“Now in this section, I want to create, as the composer requests, una voce. I don’t want to hear any one voice sticking out. It should be as if all your voices were blended together and coming out of the same person.”
I loved it when my choir responded to my directions. Even the boldest voices curbed their vibrato and volume and worked towards that perfectly unified sound.
History shows us that tension will eventually boil over and the oppressed will fight back. It isn’t a matter of if, but when it will happen. Whether enslaved by Pharaoh, under repressive family or work environments, or impoverished conditions, at some point, the human spirit will rise demanding dignity, equality, and respect. In Egypt, the Jews cried out, Pharaoh didn’t listen; God did (Exodus 3:7). Across the globe, people are demanding social justice and protesting perceived governmental actions or inactions. These protests have mostly been peaceful and nonviolent, but some have turn
A woman meets Jesus by chance
There is an incident described in detail in John’s Gospel (Chapter 4: 4-43), where a weary Jesus meets a local Samaritan woman, when He sat down beside, what is known as, the “Jacob’s well” in Samaria. She is often identified as, “the woman at the well.”
All the news is draining the life out of us. Whether it’s COVID news or other news, it’s just depressing. I’ve heard from many that they are experiencing this sense of ennui, blah, etc. etc. etc. My question is “Do you wanna be happy?”
A friend on social media shared this story:
A while back I read a story of a visiting pastor who attended a men's breakfast in the middle of a rural farming area of the country.
The group had asked an older farmer, decked out in bib overalls, to say grace for the morning breakfast.
The historical surgery took place on February 15, 1921. Dr. Kane applied local anesthesia to his patient and cut through skin and tissues, found the infected appendix, removed it. The patient assured the medical team he experienced minimal pain and discomfort. The patient’s name? Dr. Evan Kane. The patient and the doctor were one in the same person.
The disciples failed to understand Jesus
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time
Why do we congregate at church, barbeques, or family gatherings? Why do people take issue with socially distancing and isolation? Psychologists warn us that separating ourselves from family, friends and even co-workers can have physical, psychological, and emotional effects. With self-isolation and quarantine becoming the new norm, it seems that we are losing the sense of community, the sense of belonging that previously united us. Psychologist Abraham Maslow calls this the “need for love and belonging.”
“Well you two certainly have acquired a beautiful tan on this cruise!”
We complimented a couple from Canada we had met onboard our ship during our trip to the Caribbean. It was mid-February, a time for people from the northern latitudes to escape the chill and snow and soak up every hour of sun they could manage.
“That’s been our major goal,” they assured us. “But we’ll soon be back to our usual winter pallor. When we exit the plane in Edmonton, there will be big circles of brown on the snow where our tans slide off.”
