Music at St Paul

 Advent is Here! This Sunday, Dec. 3rd begins the season of Advent - the 4 weeks before Christmas.  This first week of Advent the Choirs bring "Keep Your Lamps!" by composer Dr. Andre Thomas. A lively tune, it reminds us to keep awake and be prepared for the coming of Christ - in the long run, and in each day of our lives.  During Advent this year we will have 3 Wednesdays with Advent Suppers at 5:30 pm and Holden Evening Prayer at 6:30 pm with short Reflections by Pastor Jeff. Mallory Berley will bring her beautiful talents on flute to the service on Dec. 6th, and Alea Atkinson will bring her beautiful talents on Violin to the services on Dec. 13th and Dec. 20th. These short services help us take a pause during this hectic time of year - to connect with God, and with ourselves. A beautiful service, Holden Evening Prayer normally lasts about 30 minutes and we welcome everyone to attend this unique service. On Sunday Dec. 10th, we welcome Donna Derrick to our 9:45 service for

 Hush! Somebody's Callin' My Name! This Spiritual speaks to all of us as we consider the times and situations we live in. For God is always calling us, and so are his people. And even when we often don't heed the calls that will brinig us closer to God, the people we love, and the life we want - in His mercy, God continues to call us through the life, suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, his only Son. My hope is that today's music reflects that! This music for the 8:30 and 11:00 Choirs on October 15th is an arrangement written by Brazeal W. Dennard, and it features the "sh" on the end of the word "Hush" - you will want to listen for it. One of the phrases in this spiritual was originally "I'm so glad I found my freedom in time" - and that has been replaced with "I'm so glad I found my religion in time" - so as we sing this, think of your/our faith - our relationship with Christ, as freedom. And yes! Most defi

 It's October!  Thanks to all who attended our first Celebration Concert on Sunday, Sept. 24th. You helped us kick off our year of celebration and there will be more concerts to come. The next one is Friday, November 3rd - more information on that will be available soon. This week, our 8:30 and 11:00 Choirs are singing "I Am His Child" - as we celebrate Consecration Sunday, a day when we turn in our Estimate of Giving cards - a time to discern how each of us can support mission and ministry at and through St Paul Lutheran Church. And this includes music and worship as well. This Moses Hogan anthem reminds us that we are children of God, and how thankful we are for that.  At 9:45 worship, Justin Hadden will lead us in an opening song of celebration - "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High" - where we remember that God suffered, died, was resurrected and ascended for us in Jesus Christ - truly human and truly God at the same time. Music has a way of describing that, and

 Fall is here! My favorite time of year - when you can feel the temperatures begin to go down, and even here in the South, there is a cool breeze from time to time! This year, we are celebrating 25 years with our Casavant Pipe Organ, Opus 3728. And we are including a Concert Series featuring the organ in a variety of ways throughout the year. Our first concert is this Sunday, Sept. 24th at 3:30 pm with Barb and Roger Rollins on Brass. I hope you can make that, it will be a lot of fun! The choirs are singing an old traditional anthem this week - All Things Bright and Beautiful - as we notice the beauty of the world around us at this time of year, we thank God the Creator for all that we see. Our music lifts that up this week.  8:30 will have some lovely piano for our communion, calling on the Holy Spirit; 9:45 begins with a song that speaks of our creator - the God of Wonders, with Justin Hadden; and 11:00 will feature an instrumental version of Faure's Agnus Dei - Lamb of God. Ther

Following Jesus - our Musical Journey This week, we hear about the passion prediction and when Peter gets off track, Jesus sets him straight. How often do we get off track? Everyone does - and so this week the music chosen brings us to focus on Christ, and how we follow Christ, seek Christ, and acknowledge the ties that bless our lives through our relationship with Christ. In 8:30 and 11:00 worship - our Handbell Quartet starts us off with "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" and they add to our Holy Communion with settings of Tallis' Canon and the familiar hymn "Blest Be the Tie that Binds" which the congregation will also sing, along with the Hymn of the Day - "Will You Come and Follow Me". The Choir sings a simple but lovely favorite - "Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God" for this Labor Day Weekend. A gentle reminder of our seeking that happens in our relationship with the Divine in our every day living. A 9:45 - we begin with a hymn of praise

 God of Grace and God of Glory!  What a wonderful Hymn of the Day to sing this weekend at our 8:30 and 11:00 worship services! And we will sing a contemporary hymn titled "God of Wonders" at 9:45 worship. Both of these pieces of worship music bring to life again how blessed we are to have a God who created the wonders of creation, the universe, the stars and our world - as well as humanity and all life!  This God does stretch beyond our galaxy and yet, we find comfort in the familiar songs and hymns that remind us of God's love and mercy. If you can't worship on site, I hope this week you will watch one of our 3 services online - 9:45 with Donna leading "God of Wonders" or the 8:30 or 11:00 Services - where each Choir brings a simple, yet lovely version of "Dona Nobis Pacem" to the offertory time, with a light accompaniment that brings out the sparkle in the translation - Grant Us Your Peace.  "God of Wonders" is written  Steve Hindalong