I used to never think I'd want to sing in a choir, until I heard the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir sing....and then my whole view of a choir changed. Their music inspires me beyond belief; I could listen to it over and over. It's the kind of music that either makes you want to stand up and shout and clap and dance, or it brings you to your knees.
Since we have started going to Ridgecrest Baptist, I decided to join the choir.
The first time I heard them, their music had the same effect on my soul. It just refreshed my soul; there's no other way to explain it. So, off I went to join up, and boy, am I ever glad that I did. It's a ministry, that as a busy mama, I can do and not take a whole lot of time away from my main ministry right now, my family. It refreshes my soul to go and sing and practice and get to know my fellow choir members, and believe me, there are a lot of them to get to know!:) The picture above is only part of them. I couldn't get the whole choir in my picture because I hurriedly stood up during practice to take the picture, and everyone was staring at me (probably thinking I was the enthusiastic newbie, which I am!). On Sunday when I sang with them for the first time during the worship services, it was like I was on a "God high." There's just no other way to explain it.....I could not wait for the next service to go back and do it all over again.:) I'm looking forward to the music ministry retreat this Saturday....I love music, and I love the choir!:)
What do you love? Join in on Things I Love Thursday over at Diaper Diaries.
I saw this on Facebook tonight, and I wanted to share, since this is the first song that I heard Paige sing last summer at Brooklyn Tab. God is doing and is going to continue to do great things through Paige's life and voice....enjoy!
If you've ever travelled down towards the bottom of my blog, you've probably noticed the sampling of Paige Strackman's latest cd, which is just amazing and inspiring to listen to. Paige wanted me to share this on my blog or through email, so enjoy the following!:)
Proceeds from Paige Strackman's Gospel CD
"Who Can Compare To You?" have helped purchase
ALMOST 2,000 POUNDS OF FOOD for children in Haiti since its release!
To CELEBRATE, here is a free download for one of the most popular songs from the CD to say
THANK YOU for your support!
To get your FREE download go to:
http://www.volummonster.co
Enter code: Paige
*Please feel free to forward to friends*
www.paigestrackman.com
__________________________
Usually, I'm not a huge fan of in-your-face, action movies, but this one was different for me. I wasn't sure how I would like it, but after seeing it, it's raised a whole new awareness of something that I knew existed, but I chose to push it to the back of my mind before. It's something none of us can even imagine, but it's something that we need to stand up and deal with; we need to take action! Taken was a movie basically about the human trafficking of young women. Liam Neeson, who is the perfect fit for this part, plays the father, who had done intelligence/security work in the past but was now trying to retire. It ends up that his daughter is taken, wherein he gives the phone threat that every man (even women) would want to give if their daughter/son was taken....truly a phone call not to be forgotten. It turns out that he has a 96 hour window in which to find his daughter and rescue her, or he may never see her again. She has been kidnapped to be sold as a prostitute, where they first get the girls addicted to drugs, so they are dependent on their captors.
Truly, this movie spoke to me. I found myself getting angrier and angrier as it went on, knowing that this stuff does exist, and it is happening at this very moment. What are we doing about it? This is the first movie that I actually wanted to see the bad guys dead, literally dead, because it angered me so much that a fellow human (who might also be a father themselves and have a young daughter at home; or who might be a person in authority, deemed to be respectable) could take a young woman, who had a life, who had a family that probably loved her very much, who had a promise of a bright future, and just turn that young woman into a slave, as if she were a dog and to parade her and sell her as if she were a commodity. It made me just livid with anger, and it's something I feel so passionately about.
If you haven't seen Taken, I encourage you to see it, of course, without your kids. It's really not suitable for children. If not because I said so, watch it for your kids; watch it for all of those kids/teenagers/young adults out there who are right now being forced to live a life of slavery. We think this would never happen to our own, but in fact, if we don't stand up and do something, it could be at our very doorstep before we know it.
