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239 West Main Street Norwich, Connecticut                Phone: 860-889-0369
Cal's Pastoral Epistles

            Stand Up And Sing


                                                             September 15, 2005

On Friday night I took Lori and the girls out to Karaoke night at
Yantic River Inn. OK. I have to be honest with you. We didn't know
it was Karaoke night until we arrived. We were simply going out to
celebrate Lori's birthday. The sing-a-long was an added bonus.

Several years ago we bought our girls a portable karaoke machine
for Christmas.  Over the years they had a lot of fun with it. They
would invite their friends over and sing along with the music and
pretend they were big stars. The idea is pretty neat. Anyone can be a
Brittany Spears or the next American Idol in the comfort of their
own family room. All you have to do is sing.

I have never been to a Karoake night before. As we sat eating our
dinner, we became increasingly enthralled by the different voices we
heard coming from the other room. Some sounded like the
superstars whose songs they sang. A few singers gave different twists
to the songs they were sharing. They added a little "twang" here and
there or really sang out loud on the chorus. Of course we did our
part and sat there and critiqued each one .

Before long the girls began goading each other into taking a turn.
Fifteen minutes later Sarah was up front singing Patsy Cline's
"Walkin After Midnight." She did great but when she got back to
the table she told us all it was a lot harder than it looked. That is the
way it is with a lot of things. It is easy to knock others who are up
doing there thing when we are sitting on the sidelines watching.

I have to give Sarah a lot of credit. She got up there in front of the
crowd and sang her song. It made me think about the people I know
who do the same thing when it comes to living out their faith. They
do it in a very public way. They attend worship services every week.
They treat people with respect. They are generous with their
resources. They get involved in projects that help people. They
advocate justice and social responsiblilty. You like to be around them
because you know they care about you, not for anything you can give
them, but because it is part of their very make up. Most importantly,
in everything they do, they remember to praise God and give Him
the glory.

Someone once made an allusion to the fact that all of life is a stage
and that we are simply actors upon it. There is a profound reality in
that statement. For we only live life once. We only have one chance
to make a difference in this world. We can sit back and watch others
and critique their efforts or we can get up and sing our song. What
are you going to do? When the spotlight hits, and the music starts, I
hope you will not be afraid to stand up and sing the song that God
has put in your heart. It may not come out the same way Billy
Graham, Harold Kushner or T.D. Jakes sings it, but that's alright. It
is your song, not theirs. The important thing is that we get up and
sing it. So smile and go with God.

God bless. See You In Church.  Cal.
Pastor Cal Lord writes these weekly epistles to
help us see God in every day things.
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