10.08.2010

I Lah-ahve to Sing

Women's Chorus is such a blessing.  

It's the fastest hour of my day and a break from the rigors of school and life in general.

It's an emotional high, and definitely a growing experience.



Here's one experience that makes me love this class even more:

A few days ago, we were preparing for a performance.  The song we were working on is called Psalm 100.  The lyrics begin like this, "Make a joyful noise to the Lord.  Serve the Lord with gladness.  Come into his presence with singing, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia."  This is a song of joy, and of praise.  It sounds wonderful when we sing it as we bare our testimonies, but we had practiced it so frequently, and spent so much time on the technicalities, that we were forgetting to feel the spirit of the song.

So Sister Applonie, our conductor, set up 15 chairs in the front, facing away from the choir.  She then said, "I need 15 brave girls who are having a hard time, or are experiencing heartache, or who just feel like they can't do it all any longer, to come up and sit in these chairs."

It surprised me that 15 volunteers stood up so quickly, and it surprised me even more that they were girls who were outgoing and seemingly happy.  I never could have guessed that they were the 15 who needed to be uplifted the most.

Then Sister Applonie had all of the girls on the third row (my row) come to the front and face the girls in the chairs.  It was our duty to help them feel joy. 

As soon as we started singing, the Spirit overwhelmed the atmosphere of that room.  Those 15 struggling girls started to cry and we who were trying to lift them put more of our hearts into the music, resulting in most of us crying too.  Then the whole choir joined us and I have never felt such sincere joy and gratitude when I've sung before.  It was glorious.

2 comments:

frizzles16 said...

Amen. My favorite outlet in life I think and the easiest way to bear my testimony.

Tegan said...

That is such a touching story. I find that it is often the most outgoing and seemingly happy girls that need to be uplifted because they spend so much time uplifting others, or at least trying to.