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The Rock Concert I’ve always loved live music. I’ve been to hundreds of concerts over the years. Rock, jazz, blues, country, Christian, you name it. To me, music sounds better live. But it’s not simply the sound, it’s the whole atmosphere that I love. Years ago, and well before I was married, I went to a huge concert with a friend. We went into the bar next door, mainly to keep warm while waiting for the concert doors to open. Feeling the chill, we decided to have a beer or two. Or three. Not being regular drinkers, we eventually wove our way to the concert on foot, well-lit and ready to have a good time. The band that night was amazing. I had pit tickets, and the area in front of the stage was crammed with rocking humanity. I don’t think you could have fallen on purpose and made it to the floor. The music was loud, and the crowd was wild. I only noticed her because I heard yelling. Apparently, she had been working her way through the crowd without much success when an obviously intoxicated woman took offense. She unloaded a string of obscenities at the young lady and then roughly shoved her back into the crowd. I thought for sure that punches would be thrown, but then the young lady looked my way. I guess she saw my concerned look or maybe just a friendly face, but from 10 feet away and separated by 30 people, we made a connection of sorts. She grinned, sent the angry lady and her friends an apologetic look, pointed at me, and then headed my way. She made it through the crowd and finally reached my side. Dressed to the hilt, with little regard for modesty, she leaned into me and yelled into my ear, “That lady was crazy!” I smiled and nodded. She leaned into me again, then turned around, pressing her body against mine. Warmed by the fire of the beers, the loud music, and this beauty who had turned to me for help, I gave into the moment and moved with her to the rhythm of the dance. Spellbound by her beauty and untamed passion, who was I to question such good fortune? For 10 or 15 minutes we danced, moving with the music and the crowd, as if no one else mattered. Then I heard the voice… “She is my daughter.” I turned to see who had spoken, but no one was there. At least none of the hundreds of people around seemed to be paying attention to me. I looked back at the girl. She looked up at me, smiled again, and moved even closer. I forgot the voice and moved with her to the fever of the dance. “She is my daughter,” the voice said again, louder, and more forcefully this time. I checked again – no one nearby was looking at me. Who is your daughter and who are you? I thought, starting to get agitated. “I am your Father, and she is my daughter,” the voice said. “See her as I see her.” 10 • SURRY LIVING April 2022 Issue
by Larry VanHoose My hair seemed to stand on end and a chill ran down my back. He – is here? I looked down at the dancing beauty one more time. She was His daughter? She hadn’t yet noticed that I was no longer dancing. Her eyes were closed as she moved with the beat, abandoned to the music and the passion of the dance, lost to the moment. She may have been lost, yes, but for the first time I realized that she was His lost daughter. For me, that changed everything. She looked up at me, smiling, then her expression turned to concern. “What is it?” she yelled into my ear. “Where were you going?” was all I could think to say. “What do you mean?” “When I first saw you.” She laughed. “Oh – to the bathroom. Do you know where it is and how I can get out of here?” I pointed toward the gate where the security guard stood. I could see him clearly, but she must have been too short. She shook her head, so I held her hand tightly and led her through the crowd. We made it to the gate unmolested and she smiled at me, tugged my hand, and said something I couldn’t hear. I shook my head and motioned for her to go on. Before I had a chance to react, she kissed me full on the mouth and then turned to go. I watched as she went up the long flight of stairs and out of my life. “She is my daughter,” He said one last time. “You should love her, but only as I love her. Over time others will come to you who need help. Remember to love them as I love them – for their sake, not yours.” “This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us (1 John 4:10-12 NLT)." (Editor's Note: The above is a reprint of an article originally published in the June, 2018 issue of Surry Living Magazine)
