Music Ministry at Rosemont

ENCOURAGEMENT

amybrownthomas — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 17:59:47 +0000

I just wanted to take a moment and say thanks to all of you for your encouraging words and actions to me. Maybe you have no idea how meaningful that compliment or that written note or that hug is to me so I want to express my gratitude. You have challenged me and reminded me to be a better encourager myself. I teach piano to more than a hundred kids at Harrison Elementary. My good friend is the principal and she has made a strong commitment to piano education at her school. From a grant they were able to purchase 20 new keyboards that the children use every day. It has been a great thing to be a part of this new learning experience for these kids. I’m telling you this to say I am having plenty of opportunity to practice my encouraging skills every day. These kids respond in an amazing way to the simplest positive statement, to a pat on the back, to a look in the eye. I am constantly reminding myself to be an encourager at school, at church and at home with my girls. There are examples for us to follow from the Bible like Barnabas and Paul. I will end with this wonderful verse from the Message translation.

II Corinthians 1:3-6

All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.

INFLUENCE

amybrownthomas — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 16:41:12 +0000

I have been thinking alot in the last several months about the people and things that influence the lives of my children. Hannah and Sadie, although typical teenagers, are atypical in many ways. They are very interested in the world around them. They care deeply about people. They take seriously their school work and the expectations of their teachers (and their mom). It is has been my priority since they each were born to give them unlimited opportunity for learning and for life experiences. However, as they are both getting older, I realize that they are making more of their own choices about who is influencing them and the choices that they make every day. I have taken a new look at who they are spending their time with, who they listen to, who influences their decisions. I am so pleased with what I see. My mother, who was the subject of my last blog, is very close to my girls. She has an opinion about everything and has no problem sharing it with the girls. The good thing is the girls are always listening to her. The girl that babysat Hannah and Sadie when they were younger is still an important part of their lives. She has become a beautiful young woman with three children of her own but still makes time to care for my girls. She came to Trinity on the church bus as a young child and now teaches the first grade Sunday School class. She named her daughter Savannah, a mix of Sadie and Hannah. I am fortunate to have many good friends that care about my children as their own.

Most importantly, I am glad that my children have a personal relationship with Jesus. Church has been a part of their lives since the day they were born. We are blessed to be at Rosemont at this time in our lives. You have loved and cared for us since our very first Sunday. I am thankful for Beth and her ministry to Hannah and Sadie. I am thankful to Dwight for his teaching and his example of strong Christian leadership and high standards that he displays every day. I guess you can tell as I have been reflecting that I am lucky to have such wonderful people influencing my children. I know, however, that the greatest influence in their lives is Jesus and His teachings. This summer the three of us began an intense through the Bible small group study together. It has been a wonderful, growing, learning time for all of us. I’ve learned some things I didn’t know about the Bible and about my girls. They are growing in the Word and receiving the influence of God from His Word. I will continue to influence my children and the many, many children I come into contact with every day. I hope you will take the opportunity to influence a child in your lives also.

DEDICATION

amybrownthomas — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:14:52 +0000

Dedication…that was the headline of the article about my mom, Helen Brown, and her 50th anniversary of ministry at Trinity Baptist Church, in our paper this past weekend. The article and the celebrations held at Trinity were well deserved tributes for her steadfast commitment to the Lord’s work in Lexington. The weekend was wonderful. Several hundred people came to an informal roast kind of event on Saturday and a beautiful worship service on Sunday. I have pondered all week the things I saw and heard in those services. The words of several stick out…the older seminary professor that called my mom his mentor, the young minister of music that asked the church to put up a painting of my mother so we could truly see the face of Christ, those that called her “reverend mother” before women in ministry ever became a Baptist issue. The actions of many were a blessing to see…so many hugs and warm wishes, so many letters written, friends and family that came quite a distance to be with her at these celebrations. Personally, it was a very emotional and inspiring time for me. Just as the celebration in my dad’s memory was last year. I was raised in a home with very high standards in all areas. I was expected to do well in school, to behave and represent my family and my God well, to care for others by action not by lip service, to enjoy and experience life to its fullest. As an adult living close and working beside my mother I have to admit that those expectations as I see them have never lessened. The example that she has set for me to follow in her work is a daunting challenge. She is truly selfless and tireless. She is 78 and works as hard as ever at her jobs at Trinity and Milwards. She is always helping those in need and never ever expecting anything in return. She is a servant. She is the hands and feet of God.

Celebrating Baptism

amybrownthomas — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:42:39 +0000

Last Sunday was an exciting day at Rosemont as we baptized three young ladies. We were led to remember our own road to salvation and baptism. I’ve been thinking alot about that time for me. I was six years old and walked the aisle at a revival service in May of 1969. My dad’s best friend from college was preaching but my dad was receiving those that came forward at the end of the service. I remember telling him I wanted Jesus to live in my heart. He cried.

I have many memories surrounding baptism as a child. The baptismal pool at the old Trinity was huge…bigger than a semi tractor trailer. I used to swim in it for fun. The stairs were open and you could swim between them like going into a cave. My dad, the preacher, was actually terrified of water. Not a good thing for a preacher at baptism time. So from a very young age I “assisted” him with all baptisms. That really meant I walked with him to the top of the stairs (and sometimes further) and waited there where he could see me until he came out of the water. No, I’m not kidding, he really was afraid. There was always a deacon on the other side to assist the candidate as they left the pool. One particular deacon loved to play practical jokes on my dad. Once, he even put a frog in the waiters my dad wore when baptizing.

I was baptized the first Sunday in June 1969. My dear friend, Julie Davis, was also baptized that day. You met her at Rosemont when her husband, Brian Shoemaker, preached for us. I’ve been wondering how my dad must have felt when I entered the water. Early that very next Saturday morning arsonists burned my church to the ground. They gassed down the sanctuary and threw in some sort of fire bomb to set it off. I was the first one to wake when the explosion blew the glass out of the church windows. The flames were so big it seemed as if they were coming in my bedroom window. I remember watching from the neighbors porch and thinking about everything I was literally watching go up in smoke. I remember thinking about the beautiful baptistry with the mosaic praying hands made of millions of tiny tiles. I am glad to have been the last one to be baptized in that wonderful place that meant so much to me. It is a wonderful memory.

A Note from Amy

amybrownthomas — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 16:20:08 +0000

Psalm 100

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.

Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Psalm 100 is one of the first scriptures I recall memorizing as a child. Making music is such a huge part of my life and has been since my earliest days. My dad was a Baptist pastor and my mom was the organist at the church. I’m positive my first exposure to group singing was in church both in worship and the little choir full of pre-schoolers. I soon learned the importance of Psalm 100 both in encouraging me and even demanding me to use the gift of music in praising my Lord and Savior. Little did I know at that age that that requirement would be the calling on my entire life. I count it all joy to consider preparing and leading in worship as my life’s work. This verse has been a constant reminder of the importance of music in our lives and in our worship and will be the theme of the music ministry at Rosemont.