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On the last day of Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) orientation, we are sent off to be commissioned at churches in the area. Several churches in the area agree to host small groups of YAVs for worship where we are commissioned for our year of service, followed by a meal and conversations. We as YAVs come as we are, bringing our whole selves, exhausted from the past week of orientation to a table of strangers, to share our intentions for our year of service and what we have already begun learning during the first week.
After teaching about Wisdom literature found in the Book of Proverbs the previous day, Dr. William Brown turned to the Book of Job the next afternoon during an Adult Bible Study class at the Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ Worship & Music Conference held at Montreat Conference Center.
Worship during the Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ Worship & Music Conference held at Montreat Conference Center continued with its pattern of seamless and beautiful liturgy and quality musicianship, the latter provided by Dr. Tony McNeill on piano and Eric Wall on organ.
Wisdom, as found in the biblical books of Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes — and in other places too — is all about the human condition, Creation and nature, moral character, navigating life and experience.
With a nod to the rain that pounded Montreat Conference Center since the start of the recent Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ Music & Worship Conference, those gathered to worship opened the service by singing “There Shall be Showers of Blessing” and “Rain Down.”
I served as a Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) through the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in South Korea from 2016–17. During my time there, one of the major eye-opening revelations was learning about the role of the United States during the Korean War and in maintaining the current North-South divide on the Korean Peninsula. No one taught me about this in my history classes.
Moving on from Creation to the Torah, Dr. William Brown recently made the case that the current struggle to determine what’s concrete in, say, the interpretation of laws under the U.S. Constitution was vexing for folks in Old Testament times as well.
In the middle of the chaotic summer of 2020, I find myself one early Saturday morning at the recently opened pool that we use in the summer. Perhaps due to my vocation (youth ministry), I really enjoy and learn from observing and listening to young people.
There’s something about holding a pilsner glass full of one’s favorite beer and singing praises to God with more than 100 fellow conference-goers singing right along.
Children; brass, rhythm and string instruments; and communion all found their way into worship at the Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ Worship & Music Conference.
