherine Smith
Daniel Thompson
Julie Thompson
Sam Thompson
Chuck Toney
Jessica Ward
Andy Whitehead
Richard Williams

The Invisible Community

2011-06-03T06:35:00.001-04:00

We all have done it. We have all walked right past and averted our gaze, sometimes pretending to talk on our phone, sometimes pretending to dig in our purse or bag, sometimes pretending to not even notice. This is how they received the moniker "The Invisible Community." Of course, I am talking about the homeless.

On Wednesday, we received a firsthand experience of this. We volunteered at an organization called Street Sense, which produces newspapers, written by the homeless containing news on current issues and topics. The paper is produced every two weeks. Vendors (homeless people who choose to work to earn money) purchase the paper for 35 cents from Street Sense and in turn sell the paper for $1. The profit is kept by the vendor and used to purchase more papers the next day, food for the day and shelter for the night. Vendors stand on a street corner and sell the paper to passer-bys. Most people ignore the vendors and walk right past, assuming they are dirty street people.

On Wednesday, we became vendors for the morning. We paired with Michael, a gentleman who is currently down on his luck, but has a plan on how to rise above his situation. During rush hour traffic, he normally sells the paper. In the afternoon, he buys and sells water outside. The money he makes that day helps put a roof over his head and food in his stomach. For two hours, our group stood on four different corners selling Street Sense. Many people walked right past, never even glancing at us. Some people pretended to talk on their phone, or crossed to the other side of the street so they did not have to engage us, or found a reason to not notice us. Some people looked us in the eye but kept walking without a word. Some acknowledged us with a brief head nod or even a kind word. Some even engaged us in conversation about what we were doing and why.

After two hours of selling newspapers, we only sold roughly 20 papers. In two hours. As profit, we only made $13 for Michael. We talked about how we would survive if we only have $13 to spend on the necessities for the entire day. It was a tough conversation. Thankfully, by the grace of God, many people gave a donation to us and did not want to take a paper from us. In total, we were able to give Michael $228 (including a very generous man who gave a $100 bill to one of our youth). Michael was beside himself. He had enough money for the day and told us he was going to put some of it aside to help put a deposit down on an apartment. He was many days or even months away from that dream, but with God's help, we moved him in the right direction.

We experienced firsthand what happens when we are ignored, when people intentionally walk right past us and do not engage us at all. On Tuesday evening, we had a discussion with two current homeless people who are trying their best to earn enough for a place to call their own. Andre, a very passionate and energetic man, told us the most hurtful thing in his day is not being acknowledged as a human.

The biggest thing we learned from Tuesday's seminar and Wednesday's experience was to speak, say "Hello," and smile to the homeless we see. This is something we will forever hold with us. We are all God's children and we all need other human interaction.

High School Mission Trip to Washington, DC -- Happy Memorial Day

2011-05-30T18:53:00.005-04:00

After two days of traveling from Athens to Washington, DC, we arrived safe and sound. We woke up really early Monday morning (5:30 a.m.) to prepare for our first work site: So Others May Eat (SOME). We helped to prepare, serve, and clean up from serving over 400 people breakfast and 400 more for lunch. The work was hard, but very rewarding.

Those we served were genuinely pleased to see us and our smiles. For six hours, we worked in a hot kitchen alongside other volunteers and SOME staff members. What we did today, they do every day. SOME does not close for holidays, bad weather, or to take a day off. Hundreds of people, men and women, rely on the hot meal provided by the "five-star restaurant" that is the SOME dining hall.

While discussing the needs of the clients of SOME, it was mentioned that men's underwear is a particular need. If you would like to help fill this need, please contact Adrian Martin at amartin@firstpresathens.org. While SOME primarily deals with feeding people, they also have career counseling, clothing services, health services, and much more. Check out their website at http://www.some.org/.

This first day has made quite an impression on our young people. With four more days serving in our nation's capital, I anticipate many more positive experiences similar to ours today while serving SOME. Please continue to pray for us and the work we are doing. Pray that lives are transformed, not just those we have come to serve, but the servers themselves, too.

Haiti Trip -- Day Eight

2011-01-13T09:05:00.002-05:00

One year ago, the capital of Haiti was essentially leveled in a massive earthquake. Over 300,000 people died, with many more suffering injuries. Disease was an after-effect of the quake, killing many more people.

Today, the nation of Haiti took the day to mourn. We had a moving two hour worship service with the community in the morning. Even though most of the service was in Creole, we felt the emotions of the congregation and mourned with them. As Pere Bruno said, everyone in the room knew someone, had a family member, or were friends with someone who was injured or killed in the quake. But the service did not end with mourning. A passage from the Gospel of John was read and we were reminded that Jesus is indeed the Resurrection and Life! The service ended with a very joyous song and much dancing and clapping.

The capital took a moment of silence in the early afternoon to reflect on the loss they have experienced as a nation. The country is rebuilding. Lives are being put back together. Homes are being built. Hope is returning. And we their hope is in Jesus Christ!

Haiti Trip Days 5-7

2011-01-12T09:51:00.003-05:00

I am sorry that I was not able to post recently. Since my computer has not been working, it has been difficult to get online.

The past several days have been eventful, to be sure! Sunday, I worked with a massive cholera awareness campaign, where more than 150 volunteers traveled to Fort Libertie to pass out small bottles of Clorox and to educate people on the dangers of cholera. Each volunteer visited 25 homes each, so many, many people were informed.

While I was working with a group of people presenting information (we had a Haitian who did the speaking for us), we came to the home of an elderly lady. She was sitting outside of her wood and mud home, and before we could get too far into what we were doing, she stopped us so she coudl retrieve a chair for each of the Americans at her house! She found three chairs and insisted that we sit while we explained what we were doing. The guests were offered seating (the Haitian with us, Kismel, had family in that neighborhood, so he was from there, even though he does not live there). To me, her act showed the generosity of the hatian people.

We spent most of the day walking through the neighborhoods meeting people and explaining the dangers of cholera. We did not have much energy after that!

On Monday, we painted the main office of the clinic. A fresh coat of paint brightened the place up quite a bit. Many people commented on how much of a difference it made when they cam in on Tuesday to see the doctors and nurses.

On Tuesday, we began eye tests for the children of the school. With so many children, we are spreading the tests over several days, but we have already identified a couple of children who might benefit from glasses. Tomorrow, we will see more children and are ready with two eye charts and enough volunteers to help make things flow smoothly.

The Haiti trip is almost finished. While Athens is covered in several inches of snow, we are enjoying sunny and 90 degrees! This experience has been amazing, and I look forward to sharing it with you!

Peace,
Adrian

Haiti Trip - Day Four

2011-01-08T18:16:00.005-05:00

It is a small miracle from God that I am able to continue to post on this blog with my computer out of commission. One of the people staying with us is allowing me to use her computer tonight. Yeah!

Today, we went to visit the Citadel that rests on top of a large mountain. Now, when I saw large mountain, think something coming straight out of the ground and going up about 3,000 feet. We drove up most of the way, but then it got too steep for the 4 wheel drive vehicles, so we walked. We were so high when we got there, we were literally in the clouds. A cloud rolled in on us while we were walking in the Citadel and cooled things off a bit. Visibility was reduced a lot, which was good since we could not see the straight drop off one side of the building...

In this blog, however, I don't want to focus on how awesome the Citadel was, but the state of the Haitian people around it. When we arrived at the base to purchase our tickets to get into it, there were several people there trying to sell us little items: hats, pictures, boxes, carvings, etc. These people were determined to sell to us, no matter how many times we said no. They kept lowering the price. One vendor selling paintings kept calling it a "Blue Light Special," getting some chuckles from us Blancs (whites). When we reached the parking lot where we left the cars and continued up on foot (or horse if you chose to pay), there were many more people with the same items ready to sell to us. When our group headed out, we had ten people walking up to the Citadel. However, about 30 people walked with us. Even though we had procured the services of a guide through Father Bruno of Bethlehem Ministry, we had several unofficial guides along for the walk. They told us the same things we learned from our official leader. Arriving at the top, we went into the Citadel, where tickets were required for entrance. Our legion of unofficial guides waited outside for us to return. When we finally emerged a couple hours later, they were waiting for us to accompany us on our walk down, pointing out good picture opportunities, coffee trees, small cannon balls in the bush. Each of our new guides expected to be paid for his service (no women walked up the mountain). Most tipped their respective person a dollar. I had two very polite gentlemen, so I tipped them each a dollar.

But then the "vultures" came. The women with the goods surrounded us and kept asking us to buy, no matter how many times we said no. When one person purchased, more came to that person, hoping to sell him or her their stuff, too. The prices were always negotiable, but it was relentless. The only way to make it stop was to get in the cars and drive away.

Speaking to a couple of the regular folks from Haiti, it appears this is their profession. In one day, we only saw two groups go up: our group of ten and another group of three. There are not many people who make the walk to the top, which means there are not a lot of people who are willing to buy their wares. What does this do to their economy? That area was completely tourist driven. What happens when no tourists come for a day? A week? A month?

These people have learned to prey on tourists. It is how they receive their income. There is no easy fix for this problem. I certainly do not have the answers to it. I don't know what would happen to these people if folks did not come their way. I do not know what would happen if those that did come refused to pay for a service they did not ask for.

Today was difficult, not because of the walk to the Citadel or the staggering heights we were standing next to (I can't wait to get home and upload pictures of it for you!), but to see these people in that state of desperate need for me to buy a box or a flute or a small statue. A dollar might not seem like much, but as I have already learned, when one person gives a dollar, many more are there with hands out. That is why people like the men I am rooming with are so important: they want to gainfully employ Haitians. Move them from asking for tips for services unwanted to being able to provide for their families.

The work Bethlehem Ministrydoes helps support this thinking. It is important and needed. It is slow, but important work!

Since I am not sure how often I will be able to post on the blog, if you have a question about a youth ministry international mission trip to Haiti, please ask in the comments section. I will do my best to answer them. It will be easier for you to ask while I am here and can find answers if I do not know them than to wait until I am back in the states.

Please continue to pray for this trip. And pray for my family, who is without Daddy!

Peace,

Adrian

Haiti Trip - Day 3

2011-01-07T19:32:00.001-05:00

Today was an intense day of work. It began by cleaning out a 40' storage shed behind the school. Normally, that is not too bad, but the Haitian heat (even in January!) made it difficult. There were all kinds of tools and supplies and builiding materials in it. Long, tough, hard work. Then we made the packets and bags for the next cholera campaign. We must have packed close to 1,000 bags and 10,000 flyers. We will bring that information into rural Haiti on Sunday, educating people on how to use Clorox to keep the water clean and not get sick. Then we have soap for them to use to wash their hands. It will be interesting seeing this in action, since I don't speak Creole and my French is very bad! (It has been a LONG time since my last French class in my second year of college!)

The living arrangements here have been fantastic! We have little "pods" that each have three rooms that house up to four people each. Each room has its own private shower and toilet. The showers are COLD, but it feel really good after a long, hard day of working! The food is awesome, and the people that come through here are fantastic to meet and greet.

Today, we also walked around Terrier Rouge, the town near where we are staying. The people are very friendly and willing to smile and wave to us. The language barrier is a problem for real conversation, but we can manage small phrases in French. The area is not wealthy by any stretch, but the people live in better homes than other parts of the country. They have concrete walls where some areas have only wood and mud huts. Dr. Gary Fleming played soccer with a couple of little boys in the street, and they loved it! He also saw a little a little girl he has seen since she was 4 weeks old. She is around 2 or so now. Her mom sought him out to thank him for all the care he has shown to her daughter over the years. He invited her to come by the clinic to have her girl checked up by him.

Unfortunately, today, I also broke my computer, and now it will not turn on. I popped a small wire on the power button, but I cannot fix it right now. I do not know how often (or if at all!) I will be able to continue to update the blog. And I apologize for no pictures, but the internet connection here is slow, so I was asked not to upload pictures.

I hope this is not my last blog entry for this trip, but if it is, I have had a wonderful time so far on this trip! Coming to experience a different culture and different way of life is amazing. Please continue to leave comments and I will do my best to be able to respond to them.

And thank you for your support of this trip and and of the idea of a youth international mission trip in 2012! May God continue to bless you in all you do!

Peace,

Adrian Martin

Haiti Trip Day 2 - Roommates with a Purpose

2011-01-06T21:59:00.004-05:00

Today I learned quite a bit about why people come to stay in this little slice of paradise. It is not just to serve others, but to help people develop a sustainable economy. At present, I have three roommates whom I have never met before. One is working with a tree that produces a bean that will be used to generate fuel and a couple of other needed things. He is teaching farmers how to properly grow and care for the tree and how to harvest the bean correctly. Another gentleman is setting up sustainable businesses all around Haiti, run by Haitians, using Haitian goods, serving Haitians. The last man staying with me works for the government of Haiti in the agriculture department.

Bethlehem Ministry is intent on Haitians creating and running jobs for and with Haitians. At times, outside help is needed to get started. And outside expertise.

Today, our group of six broke into three different work groups: our two doctors went to the clinic to see patients, two people went on a Cholera prevention campaign to a rural village, and two people stayed behind to work on some of the storage issues around the camp. It is interesting to listen and share stories from each of the three groups. There is plenty to do here in Haiti, that is for sure!

Adrian Martin

Haiti Trip Day 1 - We Made It!

2011-01-06T12:48:00.002-05:00

I've been spending a lot of time with Eli, my youngest son (2 1/2 years old), watching his favorite show with him. Today, I felt like an episode of Dora the Explorer! We checked the map, had to get from Atlanta to Miami to Port-au-Prince, Haiti to Cap Haitian and finally on to Terrier Rouge. After setting out at 2 a.m., we finally arrived in Terrier Rouge around 4 p.m.. The traveling was not an issue, but arriving in Haiti was a somber sight. The airport had a large section of it shut down due to damage from the earthquake last year. They were still trying to repair it. Rubble and trash lined the street as repairs were slow to be made. People all over were looking for simple work, even as much as carrying our bags from the airport to our cars. And there was a lot of poverty. Everywhere we looked on our drive through Port-au-Prince to the small airport for our short flight to Cap Haitian was filled with people trying their best just to get by.

When we arrived in Terrier Rouge, we were greeted by a different sight: instead of trash-lined streets with people who seem to have lost a sense of purpose, the city was trash-free, and people all walked around with their heads held high and smiling. They had hope. Talking with people from the area quickly showed why: the school and the health clinic. Both have drastically increased the quality of life in the area, as children now get a fantastic education and are treated for their illnesses and diseases.

Our church's outreach through this area has been incredible. Giving hope to people is a powerful thing. It changes their entire outlook on life.

I look forward to spending this time in Terrier Rouge seeing the impact of the ministries of churches like ours: churches that work globally to spread the love of Christ!

Adrian Martin

Thank You, Meals on Wheels Volunteers!

2011-01-05T11:20:00.003-05:00

Once again, First Presbyterians delivered meals to many in Athens and the surrounding area who may not have had a hot meal at Thanksgiving, Christmas or to start the New Year. Without the work of all these volunteers, this ministry simply would not exist. Thanks to those who volunteered their time to deliver meals and to those who donated funds to make those meals possible.

