THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

       'Twas the night before Christmas at Church on the Rise. Not a person was listening, not even the sound guys. The violins were not here yet. Their concert went long. The trumpets were asking if they play on that song. The keyboard player was gone to study for class. The drummer was encased in a big wall of glass. The vocalists were ready, but each held a child. The percussionist pondered spicy or mild. The guitarists were busy preparing their minds, by playing guitar riffs of various kinds. The bass player was the first to get there again, but his decibels went past a hundred and ten.
       New carpet was covering the stage in the school. Still it wobbled much worse than a two legged stool. Practice did not go well, we kept having to stop. The power would kick off if someone bought a pop. The lights were so dim that they were playing a trick, for the man who approached us looked just like Saint Nick. Though his beard was gray, not white, he did have a sack. Well, more like a big suitcase that was colored black. He did not dress like Santa, just pants and a shirt, and to lose weight that quickly must really have hurt.
       "Hey trumpets, bass, guitars and violins let's go. Come singers, drums keyboards, and percussion also."
       There could be no mistaking the voice that we heard. It was the worship leader who just gave the word. The case which he carried was not full of gifts. We were going to spread Jesus to some of these stiffs. He set up his piano and took off his coat, then drank a little coffee, and cleared out his throat.
       Then in ran the string trio with bows in their hands. The horns took a deep breath while adjusting their stands. The keyboardist was back now, her homework complete. The drummer was starting to remember the beat. The singers were excited with kids in good care. We thought he left for dinner, but congas were there. Guitar amps were ready to handle the power, and the bass had been ready for nearly an hour.
       The temperature was great, the stage oddly strong. We could sense in the air that it would not be long. We huddled together with shoulder to shoulder. As each of us prayed we got bolder and bolder. We broke with an AMEN and a joke, maybe two, then went back to our stations to wait for our cue. The pastor was real happy that we were all there, but then the worship leader just started to stare. He had just stopped to think what a wonderful bunch. God would do something awesome, he just had a hunch.
       The people were standing just aching to shout. Forget snack-n-yack this is what church is about. Thumbs up at the soundboard, a nod from the pastor, four clicks from the drums and the music got faster. The worship leader looked out to speak to the crowd, "Now shout if you love Jesus! It's time to get loud! Come on all you people, ha ha ha ha allright! Merry Christmas to all, now let's praise God tonight!"

All I want for Christmas is for somebody to sign my guestbook.