Everyone has
heard it said, “It is always darkest just before the dawn.” At Stained Glass Theatre, that period of complete darkness came as we finished our second season. We had hoped that with Terry Beasley on our
staff, we could turn things around.
Terry, our new warrior, hit the ground running and must have scared
Satan, for he began to heat up the battle.
Satan’s big “new weapon” (to us anyway) was serious internal
dissension: hurt feelings,
misunderstandings, and bitterness. It
was powerful and it took us completely by surprise; we did not even know how to
deal with it. For a few horrifying days, it seemed as if Satan had defeated
us. Then, as before, God stepped in and
worked a miracle. He brought healing and
opened our hearts to fill them with understanding and forgiveness. Only then could we see the real enemy: Satan.
Through God’s grace and love, we survived a nearly fatal blow, and we
were unified with the resolution that if we ever folded, we would at least go
down together.
 |
| Pat Edmonds and Terry Beasley |
We completed
the second season in July. By this time,
we were over $1800 in debt, in addition to a $2000 bank loan. We were far behind on salaries, and Pat
decided he must work outside the Theatre.
(The foolish boy thought he and his new wife needed to eat.) Facing two months of down time between
seasons, with rent, utilities, and loans to be paid, salaries to be met, and no
income except about $175 in monthly pledges and a few travel company bookings,
it looked as if we had come to the end.
All around was darkness. We
couldn’t even see the proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel.” We were weighted down with despair and
defeat.
On an
afternoon in July, Pat, Terry and I met in my back yard to decide the fate of
Stained Glass Theatre. The time had come
to either make plans for the third season or give up and quit. Honestly, giving up seemed like the best
option. It didn’t seem logical to keep
going against such odds. Yet deep within
me, something—God, I’m sure—kept saying, “Hold on! Hold on!”
After hours of discussing, we finally voted to go for the third
season. Out of desperation, we decided
to increase the number of plays per season from three to seven, feeling that
this might be the key to turn everything around. We knew that it would either work, or it
would kill us.
After our
backyard planning meeting, I was hanging on physically, but spiritually and
emotionally I was defeated. My mouth
said “yes” to a third season, but my heart said “no.” I felt all was lost, and I kept asking, “Why
go on if no one cares or attends?” Even
some of my best friends had never seen a show at SGT, which led me to believe
that even they didn’t care. Yes, I was
having a real “pity party.” I was weary,
defeated, and hurt. It was during this
time of personal struggle that God began to move in the spiritual side of my
life. Looking back, I know God was
preparing to break me spiritually. And
that would dramatically change both my life and the direction of the theatre.
Two weeks
later, with negative feelings still in my head, I went to Houston, Texas, to
participate in a national Christian theatre conference sponsored by the After Dinner Players. It was there that God
worked another miracle in SGT’s history.
The Lord brought me to my knees, shook me up, and filled me with the
power of the Holy Spirit by working through the spirit of Jeannette Clift George,
the founder and director of the A.D. Players. In Mrs. George, I could feel the love of
Jesus. I saw in her the Spirit-filled
leader that I should be. Through
Jeannette, God spoke to me and gave me an answer to my defeated heart. She said, “Just as Jesus asked the fishermen
to cast the net one more time, that is all He asks of us—to keep casting the
net. We don’t have to worry about the
catch. He will take care of the catch if
we are obedient and keep casting the net.”
The words were so simple, yet so powerful. God told me not to worry about the empty
seats at SGT, but rather to simply keep doing what I was called to do. I left the conference a new person: filled with answers and with His Holy Spirit.
This
experience may seem too personal to be included in the SGT story; however, the
change the Lord made in my life has so directly affected the theatre that I
felt it should be included [if people are] to fully understand the rest of the
story. Before that time, I had been
walking and leading SGT with my natural self, trying to make it work with my
own power. Now, I am walking in the
Spirit, relying on God’s power. Praise
the Lord for another miracle! [Thank
You, Father! Praise Your Holy Name! Jehovah!]
COMING
NEXT: OUR FIRST HOME OF OUR OWN
We move again
and experience yet another great miracle.
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