Three for three...

Another night with the DSO. At this rate, we might as well be season ticket holders. Definitely not complaining :) Tonight was good. We heard an amazing pianist, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, play Saint-Saens Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor. We were in the third row and his bench was ten feet directly in front of us. It was so cool! We also heard selections from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, which was also enjoyable. Second in entertainment only to Thibaudet (and not by much), was the gentleman sitting next to me... and not my husband. He was very.. and I do mean very.. excited about the performance this evening. At the end, his voice was heard above the crowd with continuous "BRAVOs!" He was screaming at the top of his lungs. Several of the orchestra members couldn't even contain their laughter... nor could the people sitting around us. Quite a night :)

RESPECT...

... find out what it means to me! R.E.S.P... wait... what the heck is "respect" anyway?

Eph. 5.33 says, "However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." What does it mean that a wife must "respect" her husband? What does this look like on a daily basis? In word, deed, etc? How does this differ from love?

I want your thoughts on this...

Are you a high achiever?

From Roy's Soteriology class:

"One more issue here: you’re all high achievers. You’re in graduate school, you’re working, you’re successful, you’re smart and as high achievers a lot of you kind of know what it is to have someone in your life who’s opinion mattered... who is never quite satisfied. Someone who you’d bring home a B+ and they’d ask why it wasn’t an A. You’d bring home an A- and why isn’t it an A+. What happened that you slid all the way down to a 93? Why is it that it’s not like whatever. And that stays with you, a lot of that stuff. What I need to tell you is that if you are laboring out of a desire to please parents, or whoever else you do need to know that God is satisfied. That when he cleanses your conscience, when he sets you free, when He as judge declares you righteous He does so not because you’ve finally found a way to perfect it. He does it because He is truly satisfied in His Son and that’s it, not because you did this or that. And other people may never be satisfied. But God is satisfied in His Son." - Dr. Robert Pyne

I needed this reminder. God is satisfied in me because He is satisfied in His Son and His Son is in me. What joy! :)

Where your treasure is...

I've been reading through "The Treasure Principle" by Randy Alcorn. I read it before my senior year in college, but decided to read it again. What perfect timing it is, too! It's a super short book, and quite an easy read. Just a few tidbits worth sharing...

"There's a fundamental connection between our spiritual lives and how we think about and handle money. We may try to divorce our faith and our finances, but God sees them as inseparable."

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" - Matt. 6.19-21

"Storing up earthly treasures isn't simply wrong. It's just plain stupid."

Alcorn's Treasure Principle - " You can't take it with you -- But you can send it on ahead"

"Giving isn't a luxury of the rich. It's a privilege of the poor."

"Whatever good thing you do for Him, if done according to the Word, is laid up for you as treasure in chests and coffers, to be brought out to be rewarded before both men and angels, to your eternal comfort." - John Bunyan

"Isn't it wrong to be motivated by reward? No, it isn't. If it were wrong, Christ wouldn't offer it to us as a motivation. Reward is his idea, not ours. Our instinct is to give to those who will give us something in return. But Jesus told us to give to 'the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind... Although they cannon repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous' (Luke. 14.13-14). If we give to those who can't reward us, Christ guarantees He will personally reward us in heaven."

"Money leads; heart follows."

"I've heard people say, 'I want more of a heart for missions.' I always respond, 'Jesus tells you exactly how to get it. Put your money in missions - and in your church and the poor - and your heart will follow.' "

"As base a thing as money often is, it yet can be transmuted into everlasting treasure. It can be converted into food for the hungry and clothing for the poor; it can keep a missionary actively winning lost men to the light of the gospel and thus transmute itself into heavenly values. Any temporal possession can be turned into everlasting wealth. Whatever is given to Christ is immediately touched with immortality." - A. W. Tozer

A night with the DSO...

Roy's seminary sometimes receives tickets for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra early in the week for that weekend's performances. Then, they proceed to give them to students for free! This was the first weekend of DSO's Classical Series for this year. We dressed up, looking quite spiffy, and headed out for a night of music. We picked up our tickets at will call and I was shocked to see ORCHESTRA written on them. Free tickets and we get to sit on the floor? Awesome.

They opened with Barber's Adagio for Strings as a tribute to their Chorus Director who passed away a couple weeks ago from a battle with cancer. Although I am not usually a big fan of strings, I have come to love that song over the years. They played it with such beauty and passion, I just closed my eyes and let myself soak in the sound. Beautiful.

They closed the first half with another Barber piece, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 14. The solo was played by Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, a talented, eccentric musician. She came onto stage wearing bright red, velvety looking pants and a sequined sleeveless top that she kept adjusting during her rests. Her facial expressions and movements were... special. I honestly found her quite distracting, so I tried not to watch her too much lest I spend the whole time thinking how queer she seemed and totally miss the music! However, her skills were excellent. I wasn't a huge fan of the piece, but she left no inch of those strings untouched and did a magnificent job.

At intermission, I found out that this was Roy's first experience with a professional orchestra... which totally blew my mind! I'm glad he is now able to say he is a bit more cultured... and he enjoyed it too!

After intermission, they finished the evening with Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 4 in F minor. Wow. The four movement piece showcased all sections of the orchestra, but the brass fanfares that opened the piece, and came back to close it as well, were fabulous. All of the wind instruments were featured in some way, especially the woodwinds. I just love hearing the unique timbres of oboes and bassoons played well! I've heard so many badly played ones in my life... And I must say, eight basses?! And two of them were women :D Awesome. The final movement, Finale: Allegro con fuoco, was a flurry of notes and a sound bath... go find it somewhere online and listen to it. It won't be the same as in person, but still.

And one quick prop to the conductor... Jaap van Zweden, besides having a sweet name, was an impressive conductor as well. His beat pattern was often recognizable, and he was exciting to watch. Yet, he wasn't too over the top or eccentric with his patterns and gestures.

So all in all, good night of music. As usual, makes me want to practice again. And it makes me grateful for a God who's creativity extends farther than I could imagine to create something so amazingly wonderful as music.