2010 Meals on Wheels Volunteers:
Diane Adams
Maggie Bergmann and Graham Gerbeau
Carl Bergmann and Carla Buss
Bob and Janet Bishop
Carole Black
Bob and Nancy Bostrom
Tom and Carol Brown
Tara Bulger
Judy Burch and family
Robert Burton and family
Carla and Abby Buss
Laura Clark and family
Maggie Davis and family
Kitty and Dave Donnan
Bertis Downs and family
Sarah Ehlers
Michael Gavrielides
Karen Gilmore and family
Bill and Lucy Hardell
Diane Hartzel and Carol HErzog
Steve Helwig and family
John and Sara Kipp
Sally Krisel and family
Fran and Richard Lane
Will and Trishanne Langford
Michael Law and fmaily
Sue Marion and Sally VanDiver
Terry and Lucy Nestor
Bob Oertel
Dorothe Otemann and Maggie Bergman
Diana Owen and Ernie Veres
Pam Prokasy and Kevin Weir
Tom and Peggy Reigle
The Simmons family
Rick Simpson and family
Margaret Smith and family
Wendy and Joseph Stunzi
Suzanne and Howard Sugiuchi
Dan and Leslie Trier
The Walters Family
Annette Wiggs
Smith Wilson and Family

Advent Devotion 27, Saturday, December 25

2010-12-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

O Come, All Ye Faithful (stanza 2)

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee,
Born this happy morning,
Jesus, to Thee be all glory given;
Word of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing!
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ, the Lord!

Christmas morning is such a happy time. Children usually up long before sunrise to see what has been left for them under the tree. Parents and adults still in bed but remembering Christmas mornings past when they too were running through the house exclaiming what they had found under the tree for them at a Christmas long ago.

It is a time of discovery and hope and even sometimes disappointment. Yes, disappointment when that special something just didn’t make it under the tree or that special something is not quite as fantastic as you had it pictured. One year our daughter wanted “Big Bird” from the Muppet shows that she had seen on public broadcasting. When she opened the big box all she could see was the “long nose” of the bird looking at her, she started backing up and wouldn’t go near the box for the rest of the day. It was a disappointing moment for all of us.

The hymn, O Come, All Ye Faithful, has the wonderful words in stanza two, “Yes, Lord, we greet Thee, Born this happy morning,” words that guarantee that there will be no disappointing Christmas morning. What a marvel it is to greet this Christmas morning as a “happy morning” when all of us can rejoice in what God has done in our lives.

Sometime this morning take a moment and thank God for the greatest gift God has given us, the gift of God’s only son. Have the happiest morning ever this Christmas Day.

Loving God, we thank you for all the gifts you have given us. On this happy day we thank you for the gift of your son, Jesus, to whom we sing all praise and glory. Amen.

Dr. Glenn Doak

Advent Devotion 26, Friday, December 24

2010-12-24T10:51:00.000-05:00

O Holy Night (first stanza)
O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth.
Long lay the world in sin and error pining.
Till He appeared and the Spirit felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!
O night divine, the night when Christ was born;
O night, O holy night, O night divine!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!

If I had to choose one song to hear at Christmas, it would without question be O Holy Night. I only came to this realization in recent years. For me, the lyrics cut through all the extraneous noise and clutter of the season and perfectly summarizes its true meaning. The song, when performed well, gives me goosebumps. I feel the Holy Spirit.

I enjoy many aspects of Advent and Christmas with family and friends. But my favorite time is on Christmas Eve when I can spend just a little bit of contemplative time without other people—just God and me. I think about blessings and hope. I think about that feeling that O Holy Night gives me about what God has done, and will do, for us.

O Holy Night is best suited for singers with powerful voices and dramatic range—a group which comprises a select few. I listened to several versions in thinking about this devotional, and I highly recommend performances by Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, Kate Smith, Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion and Charlotte Church. Find some quiet time, close your eyes, and listen to God.

We are a weary world that needs the thrill of hope. Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!
God, our Shepherd, We give you thanks and praise for the incredible gift of the “night divine.” Help us to hear you through the sounds of Christmas. Amen.

David MacMillan

Advent Devotion 25, Thursday, December 23

2010-12-23T12:39:00.000-05:00

Silent Night (stanza 2)

Silent night, holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar, Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Christ, the Savior is born, Christ, the Savior is born

One of my favorite songs at Christmas is Silent Night. I remember singing this while walking out of the sanctuary with my burning candle. It is my favorite part of the whole Christmas Eve service. Singing such a great, meaningful song while walking out of the church on Christmas Eve is amazing.

The older I’ve grown, the more I understand the song. It is wonderful to think that the exact night a long time before, Jesus was born. When it says “Glories stream from heaven afar” it means that the night of Jesus’s birth was a happy night everywhere. It still is a very happy night all around.

I love hearing the many Bible versus explaining the excitement throughout Bethlehem on that night. The most memorable to me is a verse in Luke that says “I bring you the most joyful news ever announced, and it is for everyone! The Savior has been born tonight in Bethlehem!” The night Jesus was born truly was one of the most elated times in the gospels.

Dear Lord, we thank you for giving us your always forgiving and loving Son. We thank you for giving us this special time where we can be with our families and a time for us to remember that 2000 years ago you came to us through Jesus Christ. Help us to be better people and lead the lives that you want us to live. Amen.

Richard Sims Ferguson

Advent Devotion 24, Wednesday, December 22

2010-12-22T09:26:00.001-05:00

Away in a Manger (stanza 1)
Away in a manger, no crib for His bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.
The stars in the bright sky looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.

Every Christmas Eve and during every Christmas pageant, for as long as I can remember, children and the congregation join in singing this beloved hymn. And, every year I become teary-eyed as I am reminded of the miracle of His birth, the gift of His life, and the wonder and beauty of the celebration of Christmas as interpreted by the young, sweet, pure voices of children.

I love to remember all of the Christmas pageants in which my children participated. Their first pageant parts were always walking timidly down the church aisle as cows, sheep and donkeys – aspiring, of course, to be angels - and then scrambling to find the best seats on the straw, nearest their friends. Becoming tall enough to light the candles, marked their debut as acolytes, tentatively balancing the candle lighter, and me being certain they were going to light someone’s hair on fire. Waiting for the familiar “squeak” from my daughter’s clarinet during the school Christmas concert still brings a tear to my eye. I recall the school gymnasium with the foil stars stapled to the stage curtain, the band seated on the basketball court and the choir assembled in the bleachers – everyone dressed in their best church clothes. The entire scene represents a Norman Rockwell painting.

Now, my grandchildren are dressed as cows, sheep – even a chick! – in their church Christmas pageants. And, I do not miss a school holiday concert. They are still held in the gymnasium, and now include songs representing a diversity of ethnic groups. The variety of music reminds us that Jesus’ love does indeed encompass the whole world.

The ever-enduring songs and music of children remind us of that event that occurred over two thousand years ago. The birth of beautiful baby Jesus, in a stable, with animals as his companions, and straw for his bed represent the reason for foil stars, a sheep costume, a beginning band’s musical rendition of a favorite hymn – what better way to demonstrate gratitude and love?

Be near us Lord Jesus; We ask Thee to stay close by us forever and love us we pray. Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care, and fit us for heaven to live with Thee there. Amen.

Judy Burch

Advent Devotion 23, Tuesday, December 21

2010-12-21T15:08:00.004-05:00

Tuesday, December 21

Star Carol
Angels bright, come from heaven’s highest glory,
Bear the news with its message of good cheer;
“Sing, rejoice, for a King is come to save us,
Hurry to Bethlehem and see the son of Mary!

Follow me joyfully;
“See his star shining bright,
In the sky this Christmas Night!
Follow me joyfully;
Hurry to Bethlehem and see the son of Mary!"

I first remember hearing John Rutter’s Star Carol on a local Christian radio station during several Christmas seasons. At that time, I thought that it was a very beautiful song but was never able to find out the name of it, as they typically did not announced names and artists on the radio station. Later on, after joining our church choir, we sang the Star Carol. I was thrilled to be singing “that beautiful song that I heard on the radio.”

When I think about Christmas, one of the most important things to me is the music that is heard that time of the year. In fact the translation of Merry Christmas into the Hawaiian language is “mele Kalikimaka.” If you translate mele kalikimaka back to English it comes back meaning something like “sing about Christmas.” It could be argued that “making merry” means to sing about something! At Christmastide, we can make merry by singing.

The second stanza above emphasizes how that Jesus came to this earth to save us. It also reminds us of the shining star that lead the shepherds to find Jesus where he lay. Mary, his mother, was a virgin. This virgin birth of the Messiah was prophesied in the Old Testament as was that of the birth taking place in Bethlehem. Even the scribes and the Pharisees told the Magi where to look for the Christ Child. Jesus came and lived a perfect life. Then he was crucified for our sins. And if we only accept his sacrifice as payment for our sins, then we are forgiven of all of them—all sins, past, present, and future. Thus when God looks at us, we are perfectly sinless and filled with the righteousness of Christ. That way, we can have eternal life through Jesus Christ. Eternal life sounds like a good Christmas gift. Indeed, Jesus is the “reason for the season.”

John Rutter is a contemporary composer/arranger of music and has written no small amount of music. Besides the Star Carol, he has also written the Candlelight Carol and the Donkey Carol which our choir has done. (See The John Rutter Christmas Album, with the Cambridge Singers and London Sinfonia, www.collegium.co.uk). He has also arranged traditional Christmas music and written much more as well. Our choir has also done the Rutter Requiem on more than one occasion as another example. He also wrote a cute piece called Brother Heinrich’s Christmas (from the CD entitled Three Musical Fables).

The most important part of Christmas, for me, is that of the music that is heard during that season. I do enjoy very much hearing John Rutter’s music and choir music in general.

Lord God, we thank you for Jesus Christ, our Savior, Redeemer, and Messiah, who made it possible for us to come to You into your Presence and have eternal life. Amen.

Tom Berry

Advent Devotion 22, Monday, December 20

2010-12-20T08:58:00.000-05:00

O Little Town of Bethlehem (stanza 2)

For Christ is born of Mary; and gathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep their watch of wondering love.
O morning stars, together proclaim the holy birth!
And praises sing to God the King, and peace to all on earth.

Many of the images I have for Christmas come from Christmas cards as a child. It seems we always received at least a couple of cards with a picture of the Bethlehem skyline with a huge star marking the stable of Christ’s birth. As I read and sing this second stanza of O Little Town of Bethlehem, some new images come to mind to augment that of my childhood.

Phillips Brooks, an Episcopal rector in Boston who wrote this text for his church’s Sunday school in 1868 after visiting Bethlehem in 1865, begins with a narrative of sorts: While we mortals sleep (literally or figuratively?), angels (with wings, halos and white robes or in some other form?) are keeping watch. In the third line (“O morning stars, together proclaim the holy birth!”) it’s as if Brooks is commanding the stars and the entire world, “Proclaim the holy birth!”

If the stars so far away can proclaim Christ’s coming, what can I do this year to proclaim his birth here in Athens and throughout the world? What can we do together?

Loving God, who watches over us all our lives, we give thanks that you sent your Son, wondering love personified, that we may know you better and lead better lives. Help us to love those around us and those far away. We pray through Jesus Christ in the Spirit. Amen.

Tom Granum

Advent Devotion 21, Sunday, December 19

2010-12-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

O Beautiful Star of Bethlehem (stanza 2)

O beautiful star, the hope of life
Guiding the pilgrims through the night
Over the mountains ‘til the break of dawn
Into the land of perfect day
It will give out a lovely ray
O beautiful star of Bethlehem
Shine on!

This is an old Appalachian hymn that I had never heard until 2001 when The Century Men (a choir of 100 Baptist ministers) released their arrangement and the local stations devoted to playing Christmas music throughout Advent were flooded with requests. I was in the car and got tickled about how annoyed the announcer was with the number of requests for this. But when it started, I was so moved by the beauty and power of it that I almost had to stop the car. I later ordered the CD, and I play it repeatedly (throughout the year). I love the message of guidance and direction.

Sometimes, life is really, really hard. Getting lost in the pain and fear can happen without our realizing, because we are just trying to function and survive. But one day, something crosses our path to remind us that there is guidance and direction to help navigate through the pain and fear if we just focus on the right thing. For me, it was this hymn that startled me back to really focusing on what can guide me day to day so that I’m not lost or fearful. When I walk in the early morning before sunrise, I look to the stars and remember there is one beautiful and perfect Star sent to guide me through any crisis or trauma if I just stay focused on it – the Beautiful Star of Bethlehem that is Christ Jesus.

Loving God, who created everything including stars too infinite to count, we give thanks that you sent the one perfect Star to guide us to a closer relationship with you. Help us to stay focused on Your Son for guidance and direction each day. In Jesus Christ we ask this. Amen.

Jennifer Nickles

Advent Devotion 20, Saturday, December 18

2010-12-18T09:00:00.000-05:00

Oh Holy Night (stanza 1)

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of Our dear Saviour’s birth.
Long lay the world In sin and error pining,
‘Til He appear’d And the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope The weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks A new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! O, hear the angels’ voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born;
O night divine, O night, O night Divine.

I must say, I have a hard time explaining holiness. Defining holiness, in a real and tangible way, is difficult for me. Things that are holy, that are truly of God, are often hard to describe. I prefer instead, an “I’ll know it when I see it” take on the subject.

And this carol reminds me of what is holiest of all. Our God broke into this world in a new way, in the best way, that night so long ago. When Christ was born, something deeply holy and beautiful took place and this carol speaks to that so beautifully. When we sing of the stars brightly shining, of the stillness of that night, I can feel God’s presence over the earth. To know that our God loves us so much, that he has come to us in the flesh, I can think of no better response than to “fall on my knees, hear the angel voices.”

This carol, O Holy Night, defines for me what holiness is and what our response to it should be. Holiness is when God breaks into our world; it is when we know that God is near. Falling on our knees in awe is the only logical response to that! Let us remember that this Advent season is holy, it is filled with God’s presence. Let our hearts be worshipful and glad.

All glory to you, Great God, you wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature. Amen.

Tara Bulger

Advent Devotion 19, Friday, December 17

2010-12-17T14:10:00.001-05:00

Infant Holy, Infant Lowly (stanza 1)

Infant holy, Infant lowly,
For His bed a cattle stall;
Oxen lowing, Little knowing
Christ the Babe is Lord of all.

Glenn Doak led a most interesting class this fall on Hebrews. The eloquent Greek masterpiece, composed between the years 60 and 95, is probably not from Paul, as once thought, but more likely from a later Church leader who sensed the weariness of the “second generation.” Those who had known Jesus in the flesh were troubled by his birth and horrified by the scandal of his death on a cross. Some had been persecuted. Most were disappointed that God’s promised kingdom had not yet come. There was talk of abandoning the faith all together.

“What was God thinking?” Glenn Doak asked. “What was God thinking while waving good-bye to Jesus Christ as He left on a journey to earth?”

The author of Hebrews writes with authority and reassurance. Jesus Christ is The One through whom God has spoken. Jesus Christ is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being. It is through Christ that we have a relationship to God. It is because of Christ that we have a direct access to God. We are to remain faithful and confident, patient and hopeful.
Lord, We thank You for Jesus Christ, our hope and savior, who came to earth and was, for a little while, made lower than the angels, but who is now crowned with glory and honor for all eternity. Amen.

