I loved this.  I love seeing articles about blind people making a difference 
and it's sometimes hard to get people to take an interest, especially with 
something Christian oriented.  Thanks, Vinny.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Vinny Samarco" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, December 07, 2006 10:34 AM
Subject: Re: Preacher, music minister make a mighty combo


> Angel,
> This was very interesting.  Thanks for sending it.
> God bless.
> Vinny
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Angel" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2006 1:17 AM
> Subject: Preacher, music minister make a mighty combo
>
>
>> Preacher, music minister make a mighty combo
>>
>>
>>> GoUpstate.com, South Carolina USA
>>> Sunday, December 03, 2006
>>>
>>> Preacher, music minister make a mighty combo
>>>
>>> Caption: Vincent Downing with part of his family, son Trey, bottom, 
>>> daughter Tia, center, and wife, Natasha. Not in the picture are son 
>>> Zacchaeus and daughter T'nija.
>>>
>>> Extract: "Vincent might be blind, but he rewired the church sound 
>>> system. He also oversees Mount Nebo's video ministry, producing DVDs of 
>>> church services.
>>> "Don't let the blindness fool you. It's a physical deception," Vincent 
>>> said.
>>>
>>> Voices shout. Hips sway. Hands clap.
>>>
>>> The sanctuary seems to shake with the Holy Spirit when Vincent Downing, 
>>> music minister at Mount Nebo Baptist Church, leads the choir.
>>>
>>> "Ain't no party like a Holy Ghost party, 'cause the Holy Ghost party 
>>> don't stop," he sings with the choir as his fingers dance across the 
>>> keyboard and his oldest son, Trey, backs him on drums.
>>>
>>> Mount Nebo's father-son musical team is as special as the music they 
>>> make together.
>>>
>>> Vincent is blind. He lost his sight when he was 7, the same age Trey is 
>>> now.
>>>
>>> Trey is shorter (even standing) than the Sabian cymbal in his full-size 
>>> drum set. But his precise pounding is the heartbeat of the praise music 
>>> that doesn't just stir the soul, it makes souls pulsate and pews 
>>> vibrate.
>>>
>>> Trey's mother, Natasha, said he was banging on pots and pans before 
>>> drums.
>>>
>>> Vincent began teaching him to play at the age of 2. It only made sense 
>>> that he would musically guide his son.
>>>
>>> Vincent taught himself to play keyboards when he was 15. He's also 
>>> taught himself to play the drums and other instruments he's been able 
>>> "to get (his) hands on."
>>>
>>> Vincent was named Mount Nebo's minister of music last March.
>>>
>>> Bethany Henderson, daughter of church pastor Ronald Henderson, suggested 
>>> Vincent after the congregation prayed for a music minister.
>>>
>>> Bethany met Vincent at Carver Junior High School, where she attends and 
>>> Vincent often DJs school dances.
>>>
>>> Mount Nebo wanted a music minister with a heart for youth.
>>>
>>> "It was meant to be," Vincent said. "I love young people. Young people 
>>> are my heart."
>>>
>>> Ronald Henderson never doubted Vincent's abilities.
>>>
>>> Vincent might be blind, but he rewired the church sound system. He also 
>>> oversees Mount Nebo's video ministry, producing DVDs of church services.
>>>
>>> "Don't let the blindness fool you. It's a physical deception," Vincent 
>>> said.
>>>
>>> He has set up a recording studio at his home in Pauline, where he and 
>>> wife, Natasha, live with their four children. Trey is big brother to 
>>> Tia, 6, Zacchaeus, 3, and T'nija, 7 months.
>>>
>>> Zacchaeus seems to be following in his older brother and dad's 
>>> footsteps. He already wants to play guitar.
>>>
>>> But Vincent's skills aren't just limited to the music studio.
>>>
>>> When Natasha needs her brakes worked on, she asks him to do it.
>>>
>>> "He's the fix-it man," she said.
>>>
>>> Vincent is also his mother's handyman.
>>>
>>> Patricia Downing has six children, but Vincent is "always there. When I 
>>> need something done, he can do it."
>>>
>>> Just as remarkable as the Downings is the church they serve.
>>>
>>> When Henderson started preaching at Mount Nebo last May, seven to 10 
>>> worshippers attended church services. Most had stopped coming, driven by 
>>> old age into nursing homes or the grave.
