REFLECTING ON TRUE TALENT

NOTE FROM STEVE: I write three blogs, this being my general public blog. Today I am reprinting a piece from my devotional blog THRIVING IN CHRIST.


"Humble yourself in the eyes of the Lord, and in due time He will lift you up."
- 1 Peter 5:6

One of my favorite shows, AMERICA'S GOT TALENT, had its finale last night. There were five finalists: Voices of Glory, The Texas Tenors, Recycled Percussion, Barbara Padilla, and Kevin Skinner. Voices of Glory were a family of three African American kids who got their start singing for a seriously ill mother who was in a coma. Their voices and love brought healing to their mom, who was present that night. The Texas Tenors were three brothers who got together less than a year ago and began singing in part to honor their father. Recycled Percussion were bunch of crazies from a small town in New Hampshire--and they repeatedly shared the message, "Kids of America, you should not let small beginnings stop you from following your dreams." Barbara Padilla was a mother who survived cancer, went back to get her Masters degree in music, and sang out of a heart of faith to encourage other cancer survivors to never give up. Kevin Skinner was an out-of-work chicken catcher (you heard me right)who used his down time to sing and to spend time with his family, who were always a centerpiece in his life.

What impressed me was not simply the talent--incredible talent ... Barbara was a classical opera singer who will soon travel the world ... Kevin was a country singer whose voice astounded us with its heart and clarity ... what impressed me was the humility of each of these finalists. They didn't start out polished. A dream moved them but not a greedy ambition. They were supportive of one another. They were grateful for their opportunity. But most of all, they exhibited an incredible humility that never seemed to leave them. The two ultimate finalists - Barbara and Kevin seemed genuinely stunned by their success, and were filled with tears of joy.
No fist pumps, high fives, not a touch of arrogance. HUMILITY.

In a world of self-promotion, self-serving manipulation, celebrity arrogance, hard core drive for success ... genuine humility is both refreshing and itself a powerful lesson.

By the way, country won out over classics. Kevin Skinner was the winner of a contest that originally had 110,000 contestants.