Thrown off ScriptSample

Day 4 - Yes!

Take any Improv 101 class, and you will hear the mantra of improvisers around the world: “Yes, And!” It’s an attitude that agrees to agree and add value, even in the face of the unexpected. If we are to improvise this unscripted life, “Yes, And” needs to be our gut reaction, too.

Whether or not you’ve visited a Budweiser plant, you are probably familiar with the signature Clydesdale horses Budweiser uses to pull their beer wagons around events. If you haven’t seen them in person before, let me tell you: they are big. Not like horses are big. No. Like, this beast could step on me and kick me into oblivion and not even notice. If the Clydesdales wanted to, they could kick down the fence and abscond with the entire beer wagon and there would be nothing anybody could do about it. But they don’t. These enormously powerful beasts have, for whatever reason, allowed us puny humans to tie ropes to them, attach wagons to them, and even braid their hair! Does this make them less powerful? No! They retain their strength, but they relinquish their will. There’s a simple word for this: meekness. Meek does not equal weak. Weakness is losing your will. Meekness means choosing to set it aside. 

Jesus displayed this strength in meekness the night he would be betrayed and sentenced to death. After recognizing his relationship with his Father and requesting his ideal, he said, “Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Jesus relinquished his will. And Jesus’ yes wasn’t only verbal. “Yes” is an action, and Jesus carried it all the way to the cross. 

Take it to God: Thank you, Jesus, for living a life of “Yes” to your mission on earth. Help me to live like that.

Take action: For one day, say “yes” to every interruption. I don’t mean to say “yes” to everything that is asked of you. Rather, pivot with each interruption, start listening, and see what opportunities you discover.