My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to you; and my soul, which you have redeemed. (Ps 71:23)
I am surrounded by quite a bit of young talent. By young, I mean all under the age of 25! Many still in high school, some even in middle school. But that is not uncommon for me. I love music so therefore I would be strange for me NOT to be around talented singers and musicians. No, I am not a "groupie"; most assuredly I am a "friend".
About a hundred years ago, when I was a Girl Scout leader, the school where my Brownie Troop attended had an annual "Lip Sync" ~ the kids signed up as a group and preformed today's worship video "Joyful, Joyful" taken from "Sister Act 2". They did a fantastic job and brought down the house. Back then, I didn't realize that what I was doing was in direct violation of the laws of the State of New Jersey (not to mention, the entire USA). I brought "God" into that auditorium that evening!
The girls who participated in that event are now in their twenties - some of them are even "friends" on Facebook (which really makes me feel old). They are wives and mothers (some) and college students and productive members of society. I would love to think that the single most important thing that they took away from our time together was that there is always an opportunity to serve God. I'm sure they look back and think "it was fun"!
We are all given the opportunity to sing the praises of he who has freed us and redeemed our souls! Young people need to be who they are, but they can still lift their voices, make each other laugh and do it with praise to our Heavenly Father. I have spent this past weekend witnessing just that. Young people standing with heads bowed at the start of a birthday party celebrating thirteen years of life; single men and women gathered in the fellowship hall of a church, being entertained by teenagers who tested their knowledge of Bible characters (and doing a great job at it), comedy skits and the likes, all done in a wholesome and uplifting manner.
The point here is that you do not have to give up the things that you enjoy to serve God. These young people obviously haven't, so why would you? Worship and service to God only ADDS to the joys of your life! Many of the things that I "thought" were funny, that I "thought" I enjoyed have been replaced with something more fulfilling, more in "tune" with the life I lead today. I still "laugh out loud" and sometimes double over in pain from the laughter! In all that I do, I give the glory to God ~ the laughter, the tears, the good food and fellowship, the moments of quiet and isolation - all to HIM - and in turn, he blesses me! You can still be a part of the family of God and maintain your individuality. He created us individually, so why would you think he would want you to be anything else?
