GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–Nearly 500 worship leaders and music ministry participants gathered around the theme of “I saw the Lord” during Music Week, July 10-14 at LifeWay Glorieta Conference Center near Santa Fe, N.M.
The conference, sponsored by the LifeWay Worship Music Group of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, included featured speaker Ergun Caner, dean of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and professor of theology and church history at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., and worship led by Charles Billingsley, worship leader at Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, Calif.
The week also included premiers of two LifeWay musicals: a Christmas musical, “Jesus Our Treasure,” and a children’s musical, “Joseph: From the Pit to the Palace.”
Jesus Our Treasure, published by LifeWay’s Genevox imprint, was presented by the adult choir of First Baptist Church from Lubbock, Texas. The musical was created by Mike Harland and arranged and orchestrated by Camp Kirkland with scriptwriting by Lawrence Kimbrough.
Jesus Our Treasure tells the story of Jesus’ life from the perspective of a shepherd who was present the night of His birth. Also included is a presentation of the Gospel as the main character explains to his granddaughter how she can experience salvation in the risen Christ.
“It really was important to tell more than just the Christmas part of the story,” said Harland, director of the LifeWay Worship Music Group. “The whole story of Jesus’ mission is in this musical.”
Harland encouraged churches to use Jesus Our Treasure as an evangelistic tool during the Christmas season, noting that it provides “a clear way through music to present the Gospel.”
Joseph: From the Pit to the Palace, published by Dove Tail Music, summarizes Joseph’s life in a format that mimics the television show “This Is Your Life,” portraying the Old Testament character as an example of faithfulness and obedience to God.
Created and written by Jimmy Travis Getzen and Gail Getzen, with children providing percussion by beating on pots, pans and trashcans, Joseph: From the Pit to the Palace was presented by the children’s choir of First Baptist Church from Carrollton, Texas.
“This is a unique musical that will keep every kid engaged –- even the older ones,” the Getzens write in an introduction to the musical. “We pray that the truths your kids learn from Joseph’s life will change them forever.”
Music Week participants attended classes on a wide range of topics relating to church music and worship. The conference also provided opportunities for interacting with experts in the areas of drama, instrumental music, choral music, worship technology and worship leadership.
“Our theme was ‘I saw the Lord,’ and we saw the Lord,” Harland said. “God’s doing a work in events like this that I believe He’s going to do across our denomination to bring musicians unified, not around a style -– because we’re going to have lots of styles -– but unified around … leading our people to worship the Lord.”
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