A Word from Pastor Nathan

Greetings from an undisclosed vacation location! I hope this Spire column finds each of you well, even in the midst of this most turbulent and troubling time. While I’m away, our online, virtual worship will continue. The Rev. Ron Dauphin will preach for theAlternative on Wednesday, October 28; the Rev. Steve Hammond will preach on All Saints Day (November 1); and, the Rev. Allen V. Harris will preach on November 8. Ahead of my vacation I met with each of these preachers to record their sermons. You are in for provocative, prophetic proclamation church, and I’m excited for you.

When editing the worship videos, my computer alerted me that space on my external drive, which holds our worship videos, was getting low. I needed to delete files. (News flash: I’m a total hoarder when it comes to deleting old files. Call me sentimental). When looking through old videos, I found clips of pre-pandemic worship. I clicked on one video and heard the congregation singing, “Here I Am, Lord.” I had to do a double take at my computer screen and listen carefully again to the audio. Of course, this was before we had the new 4K cameras and it was just a still iPhone shot of the pulpit, but it was YOU singing.

I have to tell you, church, hearing you sing was the sweetest sound. Honestly, hearing your voices was spiritually and emotionally moving for me. One of the things I miss most about our common worship is congregational singing. Unfortunately, singing is one of the most high-risk activities, and we’ll have to wait for a vaccine before it’s safe to sing in community again.

After listening to “Here I Am, Lord,” I clicked on other videos of former worship services and heard many favorite hymns of our faith. When I return from vacation, I’ll upload some to YouTube so you can hear, too. In the meantime, we still have an opportunity to sing during worship. Some have commented that the lyrics are more meaningful now than in years past. Others have said that they focus on the words and listen to the music. The most daring worshiper may attempt to harmonize! Ever how you worship, may the music and lyrics lead us to a more profound “ALLELUIA!” even in the midst of this turbulent and troubling time.