Monday, June 17, 2013

Soli Deo Gloria

Last Sunday I had the privilege of playing in a special concert with my church orchestra. In the process, I got to see the new Worship Center up close and from different angles than I can from the congregation.

Here are some pics.


Worship Center Platform.  See the wall lights on the right of the picture?  There are apparently hundreds of color combos.  I have to tell you I wasn't a fan of the orange.  Made it very hard to see the music.

My spot! :)


Ceiling - doesn't it kind of look like a spaceship?  It makes very neat shapes and patterns when the lights bounce off of it.


Walls on the side of the platform.  From the congregation (especially my seat in the balcony) - I certainly couldn't tell these were carved wood-very intricate and beautiful!


New organ - the pipes are installed throughout the worship center and it sounds amazing.

From the sound of it, I had no idea our new grand piano was digital.  It sound just like an old-fashioned (I don't know what the proper term is?) "regular" one.
My view.  Our conductor, Eddie Fargason, has been with the church for over 30 years.  He writes and arranges music for us and is such a godly, faithful servant.  It was great to sit under his directorship again.


Baptistery up close. Above the stained class on the left underneath the screen looking thing is a place for family to come up and stand to watch and support the one getting baptized.  We've had several baptisms already.  Obviously very pretty, but more importantly, what church is all about - having people hear the truth of God's Word, God's Holy Spirit convicting them of their sin, and them responding to God in repentance and accepting His salvation-then following Him in obedience in baptism.

I also got to take some pictures of the kids' area.  It's called "Kids Town".  Partially designed by a former Disney Imagineer.





It was a great weekend worshipping the Lord through playing my oboe.  It was so fun to step back into that part of my life - which many years ago used to define me.  This instrument in and of itself has a story of redemption. 



A few years after I moved to Dallas, I got in a couple car accidents and needed extended physical therapy on my neck (5 months).  While I had some insurance, my co-pay amount was very high.  I was working and going to school and had no savings.  In order to pay the physical therapy bill, I was faced with having to sell the only thing of value I had (other than my car, which I needed for work) - my oboe.  I sent it off to the dealer I had purchased it from in CA to sell it on consignment.

Our Pastor's wife at the time found out about this.  The Lord used her and our Pastoral Care ministry to literally redeem my oboe from the dealer and place it back in my hands.  The church paid for my physical therapy so that I could keep my oboe!

Every time I see my instrument, and especially when I play it, I am reminded of God's redemption of my soul.  He purchased me from the slave market of my sin with His precious Son's life.  I am also reminded of the beautiful story (my 2nd favorite in the Bible) - of Ruth and her kinsman redeemer Boaz - and how the Lord is MY Kinsman Redeemer.

Each of us that are believers has at least one redemption story to tell.  My oboe and I have an additional one.  So when I get the chance to play it now, it's special not only because I don't get to do it very often due to the fibromyalgia, but because I almost didn't have an instrument to play.  I'm so very thankful.  Soli Deo Gloria.