Christmas Production

Ever work so hard at something and then end up slightly disappointed with the result? And really, at the end of the day, it's out of your control, it's just how it went? That's how I felt after the Christmas performance (if we can call it that, as performing wasn't necessarily the focus), but I left with more than I had expected. A full heart.

For weeks, we had listened to songs, learned parts, and tried to understand the bigger picture. The band and vocalists would get together frequently and rehearse all the music for hours in anticipation of the day when it would all come together. At times it felt as if it never would. It was definitely a huge growing experience for everyone who was involved.


And then the dress rehearsal came. After all the blood, sweat, and sometimes tears, it was finally coming together. But there were some unexpected set backs. The worship leader at our church got into a terrible car accident. And while he was in tact and out of the emergency room on the day of the performance, he was stiff and sore. My heart ached for him. He put so much work into the whole thing, far more than I, and he wasn't able to participate to the capacity that he wanted to, and that we (thought) needed him to. And the day before the performance was really difficult. It was hard not to have a definite person to look to for direction, someone who had been there all along and who had lead every aspect of the production. Save for a few mishaps, everyone came together as best as possible. And by the end of it, we were feeling good. Stressed, maybe a little hurt and tired, but ok.


The day of, we did a quick dress rehearsal and most of it went much better than in past weeks. I got excited. It was almost over. The reason for all of this work was upon us, and then we could congratulate each other, hug each other, and move on to the next thing. We prayed as a community of worshippers before kick-off, and one guy in the room, a guy I don't know well but would love to know better, made an amazing point. First, he emphasized our thanks as a group to our leader. We could not have done it without him. He deserves to be acknowledged. My heart echoed his sentiments one million times, as I really appreciated being able to look to our team leader. And it was unfortunate that our leader couldn't join us for everything, but this guy went on to say that the devil will do whatever he can to hinder something as beautiful as this. The enemy will always try to throw us off our game, but we have victory. And no matter what happened that day, God would be glorified, and that really truly is the reason that we do any of this. Amen.

Need more rest, right here

The performance began. I have to say, I wasn't at all disappointed with the entire thing, I was mostly hard on myself when all was said and done. I felt that I did well during the rehearsal, and then didn't bring my A-game when it was time. I don't usually mess up too much, so messing up a little bit leaves me with some regret. But what happened by the end of it, no matter how many wrong chords or flat notes, was beautiful and moving. God moved. He swept in like a gentle breeze and took hold of the community. And we stood and worshipped in absolute awe of the miracle of Christmas, and the sovereignty of our Lord. Our senior pastor walked to the pulpit with tears in his eyes as he spoke. It was a spectacular scene. To be able to witness God work in the community, and especially in the soft hearts of this churches leaders was an awesome thing to be part of. 


It was relieving when it was all said and done. I think everyone felt like we had accomplished something, But what happened on the inside, underneath all the lights and music and coordinated clothing/accessories is what matters, and is something I won't soon forget. 


-SP