Laura Bennewitz

Advent Devotion 18, Thursday, December 16

2010-12-16T09:01:00.002-05:00

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks (stanzas 1-2)

While shepherds watched
Their flocks by night
All seated on the ground
The angel of the Lord came down
And glory shone around
And glory shone around

“Fear not,” he said,
For mighty dread
Had seized their troubled minds
“Glad tidings of great joy I bring
To you and all mankind,
To you and all mankind.

During my sophomore and junior year of college my parents lived in Amman, Jordan. Despite the fact that they lived in the capital, shepherds still brought their flocks around our house. From the front gate, you could see rather humble looking men, sitting with their flocks. These men were Bedouins, the Arab people that lived in tents, and stayed with their flocks all year round. They were dirty, uneducated and lived on the edges of society. That’s my image of shepherds, which is similar to shepherds in the Jesus time. However, the angels proclaimed Jesus birth to the shepherds. The shepherds were going about their business and the angels came to them and told them about Jesus.

Advent is a time that we prepare for the celebration of Jesus’ birth. We remember our LORD, our King, and our God’s birth. And in all the preparation and talk or a child who comes to us, I sometimes forget the majesty of it all. The shepherds saw the majesty of the angels and “mighty dread, Had seized their troubled minds.” It must have been almost impossible to imagine why God choose to make his son’s birth known to them, their fear is understandable. Yet the magic of advent is that all, kings, shepherds and everybody in between are invited to prepare for the Joy of our Christ’s birth. And while he came as a baby, he is not a child that deserves anything less than our awe, fear and worship.

I wonder what it would look like if we took this Advent season to remember the miracle it is that Jesus made himself known to us. If we, like the shepherds, see God’s majesty and remember that God came to us, not because of who we are, but who he is, then maybe we will be able to understand how the shepherds felt that night.

Lord, our magnificent savior, who came to us as a baby and made yourself nothing, so that we could have ever lasting life. Help us to prepare a way for you. Teach us to be humble and bow before your majesty. We pray in your holy and precious name. Amen.

Paula Frances Gay

Advent Devotion 17, Wednesday, December 15

2010-12-15T08:47:00.000-05:00

Away in a Manger (stanza 1)

Away in a manger, no crib for His bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.
The stars in the sky looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.

To comfort my boys, I sing. I start with a favorite hymn (Amazing Grace for Micah and Though I May Speak for Eli) and sing all the stanzas. Then I sing a medley of Christmas carols . . . well, the first verses anyway. The First Noel, Away in a Manager, O Little Town of Bethlehem, What Child Is This, Silent Night. Sometimes I add a few others, like Joy to the World. Year round, I sing these songs. The melodies are like that of lullabies, soothing and calm, yet bright and lilting. As I sing and rock, we calm down and rest.

It is not just the melodies that bring me back to these carols throughout the year (and the fact that I can remember all the words), but the message they convey is timeless. The hope and joy of the Incarnation expressed in these carols is not just for Christmastime. This message should be celebrated all year long. God became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). Emmanuel . . . God with us!

For me, the crux of Christianity is the Incarnation. God loves us so much that God became one of us in Jesus, born of Mary . . . in a stable . . . far from home. Jesus experienced joy and pain, love and sorrow. He knew plenty and want. He grew, played, learned. He knew what if felt like to be adored and exalted, hated and reviled. And it all started away in a manager in the little town of Bethlehem on a silent night that brought joy to the world.

And so, I sing these carols . . . not as frequently as a did when my boys were infants . . . but they are in my repertoire of soothing, hope, and joy filled songs that I sing throughout the year.

Sara Martin

Advent Devotion 16, Tuesday, December 14

2010-12-14T08:57:00.001-05:00

O Holy Night (stanza 1)

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of Our dear Saviour’s birth.
Long lay the world In sin and error pining,
‘Til He appear’d And the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope The weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks A new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! O, hear the angels’ voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born;
O night divine, O night, O night Divine.

Nothing helps me get into the spirit of Christmas more than singing my favorite carols, many of which are hymns that carry prescious memories with them. Many a Sunday have I stood in the pew hearing my parents’ and grandparents’ voices next to me while singing these treasures. When our boys were young, and still now on long trips, singing was a great family pastime for car rides. Often these trips carried us home to see our family in South Carolina. Thanksgiving and Christmas would find us traveling, and someone would just begin singing. Though it might begin with a lighter version of Rudolph, the classic old hymns that I learned in the pews of our home church always made it in. Sometimes they would be sung with great reverence, others with great flourish! O Holy Night brought out deep mature voices from eight-year-old boys in the dark of the evening. There is a certain forgiveness in the dark, in the car, with just your family. No judgment, no audience, just those you love and our Lord to hear the splendor. It is a blessing with teens and college-age children to have traditions that they will still participate in as if everyone else in the world does this annually as we do. At times now, with teenage drivers and more independence abounding, more than one car goes to South Carolina. The voices and love, however, still ring clear. John Sullivan Dwight’s version of O Holy Night, as seen above, is one of my favorite Christmas carols.

The words bring into focus the magnitude of the gift God has given when sending the babe Jesus to us. In this world we live in today, with the language watered down, slang, and so casual, I enjoy the celebratory, rich words used to describe this fabulous event in history: our history as Christians. As He lay in the manger, He represented hope for the world, hope and forgiveness for us as sinners! What a love God has for us to send His Son to show us His love. May we each feel such joy at the “glorious morn” of the birth, that we are willing to “fall on our knees” in praise and gratitude. What a truly DIVINE and HOLY Night it was and IS!

O Holy God, let us feel this joy during the season and share it with the world. In your holy name we pray. Amen.

Elaine H. Johnson

Advent Devotion 15, Monday, December 13

2010-12-13T08:47:00.000-05:00

Silent Night, Holy Night (stanza 1)

Silent Night, Holy Night
All is Calm, All is Bright
Roun yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

I am sure that silent nights are as rare for your family as they are for ours. We tend to fill our lives with idle noise, while not taking time out to be quiet and listen for God to speak to us. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in the rush of our daily routines and miss His voice, the most important voice of all. On that very first Silent and Holy night, God spoke to us all. Just as the bright star in the sky led the wisemen and shepherds to find Jesus’ manger, today we can also look to our right star, Jesus, and find our Savior once again.

As we picture baby Jesus lying in the manger, we can imagine him sleeping so peacefully. He was surrounded by his loving mother and father, without a care in the world. We, too, can look to our Loving Father for that kind of security. God promises us heavenly peace. He gives us the freedom from all turmoil as long as we submit it all to him. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God,” and to “Give ear and hear my voice; listen and hear my words.” This Advent season, let us slow down, spend some quiet time with God, reflect, and thank God for the most precious gift of all.

Loving God, thank you for sending your Son. Help us to slow down and remember what that means for us as Christians. We thank you for the heavenly peace that you have given us. Be with us as we go out into your world and share that love, peace, and hope with others. Amen.

Amy Stone

Christmas Pageant photos

2010-12-12T21:35:00.002-05:00

Some pictures of the Christmas Pageant this afternoon. Click on these thumbnails to see larger images. These are smallish images, suitable for web browers. See the note at the bottom of this post regarding larger images.

It was a great pageant, and I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them.

If you would like a full-size copy of any of these images, such as for printing, I'll be happy to e-mail it to you. Just save the image from this blog entry and e-mail it to me so I'll know which one(s) you want, or just tell me the image's position in the blog entry.

Rick Simpson / rsimpson@alumni.rice.edu

Advent Devotion 14, Sunday, December 12

2010-12-12T09:00:00.001-05:00

I thought I would share with you a New Zealand folk Christmas carol that has a history of its own. The hymn is provided along with the history behind it. I ponder what it must have been like for the missionary and the Maori people upon hearing about the birth of Jesus Christ.

Te Harinui
Verse 1: Not on a snowy night/By star or candlelight/Nor by an angel band/There came to our dear land
Verse 2: But on a summer day/Within a quiet bay/The Maori people heard/The great and glorious word
Chorus: Te Harinui/Te Harinui/Te Harinui/Glad tiding of great joy
Verse 3: The people gathered round/Upon the grassy ground/And heard the preacher say/I bring to you this day
Verse 4: Now in this blessed land/United heart and hand/We praise the glorious birth/And sing to all the earth

The Reverend Samuel Marsden was the first person in New Zealand to preach the Christian Gospel, [on the North Island] at the Bay of Islands on Christmas Day 1814. His sermon was based on Luke’s text, “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”

But he had not brought great joy in Australia where he is still remembered as “the Flogging Parson” for the extreme cruelty and violence of the punishments he inflicted on Irish convicts there. Nevertheless, he had a very high regard for New Zealand Maori, who he wrote of as being “A very superior people in point of mental capacity . . . ” And although he had fallen under a shadow in Australia while trying to expand his property holdings in shady circumstances, he spent huge sums of his own money in New Zealand to ensure that the Gospel was promulgated among the Maori people according to his church’s ideals. Marsden settled in Australia in 1794, and twenty years later he capitalized on a long friendship in Australia with Ruatara, son of Te Pahi, the paramount Chief of Nga Puhi - the predominant tribe in the northern North Island - and came to New Zealand. He was welcomed by Ruatara’s whanau [‘wh’ is pronounced like our ‘ph’ giving the ‘f’ sound and is phonetically pronounced as ‘fahnow’ and means family or community of people . . . our church family would be considered a whanau] in the Bay of Islands in December 19, 1814, and on Christmas Day he preached the first sermon there. He became much revered by Maori, and was noted for his protection of them against the incursion of settlers, and for his encouragement of missionaries to continue this policy. Marsden’s life remains a contradiction to this day.

Information taken from http://folksong.org.nz/nzchristmas/te_harinui.html

Loving God, thank you for sending your son, Jesus Christ, to this earth. Celebrating the
birth of that tiny baby, under such humble circumstances, reminds us of the love you have forus all. We praise your name . . . and sing to all the earth! Amen.

Betsy Arrington-Tsao

Advent Devotion 13, Saturday, December 11

2010-12-11T09:00:00.000-05:00

God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen (stanza 4)

Now to the Lord sing praises, All you within this place,
And with true love and brotherhood Each other now embrace;
This holy tide of Christmas All others doth deface.
O tidings of comfort and joy.

For years when I heard this eighteenth-century carol, I envisioned scenes from “Merry ol’ England” reminiscent of an eighteenth or nineteenth-century Masterpiece Theatre series. I’ve always enjoyed singing this carol because it emphasizes the possibility of peace on earth resulting from Christ’s birth: the friendship and brotherhood/sisterhood that could be ours if we follow our Savior’s example.

Because of a personal concern, this carol has a special meaning for me now. It reminds me of the unofficial truce between some German and British soldiers on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in 1914 and between some German and French troops during that time in 1915. In the midst of all the horrors of trench warfare in World War I, these men joined in celebrating the holy tidings of Christmas. They exchanged gifts and souvenirs, played soccer, and sang carols. They experienced comfort and joy—but just for this one night and day. The holy tide of Christmas, this brief time of love and brotherhood/sisterhood, did not “deface” the horrors to come for many nights and days.

I have a son-in-law who will be serving his second Christmas in Iraq. He also spent Christmas in Bosnia in 1996. Although he’s never been involved in actual fighting and has only occasionally encountered any danger, he is and has been in places barren of love and brotherhood/sisterhood. The angelic tidings of peace heard long ago have not prevented feelings and acts of hatred in these places. Nor have the revered tidings of other faiths deterred their adherents from going astray and causing dismay.

Yet we Christians experience the comfort and joy from the tidings resounding during this holy tide of Christmas. Certainly our loved ones who, for whatever reason are in harm’s way, experience restful moments of renewed hope for the world and themselves. May theses glimpses of what Jesus came to earth to show us fill us with love for others. May they also, because of our belief in Him and our actions for Him, give us the comfort and joy that Christ would have us enjoy.

Gracious God, we know that You came into the world as one of us to bring peace on earth. We ask forgiveness for our failure to live lives filled with comfort and joy. Collectively, we ask for Your guidance in leading us to base our decisions and actions on promoting brotherhood and sisterhood among your children. As individuals, we ask You to help us make the choices and commitments that free us from the anxieties of the Christmas season and give us the joy that following Christ brings every day. Amen.

Jerry Rogers

Advent Devotion 12, Friday, December 10

2010-12-10T15:41:00.003-05:00

Angels We Have Heard on High (stanza 1)

Angels we have heard on high
Sweetly singing o’er the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strain.
Gloria, in excelsis Deo

Whenever I sing Angels We Have Heard on High, it takes me back to caroling with the East St. Olaf Lutheran Church choir in Minnesota. The star-filled sky and moon reflecting off the snow made the evening glow as bright as day. The coldness of the night was warmed by the smiles of those who heard our joyous song. We felt as if we were singing with the angels.

Angels We Have Heard on High was a traditional 18th century French carol, translated into English in 1860 by Bishop James Chadwick. It is based on Luke 2:13-14 which tells of multitudes of angels coming from heaven singing and proclaiming Christ’s birth to the shepherds.

Just think of what it must have been like to see and hear multitudes of angels singing. It must have sounded like the sound was coming from everywhere, and even the mountains were singing. The shepherds realized that an extraordinary and powerful event had occurred, and they hurried to Bethlehem to worship and adore the newborn King.

We know that this little child for whom the angels came down from heaven and sang was Jesus Christ, our Savior. Let us celebrate the birth of our Savior: Let’s sing with the angels – Gloria, in excelsis Deo.

Almighty and loving God, we can only imagine the wonder and awe the shepherds felt when they heard the angels singing. Let us join the heavenly choir and proclaim with joy to the world the glory and majesty of the birth of Christ. Glory to God in the Highest. We pray through Jesus Christ in the Spirit. Amen.

Jeanne Nadenicek

Advent Devotion 11, Thursday, December 9

2010-12-09T11:00:00.002-05:00

O Holy Night (stanza 3)

Truly He taught us to love one another,
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains He shall break, for the slave is our brother.
And in His name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
With all our hearts we praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we,
His power and glory ever more proclaim!
His power and glory ever more proclaim!

In 1847 the parish priest in a small French town asked the commissionaire of wines to write a celebratory poem for Christmas mass. Placide Cappeau de Roquemaure turned to the gospel of Luke to create his remarkable images of Christ’s birth. Inspired to set his Cantique de Noel to music, Cappeau approached his friend and recognized classical musician, Adolphe-Charles Adam. Of the Jewish faith, Adam’s challenge was to craft a score for a poem celebrating Christmas and Christ – both counter to his belief structure. Cantique de Noel was widely accepted by the church in France until Cappeau left the church to join the Socialist movement and Adam’s Jewish ancestry was uncovered. The French Catholic church denounced the song for two decades, but the French people still sang this thrilling song in their homes.

American writer and zealous abolitionist, John Sullivan Dwight, translated Cantique de Noel in the 1850s. He interpreted the song’s message beyond Christ’s birth, linking the last stanza to his view of the sinful nature of slavery. Dwight published his translation in his own magazine and O Holy Night became broadly cherished in our nation. Christmas Eve some fifty years later, the hymn received the distinction of being broadcast on the first AM radio program by Reginald Fessenden. Canadian inventor and former chief chemist for Thomas Edison, Fessenden opened the program by reading from the gospel of Luke, then playing O Holy Night with his violin and singing the last verse.

Little did I know of the history of O Holy Night when I began my Google search. The words and music inspire great joy in the miracle of Christ’s coming. But we are reminded of our solemn mission to lift – in His name – the enslaved and the oppressed. Can each of us take a step toward achieving that mission in this Advent Season?

