Our church congregation has a tradition of once a year, spending a little over an hour, singing church hymns. Usually this hour is used for hymns, partaking of the sacrament and talks given by prechosen people that are members of the congregation. But once a year, in the place of talks, people in the congregation are invited to come up to the podium and choose a hymn to sing that has special meaning to them. There were some touching memories of hymns shared and the entire congregation got into the singing.
Chance and his brother decided at one point that they also had a hymn they would like to sing. They each had different hymns they wanted to sing so they came to me and asked if they could walk up and share the hymns they had chosen. Chance showed me the song he wanted to sing and so did his brother. I decided there was no reason that they should not share their favorite hynns, so they walked up to the front of the room.
This was quite a brave thing to do as we were a bit late and were seated at the very back. I was impressed that Chance felt confident to get up in front of 300-plus people and talk into the microphone unscripted.
Chance went first and stood up confidently at the micrphone and announced that he would like to sing, "I Am A Child of God," on page 301. As he sat down, he looked in a kind of wonder as the entire congregation opened their hymnals and began to sing the song he had suggested. It was touching to see Chance and his brother on the stand, confident enough to express themselves in front of such a big group of people. I was delighted that Chance was willing to get up and talk to so many people, full of confidence. And yes, Chance, You are a child of God, who has blessed you very much.
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