Ring That Bell

Tonight something happened in the life of our ministry that hasn't happened in almost a year... The ringing of bells filled the auditorium... It started with a G and then worked it's way down the octave - hitting every beautiful note in between... We played individual tones and chords alike... We played complex rhythms followed by simple melodies... It was a glorious sound that was produced by our 5 'Bell Chimers'...

Each year we prepare a hand bells number for our Student Christmas Program... I make out a chart for some Christmas tunes and I teach my students something that they've never done... Most of which have never even seen a hand bell before... Now - I'm sure their grandparents have - but it's not something you see much in the church anymore - at least not at "Contemporary" churches... We have seen bells, organs, and often times many orchestral instruments find their way out of our worship services... It would seem that those types of instruments don't hold the attention of our Pop Culture Churches anymore... Now - keep in mind that I am a HUGE fan of relevant and contemporary worship... I believe that (as a leader in the church and as a worship leader) that we are responsible for writing and arranging songs that are anthems for our lives and an outcry of our spirit to the Lord... That's why when I write a praise and worship song - I use 'Rock' instrumentation: Guitars, drums, etc... I like over driven and distorted guitar... I like well played drum kits... I even like electronic loops and sequences being played...

And maybe it's my partial Methodist upbringing or my formal music training - but I always enjoy the sounds these bells make... I enjoy the resonance that each 'ding' provides and seeing 10 hands make exciting music from these brass bells always warms my insides... I see my students get excited about an activity that I've only ever seen people my parent's age enjoy (now I know if my mother is reading this that she is now offended) but seeing a teenager feel proud of what they have accomplished is so amazing... I guess this goes to show that not everything old is bad... It still has value and can be appreciated by every generation... Now - don't think I'm putting these students in robes and so forth... Oh, no... We'll have black lights and cool scarves on to make it look amazing... So - what do you say? Are you ready to be a 'ding dong'?