Finish Your Set!

We must finish our sets.

Sometimes we learn life lessons from scholars and authors, teachers and the age. Today I learned valuable lessons from a popular pop star: 

This past week, I watched a documentary and learned valuable lessons from a man who sings songs I mostly don’t listen to. His name is Justin Timberlake.
Master Class is about life lessons and what you learn along the way. We all have a story, and we all can learn from each other.
Lately, I have struggled with being a woman in a man’s world. Writing heavy teaching books is a tedious balancing act; other times, it’s a labor of love. Often, I am met with encouragement, other times with perplexing curiosity and alarm. Some of the scriptures I expound on go against the grain of Christianity.
One day no one will need a teacher.

“And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, and everyone his brother, saying, ‘KNOW THE LORD,’ For all will know me, from the least to the greatest of them” (Hebrews 8:11 NASB).

Worrying about what people think about us can cause us to become stagnant and not finish what we were meant to do. Thanks to Justin Timberlake and my Abba Daddy, tonight, I found some more wisdom in this area.
Justin Timberlake got his start on the Mickey Mouse show with a slew of others who are now famous actors and musicians. After some early success, his mother sat him down at a young age and told him, “Justin you have a gift, and because of that gift life will be harder in some ways for you because you will have to work hard at staying humble. Justin, always remember that doesn’t make you better than others.”
Wise words from his mother!
One day after Justin had made it to the top, he received a call from Mick Jagger, the lead singer of the Rolling Stones, asking him to perform with them in Toronto. This was a huge event and topping the list of performers that day were AC/DC, Rush, the Guess Who, as well as a list of other well-known rockers. Justin told the producers that he didn’t think his type of music was a fit, but Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and the rest of the band pressed him to perform. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so he agreed.
However, when Justin took the stage that night, he was booed and met with angry beer bottles being hurled. Instead of walking off the stage, he continued to sing. At one point, the producers were asking him in his earpiece if he wanted to stop performing. He said, “No, I am going to finish my set!” A tad later, same question. “No, I am going to finish my set!” As the crowd continued to chuck items at him and boo, he finally managed to finish. He walked off the stage, looked at the rough crowd, and sighed.
Later on, in the show, Mick Jagger’s asked him to come out on stage with them and perform a song. He tried to explain to Mick that the crowd was not into his music and that he wasn’t so sure it was a good idea, but he would do it if he were connected to Mick’s hip.
Sure enough, he came out, and at one point in the clip, you see a beer bottle fly right between them, both barely missing Justin and Mick. Then suddenly, something happens. Yes, abruptly, Keith Richards walks down to the front of the stage, points at the guy who threw the last blazing bottle, and says, “Throw it at me!” I dare you to throw at me %^&&^%!
The crowd mellowed out and, with respect, watched Justin and Mick sing a duo.
As I watched that portion of the master class, I suddenly realized that not everyone would like my words or agree with my melody, but I am going to finish my set, and so should you. And if the crowd gets too out of hand, I know one thing for sure, I will stay connected to the hip of my Savior, Yeshua, and when it seems the darkest and I am met with boos and bottles, my Father, Abba Daddy, will step up and protect me– “Throw it at me.”
I already have a fantastic husband, friends, and family who stand beside me and support me. How blessed I am.
I don’t know what type of flower you are. I don’t know what soil you grow best in or what scent you evoke, but I do know that not everyone is going to like you or your aroma. I love dandelions, but many people try and poison them yearly. If you were born to do something and, in your gut, you know it’s what you were created to do, by all means, finish your set! And if you get booed, just remember you’re in good company.
“…but they kept on calling out, saying, “Crucify, crucify Him!” Luke 23:21 NASB.