Music and Fine Arts and more...

Ring Sing Play, Fine Arts Camp for children going into second grade through those going into sixth grade is Monday-Wednesday August 5-7 from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. We will play chimes, drums, Orff instruments, we will sing and pray, fellowship and fun. This is a great way to learn music and arts, and to increase our love of the Lord. The forms will be available on the Welcome Center table this summer.

During August we will have several Fine Arts events. The first will be Tuesday evening August 6 at 7:00 p.m. It will be an evening of Vickie Al-Dubais and Sherri Waters with Musical Theater pieces, and of course, sacred pieces as well. There will be other events later in the month, so watch for those announcements.

Betty Miller and Charlotte Bedford will lead a watercolor workshop in August. Watch for the times on this event.

Our Chancel Choir will take our summer vacation July 8-August 4. We will resume rehearsals August 7 with a covered dish meal and lots of singing. Meat and bread will be provided. We not only have great singers, we have great cooks as well.

    

Profound thanks for the many expressions of prayerful support during my medical problems. The exhausting symptoms have interrupted my normal activities and are preventing me from teaching Sunday School, have me strugglimg to keep the Texarkana Writers Workshop going but most of all, I am unable to be part of the choir.

There are several things that reach into our innermost beings: a magnificent scene, a great Bible passage, shared worship and prayer with other believers. But from the time when I was in Sunday School, what moved me the most to respond to worship was the music.

I always loved to sing and I remember inventing words to our Sunday School music before I could read. I sang all the pop music when I was a teen. Then, in 1955, I was out on my own in Dallas attending First Methodist Church. To get assimilated, I decided to go to choir practice. Glen Johnson, the music director and the choir members welcomed me. I found a home with the basses.

What a rich, revealing experience. Sharing in creating worshipful music to glorify God and open our hearts lifted me to a new spiritual level. I was hooked on being part of the choir. And have loved every minute of it for 58 years. During those years I’ve had the privilege of forming a Christian Gospel singing group, producing a local access TV program and served as choir director for four years. But the beauty and power of the voices in harmony will always be my first love. I pray that I will soon be able to return.

    

The 2013 Vacation Bible School theme – The Everywhere Fun Fair! 

We need volunteers like you to help put this event on for the kids. Below is a volunteer form that you can click on to open in a separate window to print, fill out, and turn in! You can turn your form in to the front desk, the Welcome Center, to Sue Camp or leave it in the offering plate on Sunday.

This is going to be a fun VBS and we hope you can be a part of it in any way you can!

    

Summer is here and you’re home with nothing to do. Come to Open Arms events! Throughout the summer we will be having get-togethers for lunch, movies, Sunday School, and day trips. Be sure to “Like” the Williams College and Young Adults page on Facebook to keep up to date with all that will be going on over summer break.

Summer is a great way to reconnect with friends and make some new ones. It’s also the perfect time to reconnect with God and strengthen your relationship with Him without the distractions of school and work. So come join Open Arms for a fantastic summer of fellowship and new experiences. It’s sure to be a good one!

Our first summer event will be a Welcome Summer Pool Party! Date and time to be announced.