At the end of July I attended Territorial Music School, which was held at Bearwood College just outside of Reading. I always find music schools
rewarding both musically and religiously. It is always good to learn and
develop musical skills, but also to continue my journey with God.

The band practised many challenging pieces during the week, such as
Resurgam by Eric Ball and Leslie Condon’s The Present Age. Both of these pieces were fascinating to play as they tell stories of a person’s life from not knowing God, and following the story as the relationship developed.

The worship time was also good. Many people shared their own experiences with God, and during one particular worship time we all discussed our
favourite song or piece of music, which we could hear God speaking to us, with many different ideas being offered.

As at most music schools there was also a lot of fun to be had, which is
always good to get to know new people. Many silly games and football matches were organised to keep everyone entertained, although it has to be said that the football was taken very seriously, as it should be!

This summer I was also able to work at the Reading Music Festival with the Salvation Army. I worked in the soup tent, which was a great experience, selling Tea, Coffee and other drinks to the festival goers. It gives the Salvation Army another opportunity to get out into the community and get into contact with many people it may not be able to reach at other times. Many people commented to me personally when I served them, “I don’t know where I would be without the Salvation Army this week.” With
comments like that it makes the hard work and lack of sleep well worth it knowing that we have been able to make a difference to so many people in such a short period of time.