Georgia Needs a Change:Lifting Up Raphael Warnock

Pastor Warnock and Dr.Steed Davidson January 2006-Church Sanctuary

Willie Baptist and Min.Cynthia Wilson Second Ebenezer Church Sanctuary, Atlanta, GA.  January 2006

Photo Credit: Cynthia Wilson  Second Ebenezer Church Marquee January 2006-Atlanta, Georgia 

...no oppressor shall again overrun them, for now I have seen with my own eyes. Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your King comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he... Zechariah 9:9

Just want to top an excerpt from an old article and fond memory of  a visit made by a group of Union seminary students that included me and forty Columbia University School of Social Work students to Raphael Warnock’s church as part of our trip to the hurricane ravaged Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. The article can also be found in the book, Katrina: Listening with Our Hearts
With Pastor Warnock now running for a critical seat in the Georgia Senate I just wanted to lift him up. The visit to his church, Second Ebenezer, pulpit of the late great civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King,  was one of the highlights of our journey. His hospitality was stellar and his sermon was just what was needed, a rhema word to carry on and complete our mission to Ocean Springs, Biloxi and finally New Orleans.

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 The Great I Am is another name for God.

For Doe Jones:Make Way for a Beautiful Voice and God Loving Spirit

 

Doe Jones released her Ep several weeks ago 10/29/2020 at a Listening Party hosted by Jonathan McReynolds featuring the upbeat and cheerful “ Brighter”. There was something about Brighter that I really resonated with perhaps the joyful melody, Doe’s  gift for hitting just the right note at the right time and its vibrato far exceeding your tonal expectations. 

You might recall if you’ve ever listened to her Grammy nominated break out performance on Jonathan Mc Reynold’s Cycles just how resonant and melodious her vocals are. Girl can blow as in really s-a-a-a-n-g. She’s been singing at church services and with her family music group the Grammy nominated Jones’ for years. But I still could not help but wonder why I hadn’t seen any commercial albums on the mainstream gospel charts after hearing those powerhouse vocals for the first time on Cycles. Getting back to her EP, I enjoyed all of the cuts on it. Good Now, Take Me Back,  but my favorite songs are “Hey You”  her duet with McReynolds and “I Try” a song about an up and coming star’s struggle to conform to the recording industry’s rather imposing beauty and style standards that equate success as sometimes prioritizing style over substance—running neck in neck. You know the frou frou, lashes and big hair that has little to do with musical talent, but somehow seems to trump it from time to time in combination with the x-factor. 

I highly recommend you add this EP to your digital or CD record collection for easy access when you need to hear some refreshing and spiritually uplifting songs. It is also a collection you’d be happy to share with your friends as a gift over the holidays as I indicated in an earlier post announcing her listening party here.