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Download “In the World” for December 20, 2020 here.
GOING TO GREAT LENGTHS TO DANCE
The performing arts have been hit hard by the pandemic. Audiences can’t gather and performers can’t be near one another. This fall, the Tulsa Ballet was committed to exceeding expectations both of audiences and the CDC. They rehearsed while wearing masks and standing no closer than six feet apart, breathing air purified through a system obtained by a grant. They allowed only thirty people in the audience, separated by empty seats. Their performances were shorter, due to the difficulty of dancing while wearing masks. They learned the dances via video from a choreographer in Amsterdam. As for the annual Christmas performance of The Nutcracker, it had to be canceled so as to not risk the health of the more than one hundred children in the cast. But the company feels that artists who are forced to be even more creative can truly shine.
GOING TO GREAT LENGTHS TO WORSHIP
When ancient astronomers in the Middle East observed great signs in the heavens, a group of them mounted an expedition to see what the signs were heralding. They upended their lives, perhaps for a year or more of travel, to journey to Israel and give homage to the king whose birth was announced in the stars.
- What are the greatest lengths you have gone to help someone or achieve something?
- What could happen that would make you leave your home for a year or more?
- If you had been there to meet the holy family, what would you have wanted to say or do?
Additional Resources
These videos and materials are for your personal use.
If you show videos in class, be sure to have the necessary rights to do so.
- Music Video, Traditional: “Sweet Hour of Prayer” by the Vagle Brothers
- Music Video, Multicultural: “Never Lost” by Israel Houghton
- Music Video, Contemporary: “The Commission” by YWAM Kona Music
- Guzik’s Commentary on Matthew 2
- Spurgeon’s Exposition of Matthew 2
- Barclay’s Commentary on Matthew 2
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