My mom is obsessed with Phantom of the Opera. She sees it every chance she gets, but somehow, someway… I’ve never seen it live. Until last Thursday. Mom and Dad got me a ticket to see it in Kansas City.

I picked my parents up, and we headed downtown early to get some lunch. We ate at Cosentino’s Market just down the street from the Music Hall. We talked about the story of Phantom, and their past experiences with the story. I was already imagining the dropping of the chandelier!

As we walked up to the Music Hall, the Phantom of The Opera truck was on the side street. We took our picture in front of it, completely looking like a bunch of tourists. We had first row balcony box seats. Dead center. Wonderful seats.

Waiting for the orchestra to tune felt like hours, but finally we heard that wonderful Concert A ring out. People stopped milling about and grabbed their seats. Talking quieted down to a whisper. Every ear and eye focused on center stage.

Then there is THAT moment. That moment of silence. The theater goes dark. The audience breathes in. That moment right there. That mystical second and a half where we all know that something divine, something incredible is about to happen, and we are going to be a part of it.

The opening chimes of Masquerade fill the room and we are off…

We don’t need to be taught how to worship. We sometimes need to be reminded to prepare to worship. We need those shared moments to bring it to focus. This way we can share in the anticipation that something mystical, something divine is about to happen, and we are going to be a part of it.

The show was fantastic. Fascinating. I’ve been humming All I Ask Of You for days now, but my preparation and anticipation fed that experience. Part of the reason it was so wonderful was because I wasn’t going to let it be anything but that.

On Sunday morning, something mystical and divine happens, and we get to be a part of it…when we’ve prepared for it. When we stop and let the orchestra of our heart tune, when we take that breath to let the ‘curtain’ fall and get completely focused on what is about to happen. When we prepare for worship…that’s more than half the battle.