Sing His Praises!

Hallelujah!  O my soul, praise God!

All my life long I'll praise God,

singing songs to my God as long as I live.

Psalm 146:1-2

For the past month or more, one of my former students from the music specialty center where I teach (now a college sophomore) has been planning a choral festival at his church, bringing together his choir and the choir from a neighboring Baptist church.  Then he invited "special guests," - his sister (a glorious soprano), his junior high chorus teacher, his high school chorus teacher, a couple of high school buddies (trumpeters), and me.  The group had one dress rehearsal, and then we presented the concert this afternoon.

It was a great experience.  He chose excellent choral pieces that I've sung before, such as Jernigan's Great is the Lord Almighty, Allen Pote's A Jubilant Song, and Tom Fettke's The Majesty and Glory of Your Name.  Other pieces I was unfamiliar with and thoroughly enjoyed getting to know:  Days of Elijah, Anchored in the Rock, and MackWilberg's Saints Bound for Heaven. 

The highlight of the afternoon, however, was Robert Ray's He Never Failed Me Yet.  A great gospel song with a wonderful message: no matter what has happened in life, God has never failed me.  I was privileged to hear a magnificent baritone soloist [who turned out to be the new minister of the church].  All in all, it was a wonderful time of song, fellowship, and praise to God.  To share the blessings, I've attached a video of a high school choral group singing He Never Failed Me Yet.  I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed performing it this afternoon!