Amazing

Saturday and Sunday evening I had the opportunity to watch several performers and performance teams. All of them had one thing in common – their stage was a street — sometimes in a doorway, others in the middle of the avenue. The presentations ranged from the ridiculous to the sublime. I was reminded again that there is no shortage of talent in this World. There is a shortage of insight about how to make that talent available to those who could and would appreciate it.

Two or three times on Saturday evening I watched a young boy, maybe 6 or so years old, who was incredibly acrobatic as he danced  to the music of a  couple of really poor sounding bands of musicians (he was not with any of them as best I could tell, just using them, and others as the evening wore on). The music seemed unimportant as he performed with a huge smile, a rare talent for rhythm, and a supple body which he kept pounding into the pavement. Maybe he was being exploited (it appeared that way somewhat), but he seemed happy, and he was making money hand over fist. His “momma” was giving him drinks of water every few minutes, wiping his sweating face, and stacking up the money.

I heard some people play instruments – well, “play” is the wrong word. It was hurtful to listen, but they were trying – you gotta give ’em that. On another corner I stopped to listen to two young women (looked to be College age), one of whom was playing a guitar while the other, a violin. I am not sure I have ever heard better. They were great individually, and better together. I could not help but wonder if they were homeless, or College students earning a little “street” money. Maybe they were musicians from the local orchestra and it was a test to see if anyone noticed. They were spectacular – and, believe me, I know spectacular.

On both Saturday and Sunday I watched a team of four men who were acrobatic break dancers. They said they would be amazing – and they were. I was incredulous that anyone could do what they did – in the middle of a street. They looked like they could win “America’s Got Talent” going away.

It got me thinking about how much God gives to each of us. What we do with it defines who we are. There are so many wasted gifts, opportunities, lives, futures, and so much hope burned to dissolution by a lack of support, planning, and intelligence. I am convinced we all have so much within us, so much that God desires from us because of his generosity to us, and yet we waste such profound wonderfulness in so many frivolous ordinary ways.

If I were a promoter, an entrepreneur, a man of means with opportunities available, I would have worked all week-end signing up talent – undoubtedly coming to find that there is more, and maybe better, in every city on God’s beautiful Earth. God is good, and His gifts are so precious. Please, don’t waste them.