Erwin Methodist

On Wednesday February 22nd the company and trainees performed the Crown at Erwin Methodist Church for Safe Space for Kids. Because of a recent injury, Amy was not able to perform the role of Lachlana in the Crown. So, Alyssa played her part and Cayla played the part of her wise friend in place of Alyssa. Alyssa and Cayla did a fantastic job stepping in. Though I wasn’t able to hear it I’m sure Gwen did a great job sharing her testimony. We were able to do Healing is in His Hands with the kids and then teach them some ballet positions and leaps. Miss Ashley was also able to answer some questions that they had. They were quite the inquisitive bunch and were especially interested in the pointe shoes and how we were able to dance in them. We were surprised to find out that there was a dancer in the audience. I believe he was one of the helpers for Safe Space for Kids. He was obliged to demonstrate a tour en lair for us. The very best part of the performance was that three children raised their hands to say they had accepted Christ into their hearts!

~Krystalan

Hillside Children's Center

Wednesday, February 22nd, Light Of The World Ballet Company performed for Hillside Children's Center. The event was a dinner for the foster families. The company performed Alive, Praise You In This Storm, And Now My Lifesong Sings, and Healing Hands. The performance itself went well. I was unable to perform due to a strained calf muscle. So my job was to speak while the the dancers changed into pointe shoes and had a minute to catch their breath! Quite the workout for them! They did a great job adjusting the choreography! The children loved the dancing! They imitated a lot of the steps in front of the stage during the performance. I loved hearing all the little comments of the children during the performance! Afterward they had the opportunity to officially learn some dance steps! It was a fun evening and a blessing to be a part of!
Amy

Word of Life

On Sunday January 30 we got to go perform for the children's church at Word of Life Assembly of God. We did Living Hope and shared with them the story of the persecuted church in China. We have performed here in the past and each time it is such a treat - the kids are very well-behaved and responsive, and there's a little stage with lights we get to perform on...and Miss Karen, our contact there, blesses us so much as well. She has such a gift for working with these kids, and you can tell Jesus really shines through her as she ministers to them!

Everything went pretty well dancing-wise. However, one of my favorite parts was at the end of the performance, after Ashley shared her testimony, Miss Ashley (Rollinson) wanted the kids to show they were willing to stand up for Jesus, and had them stand on their chairs as we did our final song, "Never Let Go." And not only did they stand on their chairs, they also sang along and did motions to it as well! They were worshiping right along with us, and it was awesome.

Afterward we got the chance to pray for any of the kids who wanted prayer, which was great. We also taught them some ballet steps - I got to work with some of the boys and they all did really good! And were very enthusiastic as well; that was fun! I am so excited that we got to share with these precious kids again this year - what a privilege to challenge them in their faith! I'm praying that the story of Qing in Living Hope would stay with them and they would continue to grow in their Christian walk as they attend the children's church there.

Gwen

Word of Life

We had the privilege of performing Living Hope for Word of Life Academy on Wednesday, February 1. The huge benefit to this performance was that the floor was already set up from our performance on Sunday. Overall, I think that Living Hope went very smoothly, and all of us are now more comfortable with it. My favorite part was at the end when we did arm motions with the kids to Carry Your Name. It was such a blessing to see all those kids raising their invisible “torches” and claiming to carry the light of Jesus into darkest of places. Praise the Lord for raising up another generation who belong to Him! Many special thanks to Miss Karen for bringing us there and being such a blessing to me and the rest of the company.

Karissa

Syracuse Jail

On Wednesday January 25th, we had the privilege of performing for a sector of women inmates in the Syracuse prison. Most of us had performed there the year before as well, and it had been one of the most powerful performances of the year; God really anointed the place with His presence. We were looking forward to going back with Living Hope, our ballet about the persecuted church in China, and seeing how God moved this time.
The staff and the women were excited about having us back; the deputies are very friendly and welcoming! While setting up, we realized that we would need a dressing room on each side because of the quick changes, and so they opened up an unoccupied jail cell. This was certainly a Light of the World first; we have changed in closets, tents, mall secret passage ways, and many other unusual places, but never a jail cell! Luckily, no one ever got accidentally had the door shut on them.
Once again, God really blessed our performance there. Things went really smoothly, and Miss Ashley spoke at the end, sharing the salvation message and leading the group in a prayer to receive Christ as their personal savior. Several raised their hands indicating that they had prayed this for the first time! We are hoping to get Bibles to them and follow up soon. The women are so open and grateful, and I believe God really uses that each time we are there. I love getting to go to places like that, and I am looking forward to more opportunities like that! God bless!

Cayla

Syracuse Home

On January 19th we performed for the residents and staff of the Syracuse Home in Baldwinsville. The trainees did their repertoire called All I Need and the company performed Lifesongs. The facility was very nice and our dressing room was fabulous! Gwen shared her testimony and, even though it was cut off, she did get the most important aspects across. Everyone we talked with afterward said that they thoroughly enjoyed the performance and I think that many hearts were blessed by it. All the glory goes to Jesus!

Love,

Ashley