And, I couldn’t be prouder!
Today my mini me stepped out of her box. Well more like did a flying jump kick with a half twist out of the box. It was her first time on the big church stage with a mic in her hand.
My girl is adventurous. She has very little sense when it comes to self preservation. She’ll try anything fun at least once. I mean this kid used to flip off the furniture like she was a US gymnast in the Olympics for fun! She’s a little crazy.
But, she does shy away from performing in front of groups. She freaks herself out. Gets all up in her own head and creates an entire scenario of catastrophic proportions before any work is actually done. Knowing her like I do, I was prepared to talk her down and reassure, reassure, reassure.
Something strange happened instead. We sat, waiting for worship rehearsal to begin and my typically antsy child was as cool as a spring rain. All smiles and chatty as can be. Being mom, I could see fear crawling along the edges of her eyes when I handed her the microphone. I refused to let her psych herself out.
I kept her engaged the entire rehearsal. Reassuring hands on the shoulder. Smiles. Encouragement. Tips and tricks. We managed to get through rehearsal unscathed but I knew the moment she had too much time to think we’d be in trouble.
I watched. I waited. And then, I prayed. Simply put, I prayed for her peace. And then, the hour was upon us. Microphone in hand, smile in place, my momma heart soared as I watched my youngest dive into the world of leading worship. She was timid but I could hear her. And it sounded so sweet.
My kids have this crazy tendency to drive me nuts most days. I often tell them I’m going to stick them outside with a sign that reads “free to a good home”. But, there are moments, the ones of immense pride, when you realize for a brief shining moment that they are paying attention. In those moments, all of the lessons you try to teach, the wisdom you attempt to impart, the examples to hope to set shine bright as the sun.
My girl made me so proud today. She did something she wasn’t sure she wanted to do and did it well. If only she’d learn the lesson about using fewer words!
