STRICTLY OBSERVING:  Youth exhibit ‘One Voice’

Again this week, it is my pleasure to call to attention the amazing amount of local artistic talent the young people of the Wytheville area possess.  On April 27, I was very happy to attend the final performance of the Wythe One Voice at the Wytheville Baptist Church.  Wythe One Voice is a collective choir consisting of a group of young people from several different churches in the area who come together annually to perform a praise and worship concert for the public, expressing their unified devotion to God.  The idea of this collaboration was the brainchild of Jennifer Mullins, wife of Wytheville Baptist Church Pastor Rusty Mullins who formed the group in May 2005.  As a result, a wonderful ministry led by some of Wytheville’s finest and most talented youth and young adult Christians was formed.
Under the direction of Jennifer Mullins, the fourth annual Wythe One Voice was, in short, a moving and spiritually enriching experience.  In a program titled “Making History,” this group of amazingly gifted young people reminded us through a collection of songs, skits and other forms of artistic expression, that each person on the planet makes his own mark in history in that each of our words, actions, and choices in life have an impact on the world.  Thus, when we name God as ruler of our lives, we can all rest assured that He will always guide us in the right direction as long as we put our faith in Him. 
This invaluable lesson in Christianity is illustrated in a program created by Dennis and Nan Allen with a script adaptation by Jennifer Mullins.  The story takes place at a high school where God reveals himself to several high school students, staff and faculty members in the form of a “new student” throughout a number of skits placed in between each of the correlated songs, which were also accompanied by a different Scripture reading each time.  The first skit takes place in history class where students are learning about Davy Crockett (Zack Aker).  One particular student named Bryan (Brandon Mock) notices a “new guy” (Jordan Baffy) who reveals himself as God.  This is followed by the aptly titled song, “History.” After revealing his true identity to more students in history class, the “new guy” goes on to make himself known between classes, in biology class, the gym, the hallways, the school grounds and even the principal’s office.  Each person is eventually convinced that the “new guy” is actually God, but each of them has his own set of difficulties proclaiming God’s presence in his life to others.  Some even refuse to believe at first.  Also included in the program was an impressive PowerPoint presentation, which further illustrated the depth of its message through slide shows as well as inspirational religious drawings and texts. One such drawing that was particularly impressive was a pair of praying hands drawn by Zachary Taylor.  The creation of this artwork was redeveloped line by line on the PowerPoint presentation during the song “It’s True.” Also, at one point in the program, two very powerful spoken testimonies were given by Chad Peters and Elizabeth Wassum, who profoundly proclaimed the blessings of having God as their personal savior.
Several other forms of art were used throughout the musical portion of the presentation as well.  During the program’s opening tune, “Lifesong,” the lyrics were actually presented to the audience by several of the singers in sign language.  Expressive ballet dancing by Katrina Hales, Lindsey Heldreth and Erin Veasey was also performed during the song, “Brave,” which featured vocal solos by Mark Aker and Jessica Taylor.  Other soloists included the trio of Chad Peters, Angel Peters and Beka Garrett on “You Always Take Care of Me.” Other highlights of the program included the popular contemporary gospel song, “How Great Is Our God,” which moved some members of the audience to their feet, particularly during the stirring final verse, which was performed in an impeccable a Capella style.  “Call On Me” featured soloists Seth Chumbley and Brandon Mock.  Seth is an old friend of mine from high school, whom I always regarded as a very gifted singer.  So, it was especially nice for me to see that he was continuing in his God-given talents.  I also enjoyed “Leave Everything Behind,” which featured solos from all seven high school seniors in the group.  The program closed with this talented group of people offering as a musical prayer simply titled, “Blessing.”
Over and over again, I heard from people who had seen this program before, what a blessing the Wythe One Voice program was.  It wasn’t until I saw this wonderful performance myself that I truly understood how right they were.  Our community is, without question, blessed with an incredible amount of young talent and that is an even greater gift when it is used with the glory of God.  This was truly a spiritually uplifting event, which I’m so pleased to have attended.  I encourage all and of her many talented and Christian youth to consider joining this group next year.  As for the rest of us, I hope we all can be in attendance for the 2009 Wythe One Voice program.  I’m certain we won’t regret it!
A graduate of Wytheville Community College, Zach Cooley lives in Wytheville. Contact him at .