O Holy comforter, help us each take a step forward this season to lift the enslaved and oppressed in your Name. Amen.

Sandi Huszagh

Advent Devotion 10, Wednesday, December 8

2010-12-08T10:29:00.001-05:00

My favorite song at Christmas, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, captures the majesty of Jesus’ birth and how my heart feels during Christmas. Joyous.

There is one particular passage that I love:

Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that we no more may die
Born to raise us from the earth
Born to give us second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!”

In a season where so many people are distracted by the hoopla of Christmas (I include myself in this group), this hymn helps me remember the ultimate present. All else pales in comparison to the all encompassing, awe inspiring gift that God gave us. It humbles me to think of the multitudes that Jesus helps and that he only asks that we follow him.

I know that many view New Year’s Eve as an opportunity for a fresh start. I view Christmas as my spiritual new year. “Born to give them second birth” speaks to how I feel. It is the beginning. It is an opportunity to take my belief in God and turn it into a series of actions. To think of new ways to love God.

When Jesus was born, there was not a symphony behind the manger playing brass instruments. But if there had been, I picture them playing Hark! The Herald Angels Sing to celebrate Jesus’ birth. My favorite way to hear it? With brass instruments playing so joyously that I expect the doors of the church to be blown open by the music and the Holy Spirit!

O God of beginnings, as we begin our spiritual New Year, help us respond to your call to follow. Amen.

Holly MacMillan

Advent Devotion 9 - Tuesday, December 7

2010-12-07T16:03:00.001-05:00

Haul Out the Holly
Haul out the holly;
Put up the tree before my spirit falls again.
Fill up the stocking,
I may be rushing things but deck the halls again now.

For we need a little Christmas right this very minute.
Candles in the window, carols at the spinet.
Yes, we need a little Christmas right this very minute.
We need a little Christmas now!
Lyrics by Jerry Herman

I sing this song year round. It gives me cheer, comfort and companionship -- especially when I am in a difficult circumstance or just feeling blue.

The word “Christmas” originated as a compound, meaning “Christ’s Mass” or the “Mass of Christ.” Thus, it is concerned with Jesus’ death rather than His birth. Please, however, don’t suddenly be worried bout wishing people “Merry Death of Christ” because, of course, we don’t mean it in this sense. Rather, I think of the word “Christmas” to be the fullness of Christ, the spirit, the love. I don’t know about y’all, but I need this year round. I need it every day!

Dear Lord, please keep us mindful of your presence in our lives. You are with us always to offer cheer, comfort, companionship and more as many times as we ask. Thank you for providing yourself in this very personal way for we do need you, every day.

Pamela Prokasy

Advent Devotion 8 - Monday, December 6

2010-12-06T10:01:00.000-05:00

There’s a Song in the Air!
(also known as The Christmas Song)

There’s a song in the air!
There’s a star in the sky!
There’s a mother’s deep prayer
And a baby’s low cry!
And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
For a manager in Bethlehem cradles a King!

As a brand-new, first-time grandfather—Leslie’s son, Charles Chapel Mize, was born September 9—I am naturally enamored of babies and the miracle of birth just now, so the very human aspects of the nativity (as echoed in “a mother’s deep prayer and a baby’s low cry”) certainly resonate with me. When the mystery of the incarnation is added to the already mystical event of childbirth, what happened in Bethlehem two thousand years ago becomes so astonishing, so awe inspiring, that it truly takes my breath away. All I can think to say is “Wow!” but that is clearly not enough. No wonder Josiah G. Holland, the poet whose words became the Christmas hymn There’s a Song in the Air! uses an almost overwhelming number of exclamation points—four in the first verse alone—in his celebratory song about the birth of Jesus Christ, the King of Kings.

There can also be no surprise that Holland imagines a majestic song filling the air “while the beautiful [the angels] sing.” I do realize that nowhere in the Bible do we read that angels sing. The angel that appeared to the shepherds said (not sang), “Behold, I bring you good news of great joy”; and he was joined by a multitude of the heavenly host saying (not singing), “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!” Nevertheless, I feel certain—not only as this hymn proclaims but also as our own experience of the Christmas miracle all but requires—that there was, indeed, a song in the air. How else could the most miraculous event in all of human history be celebrated except in the singing of angels? Let’s face it: “Wow” and multiple exclamation points simply do not suffice for the announcement of the birth of the Son of God. The angels must sing!

Lord, fill us with awe, dazzle us with light, charm us with the songs of angels throughout Advent and on Christmas as we contemplate and celebrate your good news of great joy: the birth, life, death, and resurrection of your son, our savior, Christ the Lord. Amen!

Richard Lane

Advent Devotion 8 - Sunday, December 5

2010-12-05T09:07:00.000-05:00

O Holy Night (stanza 1)

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of Our dear Saviour’s birth.
Long lay the world In sin and error pining,
‘Til He appear’d And the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope The weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks A new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! O, hear the angels’ voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born;
O night divine, O night, O night Divine.

Almost 11 years ago those words, sang clearly and expressly by a co-worker at our Christmas party caught me off guard. My children were much younger then and as I sat inactive for a few minutes at the work luncheon, I was distracted by thoughts of what I should be doing rather truly being engaged in what was going on around me. It seemed everyday I had something scheduled, somewhere to be with my children festively dressed or somewhere to be with food in hand. My thinking was along the lines of “I’m going to get through Christmas, I just need to focus and get organized…”

I took notice when the room became silent in anticipation of her solo, then the words, Oh Holy Night were articulated so perfectly and with such conviction. There was no music or other noise was in the room. The stars are brightly shining. It is the night of our dear savior’s birth!...The thrill of hope the weary world rejoices, For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!.

There was something about the way I could hear the traffic and noise in outside, but in the room where we were it was completely quiet except for the song. All at once I got it (again I have to say) and I was both relieved and embarrassed. Relieved to know all the craziness I was caught up in really didn’t matter and embarrassed I had to be reminded of the profound love God chose to extend to me through the birth of Jesus.

Fall on Your Knees. (Indeed!) I felt compelled to mentally bend to my knee and get right with my God; to acknowledge this was no small event even though it comes around once a year. This song will forever cause me to stop during the month of December and take pause to remember only I can cause it to be something other than a celebration of the birth of Jesus. Oh, Hear the Angel Voices. Oh Night Divine.

Holy God and Comforter, we pray that during this season we will hear the angel voices through all the noise as we prepare for the Divine Night. Amen.

Susan Boatwright

Advent Devotion 7 - Saturday, December 4

2010-12-04T09:04:00.001-05:00

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus (stanzas 1-2)

Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us;
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.
Charles Wesley, 1744

As modern-day Christians we have the gift of hind-sight, knowing that Jesus was indeed the Messiah for whom generations of Jews waited. Their patience was timeless, a trait practically unheard of in these days. We don’t like to wait for anything, even programming the television recorder to skip commercial advertisements so that we can get on with the show! And yet, wait they did for generations, never ceasing to be vigilant for the coming Savior. And they waited with excitement!

The closest feeling I can imagine to that deepest desire and longing heart (verse one) is one from my childhood on Christmas Eve. Preparation time in the early 1960’s was not nearly the extended months we experience now, though at the time it felt like waiting went on forever. There were those families in our town who decorated their tree immediately after Thanksgiving, but our family waited to pick and cut the cedar the week before Christmas. It was probably because my parents would wait for one of the older boys to return from college to help, but it was also to keep from driving my mother crazy with the youngest ones of us asking to open a present early. Finally Christmas Eve day would arrive. To help make the time pass, we were allowed to open one present. Great thought and deliberation went into that decision. The hours of that day seemed to last extraordinarily long. Watching the clock was a frequent duty. As the excitement rose and we began to get ready for the evening service, so did the excitement shivers. There were so many things about which to feel excited: the smell of turkey dinner and applesauce cakes, the chill of December, all the family home from faraway places, the house beautifully decorated (or, at least, cleaned all over at the same time!) and the thrill of holding a lit candle while singing carols in our quaint little Victorian sanctuary. The special music, the ritual of spreading the light of Christ, the joy of the extended church family all under one roof and the thrill of knowing that the wait for Christmas Day was almost over was enough to make me shiver from head to toe. There was no problem getting me to bed on this night, even though I knew my bed would be freezing for hours to come. Those excitement shivers can be recalled even 45 plus years later. Now that was a deep-felt longing … not for the toys and gifts, but for the overall joy of everything perfect all at the same time.

O Holy God, while we remember Israel’s waiting and hoping and we give thanks for Christ’s birth, we also anticipate his second coming at the end of time. Help us be the brothers and sisters in Christ you want us to be as we lead more disciplined lives and repent in the confident expectation and hope of Christ’s coming again. Amen.

Doris Granum

Advent Devotion 6 - Friday, December 3

2010-12-03T09:05:00.001-05:00

The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came

The angel Gabriel from heaven came,
His wings as drifted snow, his eyes as flame;
“All hail,” said he, “O lowly maiden Mary,”
“For know a blessed mother you shall be,
all generations praise continually,
Your Son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold.
“Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head,
“To me be as it pleases God,” she said,
“My soul shall laud and magnify God’s holy name.”

Inside, on a pillar, in the Regensburg Cathedral in Germany is a statue of Gabriel. This magnificent cathedral is regarded as one of the finest Gothic buildings in Bavaria. When you enter, your eyes are drawn to the majesty of this beautiful structure. First, most visitors notice the massive and majestic stained glass windows. The sun behind them casts warmth and new life to the grey stone interior. A visit to this cathedral creates memories filled with awe and appreciation.

As massive and impressive as it is, it’s what’s on that pillar that so many visitors remember – the statue of Gabriel. It is called the “Smiling Angel.” Gabriel’s joy is directed across the nave to another statue – one of Mary. Mary is portrayed as a diminutive, young woman – maybe as young as 12 or 13—with downcast eyes and with a look of wonder on her face. If you look closely you see Mary is beginning to return Gabriel’s smile. You can’t help but imagine the wonder she must have felt when she received his message. At that point, you are compelled to look again at Gabriel and realize the joy they both reflect, has spread to you. I can only imagine what Gabriel or Mary must have felt. When he, for the first time shared the Good News of our Savior’s birth and for Mary to know of the Christ child she would bear – there must have been such joy for both.

During this season of New Birth and promise may we all reflect and share their wonder and joy. Luke 1:26-38

O God of wonder and joy, during this season of New Birth, let us live lives where our souls loved and magnify you. Amen.

Carol Brown

Advent Devotion 5 - Thursday, December 2

2010-12-02T09:31:00.001-05:00

My Soul Proclaims Your Greatness

My soul proclaims your greatness, Lord; I sing my Savior’s praise!
You looked upon my lowliness, and I am full of grace.
Now ev’ry land and ev’ry age this blessing shall proclaim –
Great wonders you have done for me, and holy is your name.

“My soul magnifies the Lord! My spirit rejoices in my Savior! He has seen the humble state of my heart. And now all will call me Blessed!” The Magnificat

The beginning of Mary’s Song: what thankfulness, joy, excitement, and hope she expresses as she sings these words. In these few words, we begin to see some of the truths of Christmas. What joy Mary feels to find out that she is going to be blessed with a child, which is quite a joy in itself. But she has just received the news that her son will be the Son of God and the Savior of the World! By her expression we understand her thankfulness and her excitement for this most precious gift. Not only to her, but to the whole world. Her words also give the feeling of hope for the future. The people in those days had been praying and waiting for a Savior, and now he was coming! Imagine how that would make you feel!

Each Christmas Season I find myself experiencing these same feelings Mary felt a long time ago. When I was little I was often consumed with the excitement, hopefulness, joy and, thankfulness that surrounds all of the parties, family get-togethers, and of course all of the presents I would receive Christmas morning. At this point I did not really understand what the greatest gift we receive each Christmas was. As I have gotten older; although I still get really excited about all the parties, family get-togethers, decorating etc., I have begun to understand the reason for all of Mary’s feelings she so eloquently expresses. Each Christmas we receive the greatest gift of all: the Birth of our Savior, who came to give us life everlasting! And each Christmas season we are able to experience that anticipation that hope that joy, the birth of the Savior brings. And as Mary had a thankful hopeful heart, we too can look back on the year and be thankful for the blessings we have been given, and be hopeful for the blessings and memories to come. Each year as I sit in the Christmas Eve candlelight service, I find myself overwhelmed by the excitement, joy, and hope Christ brings, and each year during that service I say a little prayer thanking God for the many blessings I have been given, and for the miraculous gift of His Son, Emanuel!

Dear Lord: Thank you so much for allowing us to experience the anticipation, joy, excitement, and hope that surrounds the birth of your Son. May we never lose sight of the glory of this most precious gift. Help us not get too caught up in the hustle and bustle of the Season, but enjoy each moment we get to share with friends, family, and loved ones. In your Most Holy Name we pray. Amen.

Katie Pinson McNeil

IHN Wednesday 12/1/2010

2010-12-01T22:11:00.000-05:00

IHN of Athens has informed us that we will have no guest families this week, so none of our usual IHN jobs need to be done. We still need to do take down (we partially set up two guest rooms on Sunday), which will happen on Saturday 12/4 at 1:00pm. If you can help with this, please contact Rick Simpson.

First Christian Church, our neighbor just a few blocks down Dougherty street, needs help staffing an IHN host week January 2 through January 9, 2011. If you can provide a meal, act as an Evening Host or Overnight Host, or drive the IHN van during that week, please contact Rick Simpson, who will coordinate our volunteers with First Christian's IHN schedule.

First Presbyterian's next IHN host week will be February 27 through March 6, 2011. See you then.

Advent Devotion 4 - Wednesday, December 1

2010-12-01T08:51:00.003-05:00

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus

The first hymn in our hymnal is Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus by Charles Wesley. Charles was the youngest of 18 children and in 1735 came to colonial Georgia for a brief period as a secretary to General Oglethorpe. Although he was ordained by the Church of England it wasn’t until a conversion experience on Whitsunday, 1738, during a Moravian service that he found “rest in his soul” and the gift of hymn writing was released in him. He became a prolific hymn writer, over 6,000 penned, eleven of which are in our hymnal today. (Four of those being found in the Advent and Christmas sections, including the favorite Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.)

The season of Advent is about preparing for the birth of Jesus, getting our hearts and minds ready to receive the love of God in human form. But in reality Advent is not just a season - it is a 24-7, 365-days-of-the-year way of life for all Christians. Since Jesus’ ascension, Christians throughout the ages have been preparing for his return. In the first stanza of Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus Charles Wesley puts to music the prayers of the generations for the return of Jesus: “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus, Born to set Thy people free; From our fears and sins release us; Let us find our rest in Thee.” It is so strange a thought that contemplating living an eternal life without being fearful or sinful is almost beyond human comprehension. In his second and third stanza Wesley gives us hope that we will have the strength, through God’s gift of Jesus, to see this life through to that very moment. “Israel’s strength and consolation, Hope of all the earth Thou art; Dear desire of every nation, Joy of every longing heart. Born Thy people to deliver, Born a child and yet a King, Born to reign in us forever, Now thy gracious kingdom bring.” The final stanza of this hymn asks for the baby who was born to be a King to rule in our hearts and give us grace sufficient to make it to our eternal home; “By Thine own eternal Spirit Rule in all our hearts alone: By Thine all sufficient merit Raise us to thy glorious throne.”

