When I grow up (AKA when I retire), I want to go into ministry full time. Until then, I’m amazed at how God uses my current work as a performing arts director to speak to and through me.
It’s currently 2:18AM, and I woke up with a profound connection that the Spirit brought to my attention. We always look at Hollywood and movies and make comments like, “They are so far away from Jesus,” but they really aren’t. God’s fingerprints are covering the scenes.
We are a race so quick to judge people. I think the reason I woke up to start with was that God put a former student on my heart. This student was in trouble all through high school and even more trouble all through his adult life. He cried out of desperation for acceptance. He came from a home where his parents worked constantly. He wasn’t the smartest, most attractive, most athletic, or most outgoing kid in the school halls. At work, he was easily distracted so his work ethic slacked. In every facet, he just wanted to matter. We met based on his obsession with musical theater. He knew musicals better than I did: the setting, the moral, the score, and the characters.
WEST SIDE STORY-He knew that Tony was created to lead. The world encouraged him to lead a gang of boys to fight to keep rights that were threatened to be shared. Instead, he was hated for his desire to fight for civil justice because he loved the enemy. He broke the law, and ended up murdered.w
PHANTOM OF THE OPERA-The Phantom was born into a world immediately unwanted by his physical deformities. The world saw him as a monster created by mistake. He longed for friendship, guidance, peace, and belonging. Instead, he was hidden. He became defensive, defiant, possessive, a stalker and a murderer.
DEAR EVAN HANSEN-Evan, despite his own mental disabilities, was a dreamer. He didn’t act like everyone else, his home didn’t have 2 parents, and his income didn’t match everyone else’s. He was kind, but to the world, that wasn’t enough. He was a target. A misunderstanding led him to accept a position in the spotlight as a liar, a manipulator, and an instigator.
WAITRESS-Jenna was beautiful on the outside. She focused more on others than herself. This amazing quality led to a crippling defeat. Her husband took advantage of her, and his alcohol obsession led to her routine abuse. Her physical appearance became overran by her emotional hideousness. She was a homewrecker, emotionally defeated, and a fornicator.
HAMILTON-We read in history that Aaron Burr was intelligent. He was a perfectionist that did everything as he was supposed to, but that wasn’t good enough. He was easily distracted and constantly reminded that he wasn’t good enough. He struggled with a competitive temptation that led him to his defeat in office and in life. He was a murderer, a coward, and ran from himself for the remainder of his life.
LES MISERABLES- Javert was resilient. He got out of his childhood poverty to become something great in the world’s eyes. He became a servant of the law. However, his desperation of acceptance in the eyes of the people led him to destruction. He pushed back a constant nausea of the past to justify the standards of the law. He was obsessive, prideful, manipulative, alone, unstable, and immediately took his own life.
My student has played several of these roles—and really well, might I add. I never stopped to ask myself why. I focused on the “good of the show” and wrote it off as talent. Talent played a big part but so did character connection.
As I said, this student came from a home where he was often forced to be alone. He craved attention from anyone, at a positive or negative cost. What he wanted was acceptance, but what he settled for was attention. He was an abuser, a prisoner, and attempted to take his own life many times.
Looking over all these characters, they all wanted one thing: love. This love is what we are all designed to be able to give one another. We were created in the image of God. 1 John 4:8 says, “God IS love.” So we are created to love! Jesus says it’s the second most important commandment of all time…to love your neighbor. You don’t always like your neighbor. Most neighbors are quirky and nothing like you. But you love them, and love them hard…as if it’s the second most important thing you do each day.
We know that God is not human. He doesn’t do things as humans normally reason to do things. During Jesus’s time on earth, He didn’t reason to do things the way humans did things. This is probably why most of the gospels are covered with city teachers and leaders trying to back him in a corner and his own best friends, the disciples, bashing his every move.
The world: Tony is a lawbreaker and a murderer.
Jesus: Tony is Paul. I can use him.
The world: The Phantom of the Opera is defiant, possessive, a stalker and a murderer.
Jesus: The Phantom is Joseph. I can use him.
The world: Evan is a liar, a manipulator, and an instigator.
Jesus: Evan is Martha. I can use him.
The world: Jenna is a homewrecker, emotionally defeated, and a fornicator.
Jesus: Jenna is the Samaritan woman. I can use her.
The world: Aaron Burr was a murderer, a coward, and ran from himself for the remainder of his life.
Jesus: Aaron is David. I can use him.
The world: Javert is obsessive, prideful, manipulative, alone, unstable, and immediately took his own life.
Jesus: Javert is Zacchaeus. I can use him.
We justify our distance by saying, “We don’t want to get messed up with the wrong people.” We call ourselves disciples of Christ, and we are. Sometimes we sound just like them:
“Just then the disciples returned and were surprised to find talking with a [Samaritan] woman.” -John 4:27
“People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them.” -Matthew 10:13
“So his disciples came to Him and urged Him, ‘Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.’” -Matthew 15:23
Yup; guilty. I know these musical characters are all fictional (well-Aaron Burr was a real dude with some real trauma), but how different their situations would have been if Jesus had been in their stories. They were surrounded by worldly people who treated them just as Satan encouraged them to selfishly treat them, and then justified their actions by claiming, “God gave us common sense.” How many Jenna’s, Tony’s and Javert’s are in your day today? Are you carrying the Light in you that loves them the way Jesus would?
It’s a matter of Love of People versus Loving People. “From that time on Jesus began to explain to the disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law…” -Matthew 16:21
My student is gonna be fine because you’re gonna love Him through this season and rough card he was dealt. He’s gonna come out with a testimony that will save. How do I know this? I was loved through mine.
Write Tony a card. Invite the Phantom out to dinner with a group of friends. Send Evan a text letting you know he’s awesome. Go on a walk with Jenna at the park. Collaborate with Aaron on a service project. Go to the movies with Javert.
The second most important commandment is a pretty big deal. Showing Jesus is showing love. Everybody needs Jesus. Everybody needs love.
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