Waiting for Air Time on The Voice

If you have a son or daughter who wants a career in the public eye, and they have an opportunity to be in the public eye, it is very hard to wait for that one big break that might make all the difference. 

The Voice is built on talent, suspense and surprise.  Mackenzie had a blind audition, and we knew they would show some auditions where no chairs turned, but we didn't know if hers would be chosen to air.  And air time is a big deal.  Artists who don't turn chairs but still get air time can get attention from PR agencies, managers, even labels.  But if you don't get air time, it's almost as if it never happened.

So we waited . . .

 

I'm not going to tell you how much time elapsed between her audition and the first episode of The Voice Season 4.  But it felt like decades.  DECADES.  And we couldn't talk to anyone about it except each other, and of course that gets old.  So a lot of anxiety built up.  I spent a lot of time praying and a lot of time referencing scriptures about waiting, like this one:

Isaiah 40:31:   They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Waiting on the Lord should renew my strength.  But I am awful at waiting.  For anything.  Ever.  And my strength didn't renew like it should have, because as I mentioned, I HATE WAITING.  That can be a major spiritual shortcoming.

But eventually, the first blind audition episode was aired, and the second, and the third . . . and the last.  No Mackenzie.  So here's the real challenge.  When I pin my hope for my child onto that one thing and the one thing doesn't happen, does my faith allow me to trust that God has something better?  It has to.  Because although they never stop being my "kids", they were God's kids first.

And so far, so good.  No labels have called, but she was allowed to post on social media that she auditioned.  There are a few seconds of us in a crowd shot, so we have proof that it actually happened! She is writing songs again, recording again, performing again, interning in the music business, and back to college.  She has a plan and it doesn't involve overnight success.

The main thing is, as a parent, I have to remember two things when my child's dream doesn't unfold exactly as planned.  First, it is their dream.  Not mine.  Even when my heart breaks for them, it can't break more than theirs does.  Second, God's got this.  In every stage of my life, when my major disappointments have come and gone, I've been able to look back and see how God used them for good for me.  As a Mom I have to remember that my kids need to learn that for themselves. I should not try to shield them from the heartbreaks that make them stronger.

As Mackenzie's roommate's dad said, "Nicole, sometimes life is just hard."  Truth.

One more thing: There's a contest now where +Mackenzie Elliott  can win the chance to open for some big time artists.  If you're interested, you can go to this site, create a login, and vote for her by clicking on the 5 stars.  Thanks!  http://www.gigg.com/w/18053