2009-2010 Shining Light Member's blog

Hi, my name is Robert. I am a senior, and I currently am in my fourth year of Shining Light. Concerning my background, I am a musician; more specifically a pianist, singer, and I’ve composed, but I wouldn’t consider myself a composer. I hope to pursue a career in opera, but honestly, I just want to become a musician, whatever that means. Nonetheless, for the past two years, I was accepted as a scholarship student to the Juilliard Pre-College division for voice, basically Juilliard geared to grade school students (to give you a picture, it’s the one that August Rush did, only a lot less dramatic). This program takes place on Saturdays during the school year. I’ve also participated in the Boston University Tanglewood Institute (”Tanglewood”) and the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts, all of which have enriched my understanding of music and of life in general.

I consider Shining Light to be a vital part of my musical and spiritual background, this year being no different. Shining Light has kept me from being pigeon-holed in classical voice by providing me opportunities to sing rock and R&B type styles. It has also given me exposure and experience in dance of various styles and plain acting. All of these have benefitted my musicality immensely.

But the main reason why I enjoy and appreciate Shining Light so much is because of manifest closeness of God I feel in it, whether on stage singing, writing a letter to an inmate, practicing a dance routine, or having small groups. It is said that the gates are Heaven are near the gates of Hell, and we experience that every time we walk into a prison and perform for the audience there. God uses us as his “shining light” to communicate to the inmates a message of hope, a message seldom preached in those facilities. Shining Light is such a vehicle to get across God’s amazing love, both to the audience and to us; having both seen and participated in Shining Light shows, I can honestly say that I am more greatly impacted on stage than off. Shining Light has been invaluable in keeping me on the righteous path for these grueling High School years. Having a network of passionate, Christian friends is something I wouldn’t trade for the world. I feel so blessed to be able to participate in this group, a group which has a powerful message and is unique in the United States and perhaps even the world in its mode of evangelism.