Never thought I'd make it here...

Years ago, maybe around age 12, a women's choir came to our church. I still remember it pretty well! I was in awe of these young women. They sang so beautifully, played hand bells, were wearing beautiful dresses and seemed so old and grown up. Despite my shyness, I got up the courage to talk to the accompanist; I'm pretty sure her name was Anabelle. My parents volunteered to host two of the girls in our home, and I was happy to give up my bed to, oh my goodness, college girls! :D That experience obviously made an impression on me. This memory recently came to my mind again.

Being a music major at Moody, I had to be in a musical ensemble, so I auditioned for everything but Men's Choir. My Symphonic Band audition for piano went better than I could have hoped. I was complimented on my technique, interpretation, and sight reading skills. My chorale audition, though shaky, obviously went well because I was going to be accepted! But when I went to call-backs, I declined. Now, Chorale had been my first choice unless I got into Symphonic Band. It turned out that I did get into the band, but neither that or Chorale felt right. My Women's Choir audition changed my mind. It was the last one I went to and when I arrived, they were about 30 minutes behind schedule. I spent the time in the hallway talking to WCC members and other freshman girls. I started to get this inexplicable feeling that the Women's Choir was the right choice. I prayed and prayed and when I finally went in, I felt even more sure. The conductor, Dr. Xiangtang Hong, is one of the most animated, hilarious people I've ever met. The audition was so relaxed. Dr. Hong took five at a time, and there were WCC members in the studio with us. Dr. Hong amazed me. I remember her saying, "Now, I'm not going to judge whether you are 'bad' or 'good' singers. I am listening to the color of your voice and determining how I can fit you into our choir to blend your color with all the others." Meeting her and the girls in the choir convinced me that this was the right choice.

Today was picture day for all the musical ensembles here at Moody. I'm in Women's Concert Choir and my roommate, Jamie, is in Chorale, so at 2:15 this afternoon we both started getting ready. A bunch of curls, hairspray, bobby pins, foundation, powder, blush, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, lipstick, and two concert dresses later...we were all ready! I was so excited to be all dressed up. And then I remembered: those girls I admired so much years ago were where I am now. The Moody Bible Institute Women's Concert Choir and Bell Ensemble came to my church, and I never would have dreamed that about 6 years later, I would be on that stage in a black concert dress singing and ringing my heart out for Jesus.

This year, our tour destinations include Iowa, the Pacific Northwest, British Columbia and...ISRAEL! If you would like to make any size contribution to our 2011 Summer Ministry Tour to Israel, please get in contact with me!

His and Yours,

Rebekah