Saturday night was another Evening Recital. There was a flurry of activity before the recital actually started (forgotten music, a missing performer), but we started the program basically on time.
I opened with a few announcements and a devotional:
It’s February in Kandern, and that means dark, dreary days. The snow was exciting when it came last December, but by now most people are tired of it. The fog, mist, rain, snow, cold, and dark days drag on. It feels like we never get to see the light of the sun.
This seemingly never-ending darkness reminds me of Israel’s darkness in waiting for the Messiah to come. In the midst of the injustice of a falling kingdom, Isaiah says,
“Justice is far from us,and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold, darkness; and for brightness, but we walk in gloom. We stumble at noon as in the twilight, among those in full vigor we are like dead men.” (Is. 59:9-10)
But Isaiah gave reason for hope, because a Light was coming.
“A Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the LORD. (Is. 59:20)
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” (Is. 60:1-3)
And we know that the Light came – Jesus. In John 1 it says,
“In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:4).
We have this Light living with and in us, overcoming the darkness of the world and the darkness of our struggles and trials. We can celebrate and remind ourselves of His presence through music. Any time something joyful happened, Isaiah called for music! For instance, in chapter 38, he said,
“The LORD will save me, and we will play my music on stringed instruments all the days of our lives at the house of the LORD.” (Is. 38:20)
Every day – Isaiah wanted music every day! As you listen to the music that these students have been practicing every day (or almost every day), let it be a reminder of the beauty of the Light, and the brightness of God’s presence in your life.
Those are some good tidings!
That last phrase transitioned nicely to the first performer, who sang an excerpt from Handel’s Messiah (I filled in last-minute on the cello part):
Several other performances also seemed to fit with the theme of “light.”
Check out bfavideos on YouTube to see even more performances from the recital! Many thanks to Hans Fung for videotaping.
The last piece was Mozart’s variations on Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. I closed out the evening with a few more words:
Let’s give another round of applause to these students!
Thank you for coming and enjoying the joyful music. There are several more opportunities to hear quality music this semester, but for now I’d like to highlight the next major musical event: Music Festival. Starting a week from Monday, our students will be performing solos for adjudicators, who will select outstanding performances to play or sing in the Honors Recital on Thursday night. So come back here a week from Thursday to hear high-quality music!
Music helps us celebrate not only what we already have, but also what we do not have yet! We can look forward to the time when…
“The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.” (Is. 60:19-20)
Thank you for coming; feel free to enjoy tea and coffee in the lobby.
