Last month, I was in Arizona for my sister’s wedding. She owns two horses, Paint and Splash. Being the maid of honor, I traveled a few days ahead of the rest of my family,  and got to spend a lot of time with her before her big day.

While I was there, she taught me how to ride a horse; something I haven’t done since I was a pre-teen on a youth group trip. Needless to say, I was as beginner as it gets! I was surprised at how much there was to learn– it’s not just getting up into a saddle and saying, “Giddy up!” Turns out, there is a specific way of sitting in the saddle, holding the reins, and positioning your feet in the stirrups. Then, add in all the commands the horse understands. 

I remember being 20 years old at a Friday night worship service. It was an all-are-welcome event, so we brought the youth up from the church basement to be a part of it. In the middle of a song, I felt a little tap on my shoulder. I opened my eyes to see my Pastor, David Knapp, standing next to me. With a little smile on his face, he leaned down so I could hear him and said, “Do you think the youth band has a song they’d like to share?” At this point, we had a small youth band comprised of a handful of teens who were mostly self-taught in their instruments. Still, I nodded and he said, “I’ll let the team on the altar know that the youth are going to lead after the next song.”