It’s A Wonderful Life!
I know this may be hard to believe, but last night I watched It’s A Wonderful Life with my daughter for the first time in my wonderful life! Shelby and I had never seen it before. I now know why it’s a Classic. I love the story! There were so many lessons to be learned about God’s love and His plan for your life. Too often we think that our lives are not amounting to much, like we’ve missed out on “the big thing”. We can get so defeated and discouraged when things don’t happen as quickly as we would like them, or how we thought they would happen. In the movie, George Bailey was ready to give up on life. It was interesting to me how when the angel Clarence asked if George was sick that the other angel said “No. Worse. He’s discouraged.” Discouragement is a dangerous emotion. It can bring people to do crazy things or give up and do nothing. It was amazing to see how rejuvenated George became when he realized that his life was making a difference and he did get to fulfill his dreams of building. It was priceless when he saw the town sign said Bedford Falls, not Pottersville. You can see the confidence in his heart through his eyes and the way he cheered. He finally saw his accomplishments! He knew his life was making a difference.
I saw this same confidence in my friend Kevin Pauls’ eyes at his Spirit of Christmas Event last week.
For years Kevin has put his heart and soul into singing. He has seen some good times, but nothing like this before! I was overjoyed to see my friend’s dreams come true, right before my very eyes. You see, Kevin and his wife Wendy are lifelong friends. He’s more like a brother than a friend. We have all been there for each other’s triumphs and heartaches. They helped me to not give in to discouragement by their words of encouragement and by the example they live. Kevin has never given up. I remember at a monumental birthday party (the big 4-0), Kevin’s brothers and cousins were “roasting” him and teasing, telling him to “get a real job”. I was thankful to be at the concert and see the pride in his siblings faces as they bragged on Kevin’s excellent performance! There are even talks of next year’s Christmas special being televised! I felt like I was at a Bing Crosby Christmas Special with better music! Kevin, Sharon Riley and The Faith Chorale, Tenore, Michelle Wright and the huge choir were all amazing!
I’m so thankful that Kevin never gave up in times of discouragement. I’m thankful for the example he is of moving forward and choosing to see the great possibilities that God has ahead! I’m thankful that God has the same potential in ALL of us for A Wonderful Life…if we don’t give up!
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 NIV
Here are some photos from THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS event. To check out more about Kevin Pauls and next year’s event, click on the links below:
