Greetings (sometimes you gotta switch it up from “Hello all”)! Thank you all for you continued support! We’re already past my first goal of $5000! What?! Man, God has truly been providing. If you wish to continue to give, or you know someone who may want to donate, just go to the homepage of my blog and hit the DONATE button at the top of the page! There you can give a one time donation OR select monthly giving. If you choose to give monthly, all you have to do is enter the amount you wish to donate and the computer takes care of the rest! You won’t have to go in the same day every month because the computer will do it automatically! Thank you so much to all who have either given through donations or participated in any of my yard sales/fundraisers so far!
I wanted to keep the fun blog topics going and today’s topic is (drum roll): What I would tell my high school self!
High school Caleb, theatre (theater?) is not everything.
DISCLAIMER: I do not believe theatre is bad. Idolatry is what kills.
I wasn’t popular or captain of the football team, I was a theatre kid. I got to do shows like Annie Get Your Gun, Mary Poppins, You Can’t Take It With You and many more. Even after high school, I had the amazing opportunity to play as Spot Conlon professionally in Alluvion Stage Company’s production of Newsies. I felt alive when I was on stage. My favorite moment from stage would have to be opening night of Newsies. In act 2, all hope seems lost for the newsboys until the Brooklyn newsies come in to (help) save the day. The lights are down, Brooklyn’s Here begins to play, the music builds, and then lights up on all the newsies with me (Spot) dead center, the crowd cheers. It was probably the best feeling ever, not gonna lie. Which makes a great transition to my next paragraph.
Newsies cast, me front-left, picture from Liberty Champion paper, all rights to original publisher and Alluvion Stage Company
All About Me:
It was all about me. I worked and worked to be better than the next guy. I was jealous/envious of every other person I met. Not to say I haven’t made some amazing friendships throughout my time in the theatre. But, ultimately, everything was about me. I didn’t have time for anyone or anything else because I would hurl myself into rehearsing either at school/the theatre and then I’d make myself do it more at home. Needless to say, I may have gotten a few avoidable injuries. But I was obsessed! Now, don’t get me wrong, theatre is not inherently bad or wrong. But It was a idol and a half, which is what killed me, in the end.
I knew Jesus at this time and I was surrounded by a wonderful community of believers while in Newsies but I was using theatre to try and find something that only truly comes from Jesus. I was looking for validation, a place to belong and the trouble was that I had to constantly prove to others that I in fact belonged there. Exhausting doesn’t begin to describe it.
Mary Poppins: (left-to-right) Jack Schonfelder, Mason Williams, Grace Amato, me
Not about me:
God asked me to give it up. Which seemed crazy because it was what I loved to do! I had plans to further my talents, build my resume, and pursue a life of performing. But it was about me living a life I wanted and not allowing God to move through me to build his kingdom. At my church we have these things called “serving values”. They are reminders, backed up by scripture, as to why we serve the way we do. One of the values is: not about me. This just means that we live and serve in such a way that we move where the Spirit is calling even if it proves to be inconvenient for us.
acting as pirates for our kids ministry christmas service
I had to make a choice: a life I planned and dreamt of OR the life God was calling me to. I should mention that it was around this time that God really started to put missions on my heart. Missions was something I always thought about and always thought cool but was never in a place to actually pursue it. I chose to follow where God was calling me. Little did I know that, almost a year later, I would be gearing up for the World Race! I miss performing every now and then but nothing compares to the joy I have when I am faithfully serving and following where God is calling me. I can still use the gifts God has given me within ministry. One of the ways I serve is to be acting on stage at my church or choreographing songs for our kids to worship to. It is an entirely different, more glorious, world to be using my gifts to glorify God and not myself.
Maybe, one day, I’ll return to the stage outside of my church. But for now, I am excited to see how God will build his kingdom in the coming months.
