The Pay Off of Excellence

I haven’t been able to walk down a set of stairs for over a week. I can go up; I just can’t go down…without experiencing a great deal of pain. But as I think about it, I’m absolutely fine and okay that I can’t do it. Because this pain reminds me of the fabulous joy that I’ve been experiencing.

I tore both my meniscus several years back. The right one from jumping on a trampoline, the left one from line dancing. It’s left me with a bit of discomfort and limitations. I can’t run and I can’t lift heavy stuff. Or my lack of meniscus makes itself known. But this week and last week I didn’t care because I have been having the time of my life.

As previously mentioned in last week’s thoughts, I’m in the midst of getting ready for our annual Ultimate Christmas Party. A party that kicks off the Christmas season here at my church, Heartland Church in Sun Prairie. This will be our 5th year of taking over the three Sunday services, adding two Saturday night services, as well. And it’s a blast. There are games and competitions and a Mad Lib and the story of Jesus’ birth told in a crazy, creative way. There’s also the opening music numbers sung by our worship team and danced by our kids.

The first year of throwing this party we could barely get any kids to sign up. We begged, borrowed and bribed to just get 12 kids to agree to be in it. Most of them were staff’s and key volunteer’s kids who had no choice. This year, we had 40 sign up. There would have been more but the dance came with a commitment that they would attend all rehearsals which included 8:00 am on Sunday mornings plus dress rehearsal plus the 5 services over Saturday and Sunday. 40 kids! And I was terrified!! I thought how in the world is little ‘ole me (and I mean “ole” me) going to do this? How can I wrangle 40 kids which include BOYS to pay attention and learn?

Well, let me tell you, from the moment they arrived and I began teaching, they locked in. And I found myself jumping and bouncing and moving and grooving, never giving my meniscuses - or lack thereof - a thought. Because it was magical. We were all in this together, working toward an experience that we couldn’t wait to share with others.

This morning I was reminded of my time at Willow Creek Community Church, where this life of stage and rehearsals and performing (my doing dramas) began. We were always inspired to bring our best. Because excellence invites excellence. No one wants to come to something that is baked with half commitment. No one wants to sign up for something that could be embarrassing. People will come when they see and experience something well rehearsed, filled with life and exuding joy. An experience that honors God, honors the audience, and honors the participants. These kids know that they are in on something spectacular and so they give me their best.

So what if I can't walk down stairs? Who cares? It’s a worthy sacrifice to get to spend a few hours with a bunch of kids who are experiencing, maybe for the first, what it means to bring excellence to an experience at church. And my hope is that one day, like me, they’ll look back and remember that they were a part of something amazing that maybe made a difference in someone’s life. Because they chose to bring the best of themselves.