The prayer for today uses part of the text from Charles Wesley’s beloved Christmas hymn Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. (Note: Despite what we assume would be the correct word Wesley uses “sun” instead of “son.”)

Jesus, we have long expected you and celebrate that you came to earth in human form to deliver us from our fears and sins. “Hail [to you] the heaven-born Prince of Peace! Hail [to you] the sun of righteousness! Light and life to all [you bring], Risen with healing in [your] wings. Mild [you] lay [your] glory by, Born that we no more may die, Born to raise us from the earth, Born to give us second birth.” Help us to remember every day to give “Glory to the new-born King!” Amen.

Misse Mallino

Advent Devotion 3 - Tuesday, November 30

2010-11-30T11:26:00.002-05:00

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (stanza 1)

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Having a church home as a child is very special, and there are certain hymns that immediately transport me to the church of my childhood. When I sing O Come, O Come, Emmanuel the music is such a familiar reminder of many happy holidays spent celebrating the season of Advent in the sanctuary of Covenant Presbyterian Church in my hometown of Augusta. I am very blessed to have parents who took me and my brother, Stephen, to church every Sunday and encouraged our participation in church events. Brad and I feel fortunate to have also found a church home among the congregation of First Presbyterian Church in Athens. I give thanks to God for the special friendships we have through this congregation and the opportunities we have been given to serve and grow spiritually.

Singing O Come, O Come, Emmanuel also comforts me because of the reminders the hymn provides that God is with us and that Christ was born and will come again. These comforts are important because the holidays are filled with many fun events and happy memories, but the holidays can also be difficult. There are memories of loved ones who have passed away and feelings of loneliness because of friends and family who live far away and cannot travel home. My hope is that anyone who is sad, lonely or lost this holiday season will find comfort in God’s love and the celebration of Christ’s birth.

Holy God, help us to be grateful for the many blessings you have given us and help us to be more generous and loving towards those in need. We pray through Jesus Christ in the Spirit. Amen.

Megan Sperr

Advent Devotion 2 - Monday, November 29

2010-11-29T11:22:00.002-05:00

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence (stanza 3)

Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of Light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away

I have always loved this hymn because it inspires a sense of the mystery which lies at the heart of the incarnation, and which is part of all true worship. Because human intelligence cannot fully understand how the eternal Word of God became flesh in Jesus’ birth, I keep trying to find ways to express the awe that is awakened each year during the season of Advent. The hymn tune (Picardy) enhances the mysterious language of the text, especially stanza three. The language of the verse seems to an elaboration of language from the Nicene Creed which describes Jesus as “Light from Light.”

Sara and I attended a Lifelong Learning Conference at Montreat during October this year. Our keynote speaker unpacked the meaning of mystery by reminding us of the physics that I learned fifty years ago in college: that light is both wave and particle (depending on how it is measured). Making reference to more recent quantum physics he suggested that once sub-atomic particles like quarks become entangled, they continue to influence each other even at a distance. Perhaps relationships are the fundamental building blocks of the universe.

The Gospel of John knows that already: “in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness” has never snuffed it out (John 1:4, 5 my translation). We embrace the mystery of God through a relationship with Jesus Christ and that brings light to our darkness and confusion.

O Light of our dark world, illumine our personal dark places this Advent, so that our living may reflect your light and truth to all who cross our path, through Jesus, our light and our salvation Amen.

John Kipp

IHN Sunday 11/28/2010

2010-11-28T20:04:00.000-05:00

We cleared out two classrooms in the Children's Ministry Suite and moved in IHN beds in preparation for hosting a family later this week. We expect only one family, and don't expect them to arrive until Wednesday or Thursday. With just two rooms to do, and with more volunteers than set-up normally has, we finished in record time.

IHN plans to take in a family early this week, so we should know before Wednesday when we will need to be ready to begin hosting. Volunteers who signed up for jobs from Sunday through Tuesday don't have to work this time.

We're ready to go, but nothing much is happening for the moment.

Advent Devotion 1 - Sunday, November 28

2010-11-28T11:17:00.003-05:00

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus (stantas 1-2)

Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us;
Let us find our rest in Thee.

Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.
Charles Wesley, 1744

We find a basic theological belief in the phrase “From our fears and sins release us; Let us find our rest in Thee.” God gives us the freedom to live as wholly human and fully alive. We have permission and grace to live without fear.

God assures us that the messes we’re in now are not the final answer. Perhaps in contrast to some of our Christian brothers and sisters with different theological beliefs about salvation, we are eager to embrace grace because God has already taken care of it. The advent of the Christ reminds me of that every year.

In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus tells us over and over, “Fear not.” But everyone I know is afraid; worries about our children, our marriages, the economy and our finances grip us. Through this text, Charles Wesley helps us prepare for Christmas. In this text, Christ is not born yet but God has prepared the way to release us from our fears and sins. God wants us to find rest.

Gracious God, silence our fears. Open us to your grace and the goodness of your gift in life. Amen.

Bob Googe

2010 Advent Devotions

2010-11-28T08:00:00.000-05:00

This year’s Advent Devotional is inspired by many of the hymns, carols and songs of Advent and Christmas. Instead of taking a rigid and specific approach to the terms “hymns, carols and songs,” we are using them in a more general sense. In a more specific sense, one might consider a hymn as a non-scriptural song of praise addressed to God. Carols were originally dancing songs with a refrain, and the term came from the French word carole, a round dance. Carols were not originally limited to Christmas nor were they allowed inside churches. We’re using the term song in a very broad sense..

The Worship Sourcebook (pp. 421-22) tells us more of the distinction between Advent and our general secular sense of the four weeks before Christmas:

The great proclamation “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14) assures us that God has entered into human history through the incarnation of the Son. The season of Advent, a season of waiting, is designed to cultivate our awareness of God’s action – past, present, and future. In Advent we hear the prophecies of the Messiah’s coming as addressed to us – people who wait for the second coming. In Advent we heighten our anticipation for the ultimate fulfillment of all Old Testament promises, when the wolf will lie down with the lamb, death will be swallowed up, and every tear will be wiped away. In this way Advent highlights for us the larger story of God’s redemptive plan.

A deliberate tension must be built into our practice of the Advent season. Christ has come, and yet not all things have reached completion. While we remember Israel’s waiting and hoping and we give thanks for Christ’s birth, we also anticipate his second coming at the end of time. For this reason Advent began as a penitential season, a time for discipline and intentional repentance in the confident expectation and hope of Christ’ coming again.

The Advent season includes the four Sundays preceding Christmas. Worship on these four Sundays should be designed to help people see the tension between celebrating and hoping.

We hope you will find these devotions based on hymns, carols and songs of Advent and Christmas helpful as you explore the creative tension between Christ’s coming 2000 years ago and our anticipation of his second coming.

Please follow this blog for daily updates throughout Advent. Click "2010 Advent Devotions" in the right margin to peruse them all on one page.

Athens Half Marathon Pre-Race Worship Service

2010-10-24T22:51:00.004-04:00

We held our first-ever worship service in our newly remodeled courtyard at 6:00 this morning, hosting worshipers from the community of runners and race volunteers. Many attendees were from other churches, even other cities.

Some time for fellowship after the service before the start of the race.

Between 50 and 60 people attended the service. From those attending who weren't First Presbyterian members, we heard complements about the facility and thanks for making the service available to the community.

Race photos: I've put photos of the race start, finish line, and activities in the finish area on Flickr. Here's a link to a slideshow.

Athens Half Marathon Pre-Race Community Worship Service

2010-10-21T08:49:00.009-04:00

On Sunday, October 24 at 6:00 a.m., First Presbyterian Church will be hosting a community pre-race worship service in conjunction with the Athens Half Marathon. The Rev. Julie D. Thompson and The Rev. Bob Googe will lead a a brief 15-20 minute worship service before they line up to run the marathon. All runners, volunteers, and fans from the community are invited. Join us on the front steps, just a block from the start, at the corner of College and E. Hancock Avenues! The entire community is welcome.

The inaugural AthFest Athens Half Marathon will begin and end downtown on Sunday, October 24. Proceeds from the race will benefit AthFest’s music and arts education programs in local schools. The race begins at 7:00 a.m. at the corner of Washington St. and College Ave. It will wind through the UGA campus, along the North Oconee River, through several of Athens’ distinctive neighborhoods, before returning to downtown for the finish. For maps of the race course, click here.

More than a dozen First Presbyterian Church members have entered to run, including Mary Attaway, John Brantley, John Carey, DeeAnn Cox, Bertis Downs, Bob Googe, Steve Havick, Gisela Hodgson, Denise Horton, Tommy Jackson, Evan McGown, April McLean, Andy Osborne, Julie Osborne, Bryan Owens, Ally Simmons, Julie Thompson, Sam Thompson, and Andy Whitehead. Most of them will be crossing the Washington St. finish line between 8:45 and 9:30 a.m.

Our Outreach Division has pledged 15 volunteers from our congregation to help at the starting line and finish line on race day. Drew and Elizabeth Brantley will serve as captains for First Presbyterian volunteers, including Tyler Brantley, Addie Downs, Ann Dunn, Jimmy Klein, Jessica Owens, Rick Simpson, Megan Sperr, and Chuck Toney.

Music: Sunday, September 26, 2010

2010-09-22T15:45:00.006-04:00

The Celebration Singers will provide the musical leadership for the 11:00 a.m. service. The Songs of Gathering will pair two pieces: Jubilate Deo, a six-part canon composed by Michael Praetorius (1571-1621), with Allen Pote's A Jubilant Song. As a response to the reading of the psalm, the Singers will lead the congregation for its musical setting, On Eagle's Wings by Michael Joncas; soloists will be Evan Arrington-Tsao and Daniel Harrison. Tom Granum will play an organ setting of On Eagle's Wings for the offertory; composed by Charles Callahan, this piece was commissioned by Bobbie Epting and Lee Epting in memory of Stephen Mark Coomes, and Tom played its first presentation in 1995.

To see a video of the Celebration Singers singing A Jubilant Song in Canada, click on the video below.

IHN Sunday 9/19/2010

2010-09-19T21:53:00.001-04:00

Today's IHN work was light, compared to a normal end-of-IHN-week day. Since the IHN setup was remaining in place, all we had to do was drive our guests over to the IHN Day Center in the van, and we did that about an hour later than we usually do, at 8 am. IHN staff covered the morning, and our volunteers covered from 1 to 5 pm. At 5, we drove them back in the van to First Presbyterian, where they were greeted by the IHN hosting volunteers from Holy Cross Lutheran Church. Our work here is done.

Many thanks to the dozens of First Presbyterian volunteers who made this IHN host week a success. There are more than 60 individual jobs in a host week. We don't have quite that many volunteers during the week because some people sign up for several jobs, such as driving on multiple days. The IHN office requested a list of our IHN volunteers -- all of them, not just the ones who worked this time. Counting all the people who have worked during 2009 and 2010, there are just under 100. That's roughly 10% of our congregation. IHN is by far our largest outreach project in terms of the number of church members directly involved. Even so, about 90% of our congregation doesn't participate. I would very much like to increase the participation percentage, both because it's good for people to get involved, and because we should not have to depend on the same dedicated cadre ("the usual suspects") to do each and every IHN host week.

I stayed long enough this evening to see that Holy Cross Lutheran got started without problems, and then departed. We're done for another three months or so. Our next IHN host week is November 28 through December 5. I hope to see you then!

Rick Simpson

IHN Saturday 9/18/2010

2010-09-18T21:37:00.000-04:00

As advertised, Darryl Magrino provided our guests, overnight hosts and me with a superb breakfast this morning. The UGA football game didn't affect IHN operations much, and I don't think that we affected the parking operation at First Presbyterian. The van and volunteers' cars left the church lot at about 9:20 this morning, before the lot began to fill up.

Tomorrow, we'll take the guests back to the IHN Day Center sometime between 7 and 8, so that the large room in the Children's Ministry area can be used for children's church and Sunday school. IHN furniture and guests' belongings will remain in place, and Holy Cross Lutheran's volunteers will take over the operation at 5.

IHN Friday 9/17/2010

2010-09-17T21:43:00.002-04:00

Another quiet night. Nancy and Matthew went to Matthew's soccer game, and so missed the "formal" serving of dinner. There was a great quantity and diversity of food, courtesy of one of the church's bridge groups.

Michael did attend the choral concert last night. Amber and Gavin went to start with, but it was too much for young Gavin.

Some excitement this evening as we tried to find the source of the persistent high-pitched squeal that can be heard in the guest rooms, especially at night when there's very little other noise. It turned out to be coming from the intercom speakers. Disconnecting the speakers solved the problem for now, but we'll have to investigate next week to find and fix the real cause and reconnect the speakers.

Tomorrow should be interesting, as it is a UGA home football game day. The church's parking lot is rented out for football parking, so we'll have to ensure that we leave in the van by about 9:30 to make the van's space available. First Baptist also rents out their lot, but they still allow the van to park there on game days. (It has to park somewhere.)

Darryl Magrino is preparing breakfast for our guests and overnight hosts tomorrow, which will be a real treat compared to cold cereal on weekday mornings.

There's a possibility that a third family will be joining us on Sunday, but it's not yet definite.

IHN Thursday 9/16/2010

2010-09-16T21:59:00.002-04:00

A quiet night last night, and a quiet one so far this evening. The van took Nancy and Matthew to a program at Milledge Avenue Baptist Church that attend every week. Michael was going to attend the Clare College choral concert, but I don't know if he did that. Tomorrow afternoon Matthew has a soccer game, so the van will be pressed into service again. Ordinary family comings and goings.

FPC IHN Goes Green: I couldn't resist taking this photo in the church parking lot yesterday. There were only four vehicles in the lot at about 7:30am: The IHN Coordinator's Prius, the IHN Van Driver's Prius, the IHN Overnight Hosts' Prius, and the IHN van. We should get some sort of award.

Julie Knowlton, the IHN Director and an FPC member, will be one of the overnight hosts tomorrow night. I think she plans to ask our guest families if they would like to attend an open-air concert at the Navy School, which would be an interesting change from everyday IHN.

IHN Wednesday 9/15/2010

2010-09-15T21:18:00.001-04:00

Things are still going smoothly. Dinner this evening was thanks to Wednesday@First, and was mostly leftovers from Celebration Weekend. I wish we could always have leftovers of that quality! Our guests fixed plates and took them back to the Children's ministry suite for dinner, and were appreciative of the food.

The e-mail I sent yesterday mixed up the dates of the upcoming IHN Volunteer Recognition Banquet and the IHN Golf Tournament; the blog posts are correct. The proper dates are:

Golf Tournament -- September 27 at Athens Country Club
Volunteer Recognition Banquet -- October 10, 6:30pm, at First Presbyterian Church

More information on both of these can be found via the IHN Athens web site.

We could hear Michael practicing the piano as we sat in the IHN hosting area tonight. The piano is in the sanctuary, directly above our heads.

Tomorrow evening Nancy and Matthew attend a program at Milledge Avenue Baptist Church, so that van will be making some after-hours runs.

IHN Tuesday 9/14/2010

2010-09-14T22:01:00.001-04:00

Not much to report, as things are going smoothly. Our guests like the play areas, inside and outside. The outside area is much more useful this time than during our IHN host week, because it was much hotter then. The weather in the late afternoons is much nicer, and so the outside play area is more fun for the children.

