Here where I live, Spring is starting to, well, spring! I was out on a bike ride this weekend when I snapped this picture of a tree that once was “dead” that is now blooming again. This is a rite of passage that we see about this time of the year every year. Soon, lots of plants will be blooming, and here in North Texas, we will be cursing the pollen and the other things in the air that will inevitably make us sneeze. But it is an easy time to overlook the beauty of nature as it comes out of its winter slumber and awakens to another year of growth and vibrancy. What was once dead is now alive again - all around us this time of year. I have an almost visceral reaction to the flowering bushes and trees and plants. This isn’t just the story of year another spring coming - it’s my story. Too many people seem to equate Christianity as a set of rules by which we must obey and follow, or else there is a divine god ready to smite us with lightning bolts. Nothing could be further from the ...
Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring Weddings are very special days! The joy, the laughter, the pictures, the bride in her dress, the music, the cake - these are all things that we think about when we get to go and attend someone’s wedding. While each wedding is as special and unique as the bride herself, there are many elements of the wedding that have become so common place that they fade into the background at times. One of them is the music. It’s just expected that certain things get played, including the “Bridal Chorus” by Wagner, the “Pachelbel Cannon” by Pachelbel, one of Vivaldi’s pieces, or “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” by Bach. I promise you, even if you do not recognize these pieces by their names, a quick google search will reveal that you most definitely know these pieces. So well, in fact, that they often fade into the background, as good music is intended to do - more to be felt than heard. I am actually playing “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” in a wedding today, and will ...