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Music Ministry
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Cheryl Dorsey,
Music Director |
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What a wonderful day we had on Saturday for the Beth Moore Simulcast! 165 women from surrounding Sumter, Schley, Taylor, Peach, Houston as well as Macon County, (even a couple from out of state) gathered together to hear Beth teach from God’s word. Looking out over the crowd of ladies, I tried to imagine the estimated 100,000 women across the U.S. and Canada who were at that same moment hearing the same words spoken and I was in awe how God was working in each woman’s life.
Ladies, thank you for all you did to prepare for this event. Men, you did an excellent job in serving our lunch, parking cars and cleaning up. A special thank you to Lonnie for being our tech man for the event and Brother Matt for sharing your time as the pastor to all those women. You were all wonderful hosts and hostesses.
Music for spring and Easter is underway. The children are working on “A Donkey Brings a Humble King” from Donkey Tales. Adults are learning selections from Redeemed by Mike Speck.
A new anthem we are learning, How Can I Keep From Singing by Chris Tomlin, has quickly become my favorite. It’s one of those songs that the tune and words just stick with you and you find yourself humming, singing, or in my case, whistling throughout the day. Here’s some of the words:
“How can I keep from singing your praise?
How can I ever say enough, How amazing is your love.
How can I keep from shouting your name?
I know I am loved by the King and it makes my heart want to sing.”
Keep singing His praise,
Cheryl
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| The Whitewater Boys |
Gospel Quartet
Over Twenty Seven Years of Singing The Gospel |
The original calling came back in the early to mid seventies. Choir members Mack Bentley and Larry Dorsey sat on the back row during choir rehearsal and would discuss the possibility of a Gospel Quartet. The discussions soon included choir member Jimmy Hunt, who also liked the idea. The talk about a Gospel Quartet continued for months. The months turned into years. The main problem was that they needed a fourth person. Then it happened! On a Sunday night song fest service in 1978, Mack, Larry and Jimmy were up around the piano singing unrehearsed hymns when new church member Tony Tarrer was called upon to join them. Leaning on the Everlasting Arms was the selection and a crude but harmonious sound emerged. The response from the congregation was overwhelming and the Whitewater Boys Gospel Quartet was born! Soon thereafter, after much rehearsal, other area churches started requesting them to sing, so the Quartet purchased a small portable audio system and hit the road! The Whitewater Boys, by then, had become an outreach ministry of the music department of Whitewater Baptist Church, under the direction of Mrs. Cheryl Dorsey, who also played for the group on keyboards.
A few years later the group suffered a little set back when Jimmy Hunt moved to another area. The group went for several months without singing at all. With much prayer and meditation, the Lord soon provided new church member, David Bentley, as a replacement.
The Whitewater Boys continued to grow in their love of singing praises to the Lord. They made drastic improvements in their audio system and much of their accompaniment music now on sound tracks, with Mrs. Cheryl Dorsey continuing on keyboards and also assisting with the sound mixing, along with the wives of the members. The request for them to sing continued to increase until it became difficult to get them together as much as was needed. By the late 1990’s, Scott Tarrer was called upon to fill in when one of the four could not be at a certain event to sing. Before long, Scott would permanently join the group as the fifth voice. The new quintet format proved to be very rich and exciting! A soloist could sing, and would still have full four-part harmony of a quartet to back the soloist up. The new rich, full sound was great! One person could be absent from the group, and a quartet still existed.
One of the most memorable moments for the group came on a warm summer night in a church of a neighboring county. The Whitewater Boys performed a concert they called “A One Night Revival in Song”. At the close of the service, the pastor of the church issued an invitation while the group softly sang. Almost the entire congregation got up and walked the isle to rededicate their lives to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Events like this, and others like it, constantly reassure the Whitewater Boys that they must continue to be about the Father’s business and sing the Gospel to a lost and dying world.
One might say, after all these years that The Whitewater Boys, have kind of become an institution of Whitewater Baptist Church. Through the years the group has felt the love and encouragement of each and every family in the church, and they continue to carry the name of Whitewater with them. Many times, church members would travel many miles to public events just to support the group and hear them minister in song. So, the ministry in song continues on into the twenty-first century.
The Whitewater Boys covet your prayers for their ministry and ask that you join them in lifting our hearts in praise to the Lord as The Whitewater Boys celebrate over twenty-seven years of singing the Gospel!
Submitted by G. Mack Bentley
For bookings please contact Mrs. Cheryl Dorsey, Manager and Director of Music Whitewater Baptist Church, 1955 State Route 128, Oglethorpe, Ga. 31068
(Church) 478-472-8061
(Home) 478-472-7629
(Work) 478-472-8186
The Whitewater Boys would love to minister in song at your event. There is no charge. The group strictly operates on a love-offering basis to help with the cost of travel and equipment upkeep and upgrades. |
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