We are back to using "civilized" china and cutlery now. With the completion of the large kitchen upstairs by the fellowship hall, the china that had been in boxes is now in use for church events, such as the meals we had this past weekend. I've borrowed a few set of plates, bowls, and silverware for use in the small "catering kitchen" in the IHN area. There is still a closet full of disposable plastic plates and utensils, but we are now serving dinner on ceramic rather than plastic plates. The catering kitchen has a dishwasher, so cleanup is not a problem. Less petroleum-derived stuff for the landfill. And besides, it looks much nicer.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, we won't have an IHN meal brought in by volunteers. Instead, our guests and evening hosts will join in the Wednesday@First meal in the new fellowship hall. We've done this in the past each time that one of our IHN host weeks falls during the Wednesday@First schedule, and everyone has enjoyed it. The food this Wednesday should be especially good, as much of it is leftovers from the celebration meals this weekend. Don't expect filet mignon every Wednesday.

Yesterday's blog entry described the upcoming IHN Volunteer Recognition Banquet on October 10. The companion piece to that is the annual IHN Golf Tournament on September 27 at Athens Country Club. This is a major fund raiser for IHN, as well as being lots of fun. At last report, there were two teams participating from First Presbyterian Church, but more are certainly welcome. See the IHN of Athens resource page on their web site for links to information about the tournament and for an online registration form. On that same page, click on the image that says Volunteer Recognition Banquet for more information on that.

IHN Sunday/Monday 9/12-13/2010

2010-09-13T22:41:00.002-04:00

We are a day-and-a-half into our Interfaith Hospitality Network host week now. We converted three rooms of the Children's Ministry Suite into bedrooms on Sunday afternoon after the last event of the church's action-packed Celebration Weekend. Just three rooms this time, because we have just two families plus the Overnight Hosts.

We have Nancy and her 7-year-old son Matthew, and Michael and Amber with their 21-month-old son Gavin.

Matthew is a really active boy, with sports events after school; he attends Malcolm Bridge Elementary in Oconee County; that's a story in itself (see below). Nancy works in event catering, for the Classic Center and for Epting Events. She has an erratic work schedule, which can make IHN van transportation problematic.

Michael and Amber are both actively seeking employment.

IHN of Athens has host churches in both Clarke and Oconee counties. Matthew attends a school in Oconee County, but for this week and some other weeks, Nancy and Matthew are in Clarke County. An Athens-Clarke school bus picks Matthew up at First Presbyterian Church and takes him to the parking lot at Kohl's on Epps Bridge Parkway, just over the Clarke-Oconee county line. From there, an Oconee school bus takes him to Malcom Bridge Elementary. I'm astounded that two government bureaucracies would coordinate like this to get a single child to his school, but they do it every day. It's faith-restoring.

So far the families *love* the inside play area (our nursery area), the outside playground, the showers, and of course the food. Not to mention the volunteers, of course. We always try to make our guests welcome, and they respond.

Michael is a classical pianist, and hopes to perform at the upcoming IHN Volunteer Recognition Banquet, which will be held at our church (with Darryl Magrino presiding in the kitchen) on October 10. You should all plan to come -- it's FREE! No charge for the dinner, nor for the entertainment by Ken Medema. Check the link to the banquet info on the IHN Athens web site. Reservations are required (but FREE), so that the chefs know how much food to prepare.

A good start for our host week. Holy Cross Lutheran will take over the volunteer jobs next week, but the families will stay put in our building next week. Holy Cross has a construction project under way at their church, and can't host there. We can relate to this, as we had to "borrow" churches twice in 2009 to do our own IHN hosting.

IHN Sunday 6/20/2010

2010-06-20T21:21:00.002-04:00

This was the last day of our host week. Tracy and Blake and children were visiting family overnight, but Michelle, her children, and Brittany were with us. Everyone had to get up at about 6:40 so we could leave the church at 7:00. Our experienced take-down crew (the same one that did set-up, which helps) started restoring the church to normal even before the guests were awake. The IHN truck arrived at 8:00 and was loaded in about 10 minutes. By 8:30 we were finished putting the Sunday School rooms back together. The only indication that anything had happened for a week was a large pile of sheets and towels to be laundered. The space is ready for Vacation Bible School, which starts next week.

This has been a very successful IHN Host Week. We had great food, lots of welcoming hosts, and many behind-the-scenes workers who kept things running smoothly. We get a three-month reprieve now, and get to do it all over again starting September 12. Hope to see you then!

IHN Saturday 6/19/2010

2010-06-19T21:46:00.001-04:00

Late rising today, no need to get on the van and go to the Day Center at 7:00am. Instead, a terrific cooked breakfast was provided by Darryl Magrino and his able assistant Grace. Any kind of eggs, omelets, waffles, two kinds of sausage, fruit -- it was all there. Our guests (and the hosts!) were very appreciative.

In midafternoon Tracy and Blake and children went off to visit relatives, not to return until Sunday afternoon. Since Brittany worked Saturday until 10:00pm, that meant that only Michelle and her two children were there for dinner, along with the Evening Hosts. Great lasagna and all the trimmings tonight.

Tomorrow everyone must get up early, because we have to take them to the Day Center at 7:00am so that we can start restoring the bedrooms to Sunday School use. We've done this many times, and although each time it seems like we won't be ready in time, we always get things put back together in time for the Sunday School hour.

I think our guests have had a pleasant time with us, and I have heard some say that the food at FPC is excellent. Collectively we make quite an effort during IHN Host Week, and it shows.

One more evening, and then back to normal for us.

IHN Friday 6/18/2010

2010-06-18T21:41:00.000-04:00

All was quiet last night after Dylan and his family returned from the ER visit. Dylan seems back to his old self after seeing a pediatrician today and taking medication. Julie and Daniel Thompson and family were the Evening Hosts tonight, and all the kids were playing boisterously.

When I left, dinner was heating up in the oven and everyone was preparing for a fine meal.

IHN Thursday 6/17/2010

2010-06-17T22:46:00.001-04:00

A bit of excitement this evening -- when the families arrived from the Day Center, Dylan was running a fever. His pediatrician was called, and said to take him to the St Mary's ER. He's back at FPC now, with a prescription, and feeling better.

A quiet night otherwise. By now, our guests know their way around the church and can treat it as their home, if only temporarily. The play areas, both inside and outside, continue to be very popular, as are the showers.

I filled in as an Evening Host this evening, so I stayed for dinner. Excellent hamburgers, finished off with ice cream for dessert.

IHN Wednesday 6/16/2010

2010-06-16T22:02:00.000-04:00

A quiet night last night, if you don't count the 2 1/2 inches of rain that fell at the church. Thunderstorms again tonight -- I can hear the thunder as I write this.

I thought I'd include a few pictures of some of the kids that I took this evening as we were waiting for dinner to arrive. The baby being fed by her mom Tracy is Hannah, the two children playing are Dylan and Yasmin.

Brittany is back at work today, and should return to the church sometime after 10:00 pm.

IHN Tuesday 6/15/2010

2010-06-15T22:10:00.001-04:00

Last night was a quiet one, nothing much to report. It hit 100 degrees in Athens today (heat index 107), so I doubt the kids will be playing outside this evening. Dinner tonight was to be pizza. It's Brittany's day off, so she was able to be with the other families and our hosts for dinner tonight.

IHN Monday 6/14/2010

2010-06-14T23:03:00.003-04:00

Our first full day of IHN hosting for this rotation. A quiet night last night, nothing special to report.

This evening our third family arrived: Michelle, with her daughter Yasmin (almost five) and son Duntrae (almost two). The young children from the various families seem to play well together. Before dinner, they were playing together in the FPC nursery's play space below the Atrium. Yesterday they went outside on the new playground, but today it was still 98 degrees in the shade, really too hot for outdoor activity. They had fun indoors instead.

I left the church late tonight, after picking Brittany up from her job. She's off tomorrow, so no late night driving. Things were very quiet when I left.

IHN Sunday 6/13/2010

2010-06-13T22:27:00.001-04:00

Today was the beginning of our Interfaith Hospitality Network host week for this rotation. We have two families tonight, and will most likely have an additional family as of Monday night. IHN's limit is three families, so we will have a full house.

Starting at 2:00 this afternoon, our set-up crew (Bill Woolbright, Roger Burbage, Emmanuel Nekongo, and me) moved all the Children's Ministry Suite classroom contents into storage, and set up all four rooms as bedrooms. Before and after photos are below.

With us tonight we have Tracy and Blake and their two children Dylan and Hannah, and Brittany and her son Zaire. All the kids are amazingly cute, and Dylan especially likes playing with all the toys in the big room and playing on our new playground.

The adults appreciate the showers in the new bathrooms near the youth area (The Pit). Not many host churches have them, and I think ours will see some use this week. When I left, everyone was sitting down to dinner. I think we're off to a good start.

When I left the church, dinner was just being served.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 8

2010-06-12T20:35:00.003-04:00

Our week is coming to a close. We had a free day in terms of singing. We still woke up early, but instead of heading off to a concert, we headed over to Saute Moutons, a white water rapids with a flat bottom metal boat. If I told you we got wet, that would be a understatement! We were wet to the core! But it was so much fun and worth it.

We wandered through Montreal for a bit after lunch until we saw an IMAX movie in French about Vincent Van Gogh. After the movie, we saw a demonstration by a company selling Power Risers, a sort of stilt. All who got on the Power Risers had a great time! Even Tom and Adrian got on them, but once I (Adrian) went down, it took three people to help get me back up again!

As always, check out our Facebook page with more pictures of our fun and excitement!

We go home tomorrow! It has been a wonderful trip, but it is time to go home. Tomorrow, we sing at two worship services before boarding the plane and heading home. Please pray for safe travel for us as we make our way home to be with our families.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 7

2010-06-11T23:14:00.000-04:00

Today was an awesome day! We began with our worship service, singing and praising God and mediating on the Psalms. We then headed out to a park in Montréal for some Ultimate Frisbee. It was good to run and be very, very active. Chelsie brought her violin and opened case and began playing. A couple dollars were tossed in the case, but when we were ready to leave, she had to return the money to the folks in our group who gave it!

We had lunch at a wonderful Jewish deli. It was awesome! Everyone really enjoyed the smoked meat sandwiches and fries.

We made our way over to the Norte Dame Basilique, where we visited Saturday night. On our way, we picked up an impromptu tour guide who helped us find our way through town to the Metro station. In thanks to his help, we sang a song in the middle of a market square for him and everyone around us. It feels like so long ago we toured through the Basilique watching the light show, but today, we were here to sing and share our gift of music. We watched a gospel choir perform and then sang our songs. Our young people sounded great! I got some video of the singing, so check out how awesome they sounded. We received a tour of the Basilique, including the "little chapel" with its huge bronze art behind the alter. And of course, we sang a song in there, too, just to see what it would sound like.

After dinner, Yves Fillon, one of our tour guide's friends, came and helped us understand Chocolate 101. Even though there is no bad chocolate, not all chocolate was created equal. That was a thoroughly enjoyable way to end our day!

I appreciate the folks who are following this blog. To show your support to the young people, would you please leave a brief comment? This can be as brief as saying, "Eh?" Thanks!

For more pictures from our Choir Tour, check out our Facebook page.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 6

2010-06-10T21:06:00.000-04:00

Today we spent quite a bit of time traveling from Quebec City back to Montreal. We have left the awesome hotel and are now staying at a dorm at the College Jean-de-Brebeuf. What a system shock to go from one to the next!

On our way back to Montreal, we stopped at an elementary school and presented our music to the children in an instructional way. Since this school is primarily a Jewish school, we were asked to teach the children about the "how" with our music. Tom Granum shared the different melodies, harmonies, and a bunch of other things that my musically declined self did not quite get. The kids loved the presentation and the humor with which we approached some of it.

Today, there will be no pictures accompanying this post since the wireless internet is out at the college and I cannot get my laptop with the pictures connected. I am using a computer in the college's computer lab. The keyboards are similiar enough to make the differences between English and French keyboards noticable. The letters are all in place, but none of the other characters are where they should be! I keep having to hunt for familiar and often used characters on the keyboard!

Tomorrow, we sing at one of the most famous churches in Montreal: Notre Dame Basilique! Off to practice the music!

Canada Choir Tour, Day 5

2010-06-09T22:43:00.001-04:00

We sang to people today! We began at St. Roch Cathedral. After an eventful beginning, we sang to several people who were praying in the sanctuary. Following our concert, we headed out to Parc de la Chute-Montmorency, with its beautiful waterfall and over 400 steps up to it. We hiked and ate lunch and enjoyed a wonderful afternoon outside in God's creation!

We went to Notre Dame de la Nativité and sang to the congregation before mass. As Emily was fond of pointing out, "We sounded so good that we made three ladies cry!"

When we arrived back at our hotel, we were greeted by ten BEAUTIFUL cars! There were Lamborghinis, Ferrais, and other very expensive automobiles parked outside. When I asked the bell hop for my keys to the red Lamborghini, he did not seem happy that I asked. Oh, well. We had a relaxing afternoon and evening at our awesome hotel.

For more pictures from our Choir Tour, check out our Facebook page.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 4

2010-06-08T22:49:00.000-04:00

In the grand scheme of things, today was the most uneventful day of our trip. We boarded a bus in the morning for Quebec City, about a three hour ride from where we were in Montreal.

About two hours into our trip, we stopped at Cathedral Trois Rivières where we sang before their noon mass. This is a large cathedral that sometimes has visitors during the day to sit and pray in their sanctuary. Today was the day when no one came in, so our audience was only God!

After lunch, we hoped back on the bus and finished our journey to Quebec City. We paused briefly to practice in a church before mass, fine tuning our French skills with some of our hymns we will be leading in worship Sunday morning.

We finally arrived at Fairmont Hotels and Resort. This place is awesome! We are staying in the lap of luxury and loving every second of it!

Our discussions in the evening continued on the liturgical year, focusing on Lent our need to repent and prepare our hearts and minds for the coming Resurrection.

For more pictures from our Choir Tour, check out our Facebook page.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 3

2010-06-07T23:20:00.000-04:00

Today, we walked in a great darkness. More on that later, however. Our day began with our own worship service, singing Taizé music, reading Scripture, and listening for God's voice in the silence. We began our singing at a day center for senior adults who are blind. We met many fascinating people and were blessed to share our gift of music with them.

For lunch, we had the unique experience of eating in total darkness, getting the feeling of what it is like to be blind. We ate at Onoir, a restaurant that allows no light -- zero, zilch, nadda -- in the dining room. We were even asked to leave such things as cell phones, watches, and other items that might produce light, no matter how small, in a locker during our meal. Our waiter, who is blind, led us in by having us place our left hand on the left shoulder of the person in front of us and trusting that we will be led to the right place. Cutting my steak was a little tricky, as was finding what else was on my plate. At one point during the meal, I had placed my napkin over shirt so I would not spill anything on my red "Concert Dress" shirt. After having gotten my hands messy in the sauce of my meal, I went to wipe them on my napkin which was supposed to be covering the front of my shirt. Well, it was not. It had fallen, but I did not notice until too late. Yup, you guessed it: sauce down the front of my shirt! And then came the chocolate (and very messy) cake. Let's just say that I wound up wearing a little bit of my dessert on my shirt, too! Being deprived of one of your senses is difficult to adjust to, but it was a great teachable moment for both young people and adults on the trip.

