So, last night was the opening ceremonies of the Summer olympics in London. I L-O-V-E-D it. So theatrical, funny, beautiful, brilliant, and British. I loved how the music helped tell the story, and the fact that there were twenty things going on at once on a huge field and that the cameras were able to zoom in on certain vignettes so we could follow the story. There were parts that were a bit confusing to me and I was glad that the commentators were explaining. I hope that all of the members of the crowd had some kind of guide in their programs.
Before the ceremonies, I was feeling completely exhausted and discouraged by all that there was to do. I felt the Lord remind me to "cease striving, and know that I am God." I read the rest of Psalm 46 while I rested. It was good. In college it was brought to my attention that "Be still and know that I am God" is just half of the verse; the other half is, "I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
So, as I was watching the historical drama unfold on the olympic field, I was quite struck by all of the hymn singing. I want to find out what some of those hymns were - one sounded like "Bread of Heaven" or something like that. And it seemed like at one point in the children's hospital scene that the Mary Poppinses and others were dancing to "Good Christian Men, Rejoice." I imagine it's just a traditional tune.
I watched almost all of the opening ceremonies. I was tired, right? And I was (and still am!) an English major, a somewhat closeted Anglo-phile, so I seriously soaked the whole thing in. It didn't seem as long as it really was, to me.
Coincidentally, my daily Bible reading for yesterday also included Psalm 46. It made me glad for the acknowledgement of Britain's Christian past, and a little sad that it was just considered part of the past. It left me wondering if hymns and Christianity could be a significant part of Britain's future.
