Dear Friends,
Having watched Michael Jordan’s “The Last Dance” series a few weeks ago, I couldn’t help but compare it to the situation facing many of us as musicians serving in a church setting. Is it possible we shared our “last dance” when we were required to “shelter in place” last March? It feels a bit like that as we consider giving up many musical freedoms that have been ours for generations.
Some of our churches are talking of opening once again. Germany is allowing churches to reopen, but “not to sing”. After hearing this, a friend commented, “Watching at home versus joining my voice with hundreds of others is like the difference between looking at an amazing picture of a bonfire and sitting next to one.
Yet, I watch your resilience. I have seen some pretty amazing virtual adaptations of a worship service, many of them by members of our AGO chapter. It seems the consensus is that you are working harder than ever to create a meaningful and enjoyable worship experience for your congregation. Judging by the video clips some of you shared in last month’s Overtones, it is working. So press on.
Michael Jordan reflected back on his amazing career telling the interviewer: “My best skill was that I was teachable. I was a sponge and was aggressive to learn new things.” May our efforts to learn new things during this unprecedented season be as successful as Michael Jordan’s.
I’ll end with a few quotes I think are worth requoting.
“How you respond to an interruption is who you actually are.” C.S. Lewis
“Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are Easter people and Hallelujah is our song.” Pope John Paul II
“The heavens declare the glory of God. The skies proclaim the work of his hands.” King David in Psalm 19
(Thankfully, worship goes on regardless of a world pandemic)
Warmly,
Judy Kohl
Dean