In the afternoon, we went out to Oratoire St. Joseph and preformed in their "small" chapel before mass. The chapel can hold up to a thousand people, but there were much fewer in there, mostly tourists and people preparing for mass. One devout pilgrim came crawling in on her knees praying as she went. As we left, we saw two pilgrims crawling up the 400+ steps on their knees, pausing to pray on each step.

Our discussions in the evening continued on the liturgical year, focusing on Ordinary Time and our own spiritual growth.

For more pictures from our Choir Tour, check out our Facebook page.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 2

2010-06-06T23:30:00.000-04:00

We began our day worshipping God in a Taizé style of worship, focusing our hearts and minds as to the true purpose of our trip. After breakfast, we headed over to the Mount Royal United Church of Christ where we helped to lead the musical aspect of worship. Our Celebration Singers sounded like angels! I wish you could have been there to hear it! The soloists sang out strong and the choir blended its notes wonderfully! The congregation was excited we had the opportunity to worship with them this morning. We then had lunch and games with their youth group, getting to know some new friends.

In the afternoon, because of the cold and raining afternoon, we stayed at the hotel, napping and playing in the pool, but not both at the same time. After rehearsal, we headed out to dinner at an Ethopian restaurant where we ate with our hands. (Finally, I can't get in trouble for doing that at the table!) As a sign of friendship, it is customary for someone to feed their friend, still using their hands. This made for an interesting dinner, to be sure! We closed out our dinner with a trip to Ben and Jerry's, sponsored by Bertis Downs.

Our discussions continued in the evening on the liturgical year, focusing on Christmas and what that means to us personally. A great ending to a great day on our Choir Tour!

For more pictures from our Choir Tour, check out our Facebook page.

Canada Choir Tour, Day 1

2010-06-05T22:54:00.000-04:00

What a day it has been! We met at the church before the sun came up to begin our journey to Canada. Chris Griffin and Doris Granum graciously agreed to help get us to the airport in the church vans. After boarding the plane (only one bag was checked out of 14 people!), we were off! Several young people had never flown before, sharing their first flight with us!

When we arrived in Canada, we made our way through Customs with no problems. We traveled to the hotel where we are staying (Hotel Maritime in Montreal) for an afternoon of practice and rehearsal, then we hit the pool to relax.

Before dinner, we had our first of several devotions based on the church's lectionary calendar, beginning with Advent. Following dinner, we headed out to Notre Dame Basilique for the show "Et la Lumieré Fut" ("And Then There Was Light"), which details the construction of this amazing church.

2010 Celebration Singers Tour to Canada

2010-06-02T15:44:00.000-04:00

A Message from the Director:

Celebration Singers (grades 6-12) will leave Saturday morning for an eight-day tour to Montreal and Quebec City. They will sing for worship services (including an English-language service celebrating the 85th anniversary of the United Church of Canada – and a French-language service with an Evangelical Baptist congregation), for tourists in several major cathedrals, basilicas and churches in Montreal and Quebec City, and for an adult “blind academy.” As if that weren’t enough of a multi-cultural experience, they will also experience the Ethiopian area of Montreal as well the Hassidic Jewish neighborhood.

Each day begins and ends with worship, and they will have other opportunities for spiritual growth. Visiting the historic churches gives them the opportunity to learn more about the Old and New Testament men and women portrayed in statues, stained-glass windows and other art media. Their musical programs will emphasize scripture-based anthems, music of the liturgical year and sharing hymns of our culture with other cultures. Fellowship and developing lasting friendships among the Celebration Singers is also important. Busy days include time for recreation and sight-seeing.

Participants for our 2010 Celebration Singers Tour to Canada include:
Youth – Evan Arrington-Tsao, Emily Cox, Addie Downs, Mary Winn Granum, Daniel Harrison, Grace Magrino, Maddy Magrino, Jordan Osborne, Elizabeth Simmons, Cameron Walters, Hannah Walters and Wesley Walters

Adults & assisting college students – Bertis Downs, Tom Granum, Cheri Griffin, Christiana Griffin, Adrian Martin, Chelsie McIver and Peggy Randolph

IHN Sunday 4/3/2010

2010-04-04T21:54:00.000-04:00

No sleeping in this morning, everyone was up bright and early (6:30 on Easter Sunday morning), packed and ready to go to the IHN Day Center. The van left the church at about 7:05, and our take-down crew staged all the beds and bins in the hallway near the door, ready to load the IHN truck. The truck arrived at 8:00 and was away again at 8:10. After that, it was sweeping, vacuuming, and putting the classroom things back in place. We were ready by 9:00, well before the start of the church's Easter Festival.

Two of our guest families came back from the IHN Day Center to attend the 11:00 worship service with us.

Our volunteers manned the Day Center from 1 to 5 today, our next to last IHN job for the week. The last job was driving the families to their church home for the next week, Holy Cross Lutheran.

We've finished a very successful Host Week, thanks to our large corps of volunteers. Thanks also to our guests, who were some of the best and easiest to deal with families we've met in some time.

We'll do it all again three months from now. See you then!

IHN Saturday 4/3/2010

2010-04-03T23:12:00.000-04:00

Our guests slept in today, and enjoyed a fancier breakfast than on weekdays, supplied by Susan Boatwright. Workmen were spray painting on the rear of the building. When Susan left, she found that they had "gift wrapped" her car in plastic sheeting to protect it from overspray.

The big event of the day was the Easter Egg Hunt at the Granums'.

[The photos are links; click them to see larger photos.]

Our guests are in the last photo above. Standing are Jessica, Brandy, and Clay. Seated are Brittany and her son Zaire, and Neveah, daughter of Brandy and Clay. Jessica's three children could not join us at the Easter egg hunt. Neveah is also in the second photo.

I think everyone at the Easter Egg Hunt had a really good time; I certainly did.

Tonight is the last night our guests will spend with us. Dinner was provided by Lisa Oelke.

No sleeping in in the morning -- we must take them to the IHN Day Center about 7:00 so that we can convert the rooms back into Sunday School rooms and set up the large room for FPC's Easter brunch.

IHN Friday 4/2/2010

2010-04-03T01:02:00.000-04:00

Good Friday, the last weekday of our IHN host week. Dinner was provided by Kathy Bangle, and the guests were tucking in when I left. Brandy was at work at Buffalo's, and will return to the church late tonight.

Tomorrow is sleep-in day, with a fancy breakfast cooked by Susan Boatwright. I think both things are attractive to the families right now.

All our guest families want to attend the Granums' Easter Egg Hunt tomorrow. I'll try to take a few pictures.

IHN Thursday 4/1/2010

2010-04-02T02:00:00.000-04:00

Maundy Thursday

I don't know whether all of the congregation members present noticed, but our IHN guests were having dinner with us this Maundy Thursday evening. They and their children were at the first table, nearest the entrance to the Childrens' Ministry Suite. I think they enjoyed the dinner, but it was probably noiser than the smaller children were comfortable with.
When the new construction is complete, we will have a different space for large church gatherings, including dinners, and this problem won't arise.
A quiet day, and anticipating a quiet night.

IHN Wednesday 3/31/2010

2010-04-01T02:00:00.000-04:00

A quiet day and evening. Dinner was provided by Dawn and Bob Frisch. Tomorrow night's dinner with be with the First Presbyterian congregation, as our guests will be with us for the Maundy Thursday dinner.

IHN Tuesday 3/30/2010

2010-03-31T02:00:00.000-04:00

Things are going well. We have added a third guest family, so that our guests are now:

Clay and Brandy, with daughter Nevaeh (2)
Jessica, with twin daughters Jemyah and Jekyah (4 1/2) and son Jo'zeric (2 1/2)
Brittany, with son Zaire (10 months)

Tonight's dinner was provided by Jeanie and Roger Burbage, and everyone was sitting down to enjoy it when I left.

The only excitement was caused by a carpet company's truck that caused a traffic jam in the (currently tiny) church parking lot, requiring the IHN van and various cars to back out. This sort of problem will go away when the new building is finished and the parking structure is set up properly for parking.

I've invited our guests to join us for the Maundy Thursday service after Thursday's dinner, but I don't know if any of them will accept the offer. On Saturday, they are all going to the famous Easter Egg Hunt at Tom and Doris Granum's house.

Uneventful days are just what we want.

IHN Monday 3/29/2010

2010-03-30T02:00:00.000-04:00

Two photos, not of IHN but of our new Fellowship Hall, still under construction. I took these on Palm Sunday. I think the timber-framed arched trusses are striking.

[The photos are links; click them to see larger photos.]

The first night went smoothly, and everyone was delivered to the proper places in the morning. The families came back this evening to dinner furnished by Leita Cobb and Kitty Donnan. Clay is doing some carpentry at a restaurant, and he went to work after dinner because the restaurant would prefer not to have construction noise while filled with customers.

We had thought that another family would be joining us today, but that did not occur. It may happen tomorrow, or later in the week, or not at all. We just have to be flexible.

When I left the church after driving Clay to work, everyone was already in bed. It should be another quiet night.

IHN Sunday 3/28/2010

2010-03-29T01:00:00.000-04:00

Once again, our intrepid set-up crew converted the children's classrooms into guest bedrooms. Below are before and after shots of one of the rooms.

[The photos are links; click them to see larger photos.]

John Calvin (in the "before" photo) is now in seclusion behind the brown cabinet. With any luck, we'll remember to rescue him at the end of the week when we restore the rooms to their classroom use.
The beds belong to IHN and move from church to church each week. They are exactly like the roll-away beds that a hotel or motel would supply. They are a bit more comfortable than you might expect: IHN has recently purchased a new set of mattresses, and so each bed has one of the old mattresses under one of the new ones.

The beds, a set of large plastic bins with the guests' belongings, and some other furniture items are picked up from the church that's finishing its host week early on Sunday. Later that afternoon they are delivered to the next host church (that's us, today).

At the moment we have two families as our guests. One family is a mom and dad with a two-year-old daughter. The other is a mom with 4 1/2-year-old twin daughters and a 2 1/2-year old son. There's a strong possibility that we will have a third family with us before the week is out. As a result, we set up four rooms this time, three for the families and one for our overnight hosts. All of the classroom things are stored in Misse's storage room in the Children's Ministry Suite or in the "last resort" storage area underneath the church's front porch (you have to go through two sets of doors to get there).

Our guests and hosts joined First Presbyterian's youth group for dinner this evening, and will join the church as a whole for dinner on Thursday. On the other nights, dinner will be provided for the guests and hosts by some of our IHN volunteers.

Everyone was settled in when I left, and a quiet night is anticipated.

A good start to our host week. Stay tuned.

2006 Southwest GA Mini-Tour - 3/19/06

2006-03-19T15:09:00.000-05:00

Second Stop: Maranatha Baptist Church, Plains, GA

Arising early, most of the choir dined at the motel buffet for breakfast (with a few making their way to the Waffle House next door). Piling onto the bus after packing up the hotel rooms, we departed Americus and headed for Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, GA. When we got there, a line had already formed for people waiting to get in. After a bit of confusion about which door the Secret Service wanted us to use, the choir members eventually formed their own line at the front door. We received a variety of instructions even before entering the church: "Don't zip up your robes until you've gone through security"; "You may take books in but NOT books by President Carter"; "Once you go in, you cannot come back out"; "No pocket knives or knitting needles." Once we held our arms out for "the wand," we passed through the security checkpoint and were warmly greeted by pastor Jeff Summers.

The choir quickly got into place and ran through the morning's music - with Doris and Martha running through the planned solo for the first time! Though we expected a lot of down time after the rehearsal and before the Sunday school class began, everything moved very quickly. Following our abbreviated rehearsal, they opened the doors and started seating visitors. Two sections of the sanctuary were reserved for their own members, but the rest of the sanctuary filled quickly and they used their fellowship hall (equipped with a monitor) for overflow.
Miz Jan and Her Husband

"Miz" Jan Williams, who was our host for the morning, gave us detailed instructions on how we were to act, what we were to say (and not to say) and what we needed to do for pictures with the Carters after the service. Some examples of Jan's instructions:

* "When President Carter enters the room, no one is to applaud or stand, EXCEPT uniformed military personnel (as President Carter was their Commander in Chief)."
* "President Carter will ask, 'Are there any visitors this morning?' and you are to laugh as he thinks it's funny."
* "President Carter will ask what states are represented. Once a state has been mentioned, you don't need to mention it again. (And for those of you who don't know, Atlanta is NOT a state.)"
* "While going through the states, this is the only time you will be allowed to take photographs of President Carter. If you take a photo after this, your camera will be borrowed by an usher for the next two hours."
* "Then President Carter will recognize ministers and missionaries asking their denomination and residence."

President Carter Looks Over The Crowd

Once all the instructions were given (and there were a good many of them), they passed out the Sunday school curriculum (Uniform Lesson Plans), and before we knew it, President Carter and Mrs. Carter entered from opposite doors. President Carter took a quick look around without having heard the choir sing a note looked at us and said, "What a beautiful choir."

After the introductions, President Carter began the lesson and spoke about many thing including evolution, intelligent design, stem cell research, the psalms in general, and Psalm 139 (the focus of the lesson) in particular.

About halfway through the lesson, we learned (via a note from the Pastor) that the Carters needed to leave early and to accommodate the people who were expecting to have their picture taken, the service needed to be shortened, including the solo that Doris and Martha were planning. When the Sunday school class was over (at about 10:45am), we quickly made some adjustments to the upcoming worship service by shortening a lesson, moving a solo before the service, rearranging the order of worship and preparing to start a few minutes earlier than planned.

The choir began with the choral prelude: Mark Hayes' arrangement of Day by Day (Daniel Elder, soloist) and followed that wil Doris and Martha presenting the arrangement of Amazing Grace. We're not sure when, exactly, the Carters reentered the sanctuary, but it was President Carter who began the applause after Amazing Grace.

The service was less formal than ours and proceeded at a casual pace, but due to the time constraint, it kept moving. Our choir provided the three readers of the morning: Greg Price, Meg Granum and John Tsao. The choir also sang the offertory and the anthem. In fact, the title of the offertory is Offertory - a setting of Micah 6:6-8, which was the text President Carter used for his inaugural address. Then, for the anthem, the choir left their folders on their seats, stood and sang from memory: Gilbert Martin's exciting setting of Which I Survey the Wondrous Cross. It is a thrilling arrangement of what many hymnologists consider the finest hymn text in the English language. When the choir released the final "Amen," there was an audible positive reaction from the congregation.

Following the sermon, the pastor, Jeff Summers, surprised Tom by asking him to do the closing prayer. Tom (who will tell you that he's not an experienced extemporaneous leader of prayer and was a bit taken aback) made his way to the pulpit and blessed us all with a beautiful and heart-felt prayer.

Once the service was over, we packed up our music and made our way outside for a photo session with the Carters. We were encouraged to be the last group photographed with the Carters and the other sessions moved very quickly. After photos with the (non-robed) groupies (above) and with our choir (below), President Carter (who didn't have a lot of time for conversation) smiled and told us, "You are welcome to come back every Sunday."

Packing up our robes and loading up the buses, we did a quick drive around Plains (to the fenced "compound" where the Carters live and then out to see the "boyhood home" from the road), headed to Americus for a bit of lunch and returned to Athens (with an unintentional detour to Jackson, Georgia).

