Comedian Tim Hawkins said a turning point for him came when he realized he wasn’t in front of an audience to “get laughs.” He was there to “give laughter.”
His words kept echoing in my mind because there’s truth in them that we need. We’re all in front of an audience in some way these days. It could be when we post something on social media. It might be when we present during a meeting at work or tell a story around the dinner table with friends. Our natural human tendency in those situations is to ask, “What can I get?” We most likely don’t even do so consciously. But underneath we’re hoping for…
Approval
Affirmation
Applause
Here’s the reality we all must face: an audience can’t give us anything we don’t already have. It can’t heal our souls. It can’t fill us up. It can’t prove our worth. Just ask any celebrity who has found fame to be a curse rather than a cure. Instead, every time we find ourselves in front of an audience let’s see it as an opportunity to ask like Tim did, “What can I give?”
In a great paradox of life, when we are only out to get something we block our ability to receive. But when we open our hearts to pour out, we are in a position to be filled up as well. “Those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed” {Prov. 11:25}.
As long as we are trying to get something from an audience we will be afraid. Insecurity comes from believing someone else has the power to withhold or withdraw what we need most. Serving sets us free because we’re saying, “What I need comes from a higher source. You don’t have to give it to me. And you can’t take it away. Therefore I am free to love you.”
Continue reading at (in)courage…
