Clayton News Daily

By Valerie Baldowski

vbaldowski@henryherald.com

The choir of a McDonough church -- along with other choirs from around the area -- will raise the roof with praise, this weekend, hoping to touch the community through music.

The Voices of Praise Choir of Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church will perform Sunday, at 3 p.m. The free concert will be at the church, located at 397 Racetrack Road.

"The concert is a community outreach project, during which the Voices of Praise choir, along with numerous guests, will come together to fellowship, minister, and praise God in song," said Kris Goodall, a nine-year member of the church and the keyboard player for Sunday's performance.

"The choir has been working very hard for the past few months pulling this event together, and truly expects a great time in the Lord during this concert," Goodall said.

"Attendees can also expect a small token to remind them that, as the seed of Abraham, we have an inheritance through Christ. Come and get your inheritance."

He said guest choirs, scheduled to perform, are from other churches, and from the broader community. The 40-member choir of Wesley Chapel UMC will share the spotlight with choirs from Beulah Missionary Baptist Church in Decatur; Bald Rock Baptist Church in Conyers; the Atlanta Super Choir; the Sawyer Family Ensemble from metro Atlanta, and James Bignon and the Deliverance Mass Choir, said Barbara Broughton, choir director at Wesley Chapel.

"We look forward to it, we're excited about it," she said.

Goodall believes attendance will be between 800 and 900. "We're looking for the church to be completely packed out," he said.

Scheduling the concert during a time other than the traditional Sunday morning time slot makes the performance extraordinary, continued Goodall. "There's something special about a church doing an event that's not on Sunday morning," he added. "It's another chance for the church to be prominent in the community."

Attendees will enjoy the music, said Howard Wright, pastor of Wesley Chapel UMC.

"The concert is celebrating God, just reaching out to everyone," Wright said. "I think they [the attendees] will be pleasantly surprised ... It's good gospel and praise music they will receive."