If you’ve been around me at all recently, you know how excited I am to work with our incoming music director, or as I’ve been referring to the position “lead musician for organ, piano and choirs.”
I’ve been stubborn about the terminology because it expresses my hopes for Catherine’s work among us: not merely that she will direct, build or refurbish Joy’s music programming, but rather that she will use her many gifts to lead us in worship and song together.
I’ve taken over the hymn picking for Sundays over the last few months and will continue to do so until she settles in. So anything about our music selections the last few months has been my fault, as will some new explorations and experiments in the weeks and months ahead. All have and will continue to be well within the framework of how Joy has always worshiped together.
Few of you are probably aware that the ELCA released a new hymnal supplement in late 2020, All Creation Sings. We don’t have any immediate plans to buy copies to sit in the pew racks next to our current red hymnals. But we’ll start really digging into its offerings now.
With a new musician will come other changes, some subtle and some not. Catherine will be leading with her powerful voice as well as the keys, which will be new for us. She’s been playing in Lutheran congregations for many years but was not raised among Lutherans and so she’ll bring a different sensibility to worship. I believe it will be refreshing!
Above all, Joy’s worship and music will continue to be expressed with excellence and to the glory of God, as long expressed in Joy’s core values.
I pray for and very much expect renewed energy, vitality and excitement in Joy’s music. And we’ll receive it as yet another gracious gift of God, freely given, and better than we would’ve looked for on our own.
Pastor Jon
