Bringing out the best

Many years ago, when I was a first year undergraduate, I wanted to be a theatre director.  After many years of acting, and hot on the heels of literary study, that was my chosen career. I wanted to be there in the wings, surrounded by immensely talented people and watching from the sidelines as my careful coaching enabled them to shine and sparkle.  Events took a different turn, and I found myself training as a Baptist Minister instead.

The thing is, much of the ambition has been realised. Like any vocation, mine has its ups and downs. There are moments, though, when I really feel as if I am watching from those fondly imagined wings as others shine like the stars they were always meant to be.  Last night was a case in point. Our evening worship was led by our Youth Leader and the young people whom she has nurtured and coached. They prayed, they led parts of the worship, they interviewed me about my feelings on preaching and how I handle them. A little later, after I had preached, a shy young man took to the microphone to tell his story. He explained that some of the hardest times and the worst experiences at school had led him to trust in God, and that it was now time for him to be baptised. As my colleague led in baptising him and his friends prayed for him I watched from the ‘wings’ and thanked God for the experience. To be there when God performs the alchemy of turning our base metal into gold is a rare and wonderful thing