2006 Southwest GA Mini-Tour - 3/18/06

2006-03-18T14:57:00.000-05:00

First Stop: Buena Vista United Methodist Church, Buena Vista, GA

After arriving in Americus, the choir checked into the Ramada Inn, changed into performance attire, and was back on the bus 30 minutes later to head to Buena Vista United Methodist Church. We were welcomed by a poster by the street announcing the choir's program for the evening. After finding our seats and an extensive warm-up, the choir was treated to a delicious and bountiful meal provided by the congregation of our host church. Three, yes three, kinds of barbeque were offered, representing three of the best known proprietors of barbecue from Macon, Gray/Clinton, and Columbus, Georgia. Many Georgians have strong opinions about the best barbecue and similar discussions were held about the desserts too!

After dinner, the Chancel Choir presented an hour-long program to a very receptive congregation. The program, based on phrases from the Wesley hymn O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing, began with the hymn by that name and included anthems related to phrases from the hymn. Additionally, Doris Granum sang two solos, Tom Granum presented three organ selections, Kevin Johnson played euphonium on one piece, Daniel Elder sung a solo on another and special thanks to Martha Thomas for her accompaniment on the piano during the program.

Our program for the evening included the following:

* O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing, Congregational Hymn
* Gordon Young: Now Let Us All Praise God and Sing
* G. O. Pitoni: Cantate Domino
* Jane Marshall: None Other Lamb (Kevin Johnson, euphonium)
* Michael T. Smith: Lily of the Valley (Doris Granum, solo)
* Beverly Terrell: Amazing Grace (Doris Granum, solo)
* Roger Hoffman: Consider the Lilies of the Field
* K. Lee Scott: Write Your Blessed Name
* John Ness Beck: He Shall Feed His Flock
* Charles Gounod: Sanctus
* Attr. J. S. Bach: Little Prelude & Fugue in C (Tom Granum, organ solo)
* Thomas Arne: Flute Tune (Tom Granum, organ solo)
* C. S. Lang: Tuba Tune in D (Tom Granum, organ solo)
* Jane Marshall: My Eternal King
* John Rutter: For the Beauty of the Earth
* Mark Hayes: Day by Day (Daniel Elder, soloist)
* Gilbert Martin: When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

After the performance, the choir made it back to the Ramada Inn in Americus to rest up for the service morning.

2006 Southwest GA Mini-Tour

2006-03-17T15:18:00.000-05:00

First-Ever Overnight Tour!!

The Chancel Choir of First Presbyterian Church of Athens had its first-ever overnight tour Saturday-Sunday, March 18-19, 2006. With more than 30 choir members and about a half-dozen groupies, the entourage left Athens late Saturday morning and journeyed to southwest Georgia for meaningful performances in Buena Vista and Plains, Georgia. Everyone was excited about the 30-hour trip and it was certainly memorable for everyone involved.

Doris and Tom Granum played tour guide along the way and shared both meaningful and meaningless trivia about the area through which we traveled. Comments ranged from "Bill Arrington grew up two miles east of here (south Macon)" to "My favorite barbecue in the world is Fincher's BBQ -- just east of here. In fact, astronaut Sonny Carter took some Fincher's BBQ with him into space."

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 6/6/05

2005-06-06T13:01:00.000-04:00

Wow! What a trip! We're finally home and after a good night sleep in our own beds, the awesome experience is finally settling in. Everyone had a great time and are busy unpacking and doing laundry! Pictures will be posted as soon as they're all converted and uploaded to the server, so they should be available in the gallery somtime this week. We just thought we'd let everyone know that we made it home safe and sound. Thanks again for all your prayers, love and support while we've been gone. We couldn't have done it without you!

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 6/5/05

2005-06-05T13:55:00.000-04:00

Today will be a short one, since most of it was spent traveling. We did manage to see a bit more snow on the Rocky Mountains on our drive back to Denver because of all the rain, so the return trip was a bit more spectacular. The flight was similarly uneventful and nothing happened that the average airline traveler wouldn't experience (except for the cats), so all in all it was a quiet day of traveling.

The morning, however, was filled with the frenzy of packing and cleaning up and was followed by our musical leadership of the service at Glenwood Springs Presbyterian Church. We learned a new anthem the day before and performed it and the rest of our choral selections for the service. The congregation was greatful for our music and called it "a shot in the arm" for their church experience. They do not have a standing choir and it is rare when they have musical leadership such as ours, so they were energized by our singing. They even provided us with lunch afterward before sending us on our way. Thank you Glenwood Springs Presbyterian Church!

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 6/4/05

2005-06-04T14:00:00.000-04:00

The Colorado river was much more enjoyable today as we went biking through the Glenwood Canyon and cycled past the same stretch we rafted down yesterday. Without the rain, it was a far more pleasant (and much drier) trip and cycling keeps you a bit warmer than just sitting in the boat. We cycled a total of 17 miles and had a great time doing so.

This afternoon, we split into a number of different groups and explored Glenwood Springs in a variety of ways. Some of us enjoyed poking through some of the shops downtown, some found the bowling alley, some just relaxed at the hotel, and some of us went back to the caves and took the Adventure Tour.

Those of us on the tour spent 90 minutes crawling on our hands and knees and squeezing through places like the birth canal and the rabbit hole to see parts of the cave (like Angel Point, for example) that the commercial tour didn't cover. We have to thank Erin, our guide, for giving us such a great experience and for having an awesome sense of humor. The "Rocket Science of Elbow Pads" started us off on the right foot and we had an absolute blast the rest of the time! If she were one of the participants of the trip, that would have definitely been the quote of the day.

Tomorrow we have one more performance at Glenwood Springs Presbyterian Church and will be on our way home after that. Thanks again for following along!

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 6/3/05

2005-06-03T14:07:00.000-04:00

That water was cold! We had a great time going down the Colorado river, but it was a bit cold. The first half of the ride was a lot of fun and we enjoyed the Glenwood canyon and a bit of friendly water wars between the boats. Unfortunately, it decided to rain on us quite a bit during the second leg of the trip and the wind was blowing, so we were ready for some hot chocolate (thanks Terri and Peggy!) and a trip to the hot springs that afternoon.

Speaking of the springs, the 104-degree water in the hot pool was a great way to relax and get warm and even though the air temperature was a bit cool, the larger pool was still warm (92-degrees) and we enjoyed it. A number of us even braved the large water slides at the facility and had a great time. After that, we settled in for some pizza and some good fellowship before turning in for the night.

We have one more day of fun out here and a performance the next morning and then we'll be on our way home!

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 6/2/05

2005-06-02T14:09:00.000-04:00

We appreciate all of you who have been faithfully checking this website and tracking our progress on our tour. You have followed us as we work, now you get to follow us as we play!

We got off to an early start this morning and left Denver and drove three hours (with stops) to Glenwood Springs, Colorado! After checking in to our hotel and finding some lunch, our next stop was Glenwood Caverns and the Adventure Park there. After riding up a really long way on a pulse tram, we toured the caverns and saw some amazing cave features such as the castle, the sleeping dwarf, the lion's paw, and the dragon's eye. Other structures such as stalagmites, stalactites, flow stone and some of the longest soda straws in Colorado were fascinating to see as well.

After the tour, we explored the adventure park and rode some great rides. The Alpine Swing swung us out over a steep cliff, the Zip Line raced us across part of the park and the Alpine Coaster gave us the ultimate control over our roller coaster experience (it has brakes on the cars!). We were the first group to visit the park since the rides just opened over Memorial Day weekend.

We had a great time and enjoyed the afternoon tremendously. There's a lot of great stories to share from our experience here, but just reading the stories online won't do them justice, so you'll just have to wait to hear about them when we get home! Just be sure to ask about the swing...

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 6/1/05

2005-06-01T14:13:00.000-04:00

Another busy day for our mission tour! The paint crew put the finishing touches on Fellowship Hall and we even painted and covered a few bulletin boards to spruce them up a bit. Another crew went to Forrest Manor apartments (which is an affordable housing complex that's part of the Colorado Coalition for the homeless) to pick up trash and pull a few weeds. Once again, we were finished ahead of schedule and were off to prepare for our next event...

...which was a performance at the Senior Resource Center on 32nd street. The SRC is an adult day care center and there were about 30 or so people were waiting for our arrival. We performed our usual set of anthems and instrumental pieces and as usual they were well received. It is always a blessing to see smiles on the faces of our audience and hear their thanks and praise.

That evening, we returned to Montview Blvd Presbyterian Church and participated in their Taizé service. Carrie, Daniel, Jane, Joseph and Meg all performed solos during the service and everyone sang the refrains and psalms during the meditative service. A time of peace and reflection, the TaizÉ was a great opportunity for for us to worship the Lord.

Heading out to dinner, we stopped at Goodfriends restaurant and enjoyed some good food and good fellowship. We thought our mission work was over for the day, but one final performance awaited us. It turns out that one of our friendly waitresses was a voice major and is graduating this week and one of the other waitresses asked us if we could sing something. In addition, we figured that since we had an impromptu birthday at our table, we might want to give something back. We sang our arrangement of Psalm 139 ("Lord, you have searched me and known me...") and we drew a crowd. People came from the other areas of the restaurant to listen to us sing and we were met with a smile on every face. The young woman who was graduating was very pleased and she said it "made my night." It just proves that you really can do mission work anywhere and sometimes it's just doing something small to put a smile on someone else's face.

Assuming we don't have any more spontaneous mission work to do here in Denver, we're off to Glenwood Springs tomorrow for the remainder of our vacation. The people we have met, upon hearing our destination tomorrow, have all told us how much of a good time we're going to have and how jealous that they are that we're heading out there, so it sounds like it's going to be a blast. Also assuming we're not out having too much fun, we'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 5/31/05

2005-05-31T14:21:00.000-04:00

What an exhausting and rewarding day! John B. and his breakfast crew started us off with a great breakfast this morning. (Yes, they actually cooked...pancakes, sausage, etc.) Some of the gang stayed at the church this morning and spent the day painting their fellowship hall. A few gallons of paint later and the place looks a bit brighter and has a touch of color added to it.

The rest of us went to Mt. Saint Vincent Home for Children and spent the day working on a couple of landscaping projects they needed done. About 85% of their landscape work (and a significant portion of their other duties) are all done by volunteers from the community and people like us who are there for mission. After a quick introduction and a brief tour, we got to work.

Our main goal for the day was to distribute gravel around a playground for preschool-aged children. The gravel had been delivered in three major piles on the playground and needed to be spread out. The fifteen of us that were there were given shovels, rakes, gloves, bottled water, sunscreen and a wheelbarrow and we went to work moving the 21 cubic yards of gravel. For those of you who are interested, that equates to about 20 tons of rock. We were done before lunch, which was fantastic, and since we finished so quickly, they let us pull weeds on the grounds for the remainder of our time there that afternoon.

In the evening, we had the wonderful opportunity to serve a meal at the New Genesis Shelter which is a transitional community for homeless men. Expecting a crowd of about 90 people from the shelter, we prepared seven trays of lasagna and served it with bread, some carrots (and ranch dressing), and ice-cold lemonade. Everyone there was very appreciative of our efforts and those that served were really moved by the experience.

With all that work today, we felt we earned a few hours at the Wheat Ridge Recreational Facility and the hot tub and pool never felt better. (Just having a shower would have been reward enough, but nobody was complaining.) After all of that and the evening devotional, we wearily turned in for some much-needed rest in preparation for another day of mission work tomorrow.

As always, we appreciate your continued prayers and support!

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 5/30/05

2005-05-30T14:26:00.000-04:00

Happy Memorial Day everyone! Our hosts here at Highland Park Pres. were kind enough to fix us a french toast breakfast this morning and we were thankful for a great meal. As part of our mission efforts, we then spent much of the morning cleaning up their fellowship hall and giving their windows some much needed attention.

Later that morning, we were privileged to have Lucille Reilly come and share some of her music with us. For those of you who don't know, Lucille is one of the foremost Dulcimer experts in the country and it was obvious after listening to her play for us. We were blessed to be able to share some of our music with her as well and she even played along with us during our time together making for a fantastic experience.

After a quick deli sandwich lunch, we headed off to Montview Manor - a 13-story retirement community in the heart of Denver. There, we performed a collection of six anthems and four instrumental pieces for a good-sized crowd of very appreciative senior citizens. They sang along with some of our Psalms and we were all moved by the Holy Spirit during the performance.

We finished the afternoon with another performance of our music at the Highland Park Presbyterian Church which was preceded by an ice cream social and a small art demonstration. A lasagna dinner followed eventually and the day slowly came to a close. Stay tuned for more tomorrow as we work at the Mt. Saint Vincent Home for Children and the New Genesis Project!

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado - 5/31/05

2005-05-29T14:29:00.000-04:00

What a busy day! We started off early this morning with breakfast at the most technologically advanced McDonalds I have ever seen! They had kiosks where you could order your food, an ATM and a DVD rental machine right there in the store! We all ate a good breakfast (except Meg G., who preferred a pair of cookies over a sausage biscuit) and it turns out we needed it.

Our next stop, and first major performance was at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church where an absolutely gorgeous sanctuary waited for us and we filled it with some of the finest sounds we could collectively muster. Our choir sang four anthems and a couple of hymns to great effect and our instrumentalists performed with equal enthusiasm and quality. The people of Montview Blvd were very appreciative and it was a blessing for everyone involved to have the opportunity to provide musical leadership for their congregation.

After lunch (another adventure for another time), we headed for some much needed R&R at the Wheat Ridge Recreation Center. Fully equipped with two indoor, heated pools, a water slide, a sauna, a pair of racquetball courts and a full gym (to name a few things), this facility provided us with an excellent chance to relax and enjoy the fellowship with each other. Just about everyone went on the water slide (even Tom!) and everyone had a great time.

We ended the day with a spaghetti dinner cooked here at the Highland Park Presbyterian Church and closed the evening with a devotional centered around the experience of the disciples on the Emmaus road.

2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado

2005-05-28T14:34:00.000-04:00

A Message From The Director:

We're looking forward to a wonderful 2005 Youth Music Mission Tour to Colorado! We're combining worship/music, mission/outreach, spiritual growth and fun/fellowship. We invite you to join us on this mission tour through this web page.

For the music we'll be participating in several worship services (large and small churches, as well as a meditative Taizé service), and we will present musical programs for several senior-adult groups; additionally, we’ll have a session with an outstanding dulcimer player from Denver. Not only will the Celebration Singers be singing, we’ll also include instrumental music with the nine instrumentalists involved.

Our mission/outreach includes preparing meals for a men's homeless shelter, grounds work for a transitional housing development for the homeless, playground improvements for a home dealing with children who have emotional or developmental problems, and repairs and painting for a redevelopment church.

Fellowship is a natural outgrowth of all we’ll do during the week, but special emphasis on fun will be our time in Glenwood Springs: rafting, bicycling, rides, caverns, and the world's largest hot springs pool.

Throughout the entire trip, we focus on spiritual growth – recognizing the presence of God in our lives. One strand of scripture studies will focus on the passage from Matthew when the righteous ask the Lord when did they see the Lord in need and respond. The other series of studies focuses on the Emmaus Road experience of the disciples on Easter: so often, we don't recognize God in our lives and in our presence.

We invite you to keep this Mission Tour in your thoughts and prayers during the week May 28 through June 5 – praying for the safety, spiritual growth, musical and non-musical accomplishments and fun for the youth and adult leaders.

Tom Granum
Director of Music & Organist
First Presbyterian Church
Athens, Georgia