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It was such a beautiful experience at the Montreat Worship & Music Conference this year! Amy Bishop, Mark Lochstampfor, Laurie Bentley, Ed Jackson, Anne Marie Stirewalt, Suzanne and Hal Morrison, and I stayed in a lovely house up the mountain from the conference center. We had bear visitors twice at the house — but no harm done. Bears are just a part of life up there. As Bob Brearley put it, bears are “exciting, and they’ve never hurt anyone at Montreat.” Personally, I’m happy to keep my distance!
We enjoyed visiting with the Brearleys and with Nat Scott in his “pottery heaven” at the lake. You could still see some of the damage from the storm, but Montreat looked beautiful despite it all. During my travels, I also saw the storm damage along I-40 — it was striking to see the power of water and the ongoing repair work on the highway.
The theme for this year’s conference was “Clothed in Love”, based on Colossians 3:12, 14:
“As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”
We were surrounded by beautiful visuals, inspiring music, and powerful preaching. The 400+ member adult choir was led by Mark Lochstampfor’s former colleague at Capital University, Lynda Hasseler — it was truly moving. Suzanne and Hal played bells, Amy attended an organ master class with Tom Trenney (who has played for ICA at our church — think silent film!), Ed and Anne Marie played trumpet all day long, and Ed was even featured in a flugelhorn solo! I played viola in a few string quartets, sang in the adult choir, and took a class on children’s music. Laurie sang in the adult choir and took a liturgy class, and Mark also sang with the adult choir.
We also ate very well — each team in our group cooked dinner each night, and every meal was delicious. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to go, grow, and bring back ideas and inspiration to share with you at church.
This Sunday, I’ll be singing both the introit and the anthem. The introit is from our hymnal (#751), “From the Nets of Our Labor (We Will Rise Up and Follow),” and the anthem is “The Call” from Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs.
On July 20, Bud Longley and Ann Nermoe will play guitars and lead us in familiar church camp songs during worship — get ready to sing along!
I’m already looking forward to all of our music groups starting back this fall. If you’re interested in joining any of them, please let me know — I’d love to help you get involved!
With love and gratitude,
Rhonda
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