>>>
>>> Even church deacon James Martin had stopped coming. He was undecided 
>>> about returning to Mount Nebo or finding another place of worship when 
>>> Henderson approached him at work and invited him to a service.
>>>
>>> "It took a minute to find out he's for real," Martin said. "He loves 
>>> everyone here."
>>>
>>> Martin, 59, has worshipped at Mount Nebo with his family since he was a 
>>> young child.
>>>
>>> "Mount Nebo has never had this many children here," Martin said. 
>>> "There's things going on here today I haven't seen in my lifetime."
>>>
>>> The congregation increased almost tenfold after Henderson's arrival. 
>>> Most of the new members are kids who seek refuge in the church from 
>>> pressures surrounding them outside its walls: peer pressure, drugs and 
>>> drive-bys.
>>>
>>> Henderson "keeps it real," church members said. And that's why they love 
>>> him.
>>>
>>> He doesn't sugarcoat sermons and is up front about his past and present 
>>> struggles with sin.
>>>
>>> "We all have a closet full of skeletons," Henderson said. "I was just 
>>> like a lot of people sitting in the pews today. A lot of people know of 
>>> Christ, but they don't know him."
>>>
>>> Henderson attended church. He tithed. He knew the songs in the hymnal. 
>>> But outside of the sanctuary, God rarely crossed his mind.
>>>
>>> Before rededicating his life to God three years ago, Henderson was a 
>>> "wayward young man.
>>>
>>> "Until I knew I knew Christ, I didn't know him."
>>>
>>> Henderson credits God for Mount Nebo's turnaround.
>>>
>>> While many churches struggle with dwindling memberships, the pews at 
>>> Mount Nebo are packed with a fresh-faced congregation. So is the choir 
>>> loft.
>>>
>>> The youngest singer in the 22-member choir is 5; the oldest, 31.
>>>
>>> There are 40 kids in Mount Nebo's basketball league, and nearly 100 kids 
>>> attended a recent youth summit at the church.
>>>
>>> Henderson has baptized about 50 people since September 2005.
>>>
>>> "We've had kids join and their parents join afterwards," he said.
>>>
>>> "The spirit of this place is unbelievable. There's no friction, no 
>>> strife, no animosity."
>>>
>>> Henderson wants to minister at Mount Nebo full time. But right now the 
>>> church has other needs, like financing transportation to and from 
>>> services.
>>>
>>> The church was recently donated two acres of land, on which Henderson 
>>> hopes to someday see a new sanctuary and family life center, along with 
>>> a park featuring basketball courts and an amphitheater.
>>>
>>> All that depends on the availability of funds, now limited because of 
>>> the young age of many of Mount Nebo's newest members who have created a 
>>> thriving church body.
>>>
>>> "I have a passion for young people because they have it so hard. They're 
>>> faced with more obstacles. They have a lot more tearing them down," 
>>> Henderson said.
>>>
>>> Henderson is former unit director of a Boys and Girls Club after-school 
>>> program at First Baptist Church of Spartanburg's Hangar.
>>>
>>> Mount Nebo has formed partnerships with Spartanburg High School and 
>>> Whitlock Junior High School.
>>>
>>> Henderson tells teens "God created them for a purpose," and that they 
>>> can make a difference.
>>>
>>> "We all are ministers. These kids are ministers. I tell them that."
>>>
>>> During last week's sermon, titled "God Can Turn It Around," Henderson 
>>> assured churchgoers God could help them overcome the problems they face. 
>>> Whether it's trouble with overdue bills or grades, "[God] can part your 
>>> Red Sea," he declared.
>>>
>>> Henderson often tailors worship service messages to youth.
>>>
>>> Last week's sermon touched on peer pressure.
>>>
>>> "I know somebody who had more peer pressure in this world. Jesus!"
>>>
>>> When Henderson ended his message with an altar call, three people 
>>> stepped forward -- a young man and two youngsters.
>>>
>>> Henderson thinks many teens are drawn to Mount Nebo by the loving 
>>> message that they matter.
>>>
>>> "All kids want to be loved and accepted. They want to feel like they 
>>> belong. If the church doesn't give them a place to belong, the world 
>>> will."
>>>
>>> Kim Kimzey can be reached at 562-7264 or [log in to unmask]
>>>
>>>
>>> http://www.goupstate.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061203/NEWS/612030310/1028/LIFE
>>>
>
>
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