The first night’s performance was FLAWLESS.  Everyone was on their game, perfect line delivery, set changes went smoothly — we received a STANDING OVATION from approximately 250 audience members.  It was simply amazing.

The second night . . .egads.  Dropped lines, and a major set change sounded like a herd of buffaloes behind the curtain.  However, the 150 or so people there seemed oblivious and while there was no standing ovation, applause was good and I think they enjoyed their evening in spite of the not quite as good as the night before performance.

I’ve been told by several theater types, those in the know, you know . . .that the second night is always worse than the first or any subsequent nights.  Basically, the cast and crew are holding their breaths on opening night because they are so nervous and want to get it right.  When all goes well, they relax the second night and then the mayhem begins.  The mayhem shakes them up so badly that they are on their toes again from that point forward. 

I sure do hope so, because Opening Night was so incredible, I really want the last two performances to go so beautifully.

Please, pray for us and for successful nights from here on out!

On a more spiritual note, this morning’s sermon was meant for me.  (I’m sure everyone feels that way to some degree, but I am so glad I got my lazy bum out of bed and made it to church . . . )

Pastor taught on “true worship” — not the 45 – 60 minutes of music before every sermon.  But the kind of worship that you live 24/7.  The “in spirit and in truth” kind of worship.  He asked if anyone knew what that phrase “in spirit and in truth” meant.  He went on to explain that “spirit” is with a small “s” — so the Bible is not talking about the Holy Spirit, but about the spirit in man.  And how we’re supposed to worship in “spirit,” meaning from the very depths of our hearts.  Not just a shallow standing in the pew singing a couple of songs while we’re thinking about what we’re going to have for lunch or the laundry we need to do . . . but the kind of worship that comes from the deepest place in our soul, where our entire focus is on God.

The “truth” part comes from worshipping our heavenly Father because of who He is . . .not because of our circumstances.  Even though we may be struggling in some areas — for example, finances, or health, or whatever . . . we worship in truth because we know that He is our Provider, our Healer, etc.  Our circumstances do not change who God is — it will always be true that He is all those things.  And though we may be going through a rough patch, we worship in truth knowing that He will take care of us, even if circumstances tempt us to think differently.

Anyway, it really hit home with me that everything I say and do can be a form of worship to my heavenly Father.  Living a life that will result in His saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant . . .”  That is true worship.