I've always had a passion for reaching out to women/young women, and I plan on turning that passion into action by really researching this issue more and possibly getting involved in something....not sure what yet, but I will be posting about this, as I have found a new passion for this subject, a subject we can't afford to ignore and push to the backs of our minds any longer.
Wow! I am almost speechless. When we first sat down to watch this movie, I wasn't sure what to expect....I was almost afraid of it and what it would contain. First of all, I only remember one curse word throughout the whole movie; of course, I was completely mesmerized by it, so I may have been so engrossed that I might have missed others, but I really don't think so. There was one "adult" scene throughout the whole movie (along with an innuendo or two), which is super easy to fast forward through. With that said, you have to see this movie....no ifs, ands, or buts about it. With both Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, this movie had all the right pieces to make an epic. It is full of suspense, thrills, comedy, and even romance. In the beginning, it held some comedy, so I wasn't sure what to think; it almost had a sort of Vaudeville feel, but as it went on, it just got better and better. My heart absolutely got caught up with little Nala. As a mother and as a fellow human being, my heart just broke for him, and I just wanted to reach into the television screen and take him under my wing. Right about the time you think the movie ends, it begins a whole new dramatic story, with the Japanese threat to Australia during World War 2. I will not give the end away, but I was practically almost in tears, because this is the one movie that I have watched recently, that I felt ended so appropriately; it was very emotional....it was an epic. So, go to Redbox, or get on Netflix, and watch this movie with your husbands; plan a date night....you won't regret it!:)
Australia, starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman
If you want to see an excellent movie, then you have to see Miss Potter. If you are a fan of Jane Austen movies, or even the Anne movies.....then you will most likely love this movie. It's about the life of Beatrix Potter. I never realized how hard it was for her to publish her books, being a single lady in Victorian times. She persevered, though, and her books became some of the best known children's stories of all time. I think I had a picture in my head of Beatrix Potter (just from the stories I had read as a child), and what I pictured was far from the person she actually was. I also never knew that she was such a conservationist and preservationist. One thing I loved was that your kids can watch this movie with you; it's a good, clean, wholesome movie, which also involves a most beautiful love story. In fact, I've protected it on our DVR because it's one that I could honestly watch over and over. It is set in England, so it has some of the most beautiful scenery, truly breathtaking. I think that my dream home would have to be her HillTop Farm.....you'll just have to watch it for yourself....enjoy!
Wow, I haven't been on in a while, and I'm sorry for that, but we've been in Ohio; we are visiting some really good friends from college and kind of getting to know the area a little. We are headed home tomorrow, though, so hopefully, I can get back on track with my blog. I'll have more news to come, but for now, I don't want to say too much.
Anyway, we all watched the movie Fireproof tonight, and I know you've probably all seen it. I've heard so much about this movie, and people have told me I need to see it, that it will change people's lives, more than one or two people. But I have to tell you; while it was a good movie (don't get me wrong there), I am a little disappointed in the way that they portrayed the couple having marital problems. The married couple in this movie were not saved, and while unsaved people do have issues in their lives like this, Christian people do too. Christian people actually comprise many divorces when it comes to statistics and rates. I kind of wish they had made this movie about actual Christian people who were struggling, because it seems that a lot of the Christian movies that are being made now are leading unsaved people to believe that if they accept Jesus and become a Christian, everything is going to be hunky dory. Everything will make a complete turnaround, and that's just not true. When you decide to follow Jesus, things can actually become a lot more difficult because Satan is going to try to wedge problems in wherever he can. Portrayals like this can also lead some Christian people, who are still weak in their faith and still newborn Christians, to become discouraged thinking, "Well, if I'm having this much of a problem, am I really saved?" As Christians, we are still going to sin, no matter what. It's not going to be all rainbows and butterflies.
So, while I did like the movie, I really think that, along with our friends, Nancy and Aaron who we discussed it with after watching tonight, we need to guard against using movies like this to draw unsaved people in. Yes, life is so good with God, and without Him we are truly nothing; but it's not going to be easy; the Christian life is a journey that we have to walk every day with Him, constantly guarding against the Devil's attacks.
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