MusiCalifornia

Every couple of years Tammy, my supervisor, goes to a christian music conference to try and find some good christian, urban, youth choral music. This is apparently hard to do, but every once and a while something pops out of the Brooklyn Tabernacle or Nashville. All this to say this time she decided to go to MusiCalifornia which also has a drama track which means she brought me along.
The day after Easter Tammy, Sherri (A local church's choir director), and I hopped on a plane and landed in the MusiCalifornia. During the next few days I went to lots of theatre and video seminars and an occasional music seminar if Tammy needed to be in two places at once. Most were good, some were great, and others left something to be desired. Now, at the end of the three day marathon event I get to reflect.
I discovered church dramas are one of two things: short skits or slightly longer short skits about Christmas/Easter. Of course there are some full length plays/musicals out there, but they are pretty cheesy. (At this place some may think I am going to rant about how awful christian theatre is, but that is not true. They have there place and purpose but they fail to ring true with relevance to my urban kids.) I even asked one of the seminar instructors if there was anything out there which urban kids can relate. She said she didn't know of anything but she would look for me. The next day she said she thought of a great idea for me, "You should write the show." ......................... what?! This was first reaction, but I get it now. I should write a show. I just expected her "great" idea to be something more along the lines of, "I found you a great show" or "there is a great passage in Matthew that deals with inner-city youth." This would have been a little easier, but hey, why not write a show! (footnote: in college I wrote a show called the The Tinker's Toy and the play was worse than the title.)
I am now praying, reflecting, thinking about how to run with this. I know God wants to be glorified through these young kids. I know He wants them to understand how much He sacrificed for them. How the giving of His son frees them from the guilt of the disturbed lives they've been suckered into living. How can a play do this? What play can do this? This is what I ask God.

Prayer Requests

• For guidance and discernment about script material for students
• Continued growing friendships with the guys I take home after choir
• Car situation
• My Grandma
• Support Raising
• PAA Parent's Night this Thursday!

Thank you all. It encourages me to know that you care enough to read about life on the north side, and to know you pray.

eric