Isn’t it amazing the variety of places and means that God uses to speak to us?

One of my favourite TV programmes is “Inside the Actors’ Studio”. It is hosted by James Lipton, himself an accomplished director, choreographer and producer. As the dean of the studio, he asks probing questions of the movie stars and also encourages his studio audience of trainee actors to fire a “no-holds-barred” salvo at the guest.

I like the programme for a whole host of reasons; as a communicator myself, it is intriguing to see the parallels between the discipline of acting and the craft of preaching.

While the main thrust of Inside the Actors’ Studio is to explore the professional life of the actor, perhaps here in the UK we are more used to Michael Parkinson as he invites his guests to speak not only of their film and theatre careers, but also of their personal lives. How very often I’ve been disappointed to discover that the heroes of the latest blockbuster have feet of clay in the real world. They illustrate so clearly the danger of “allowing your gift to take you where your character won’t keep you”!

Recently, however, I heard of a great interview with the English actor, Michael Caine. He told of a lifetransforming experience, very early in his acting career. He was about to film a scene which began with him entering a room. Unknown to him, the previous scene shot in that room had involved a fight sequence. The set technicians, by mistake, had left an overturned chair in the doorway as they began filming. Caine opened the door, took one look at the obstacle, came out of character and said “Cut!”

The set was rearranged and the scene was then filmed successfully. However, later that day, the film director discussed the incident with Michael and asked him why he had stopped filming. Caine explained that the unexpected chair completely threw him, and that stopping seemed the only way out of the problem.

The next few words the director spoke to him, not only changed his philosophy of acting, but also changed his take on living. “Michael,” he said, “use the difficulties. If we had been filming a farce, you could have responded to the problem by tripping over the chair. If we had been working on a thriller, you could have picked it up and hurled it across the room.”

Caine went on to say that those words of wisdom changed his life.

3000 years ago King David discovered something very similar, which he describes in this way: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.”

Here at Bible School our students have given me a visual aid to help with the lectures. It is a flashing red light, and they have asked me to turn it on whenever I say, as I apparently do quite often, “95% of Christians do not know what I am about to tell you!”

As I type these words, I have just turned on that flashing red light! You see, David tells us that several things often come together in our experience: a valley, deep darkness, paralysing fear, a whole bunch of enemies—and a table! The table, of course, speaks of nourishing food and nourishing food is one of the means by which we grow.

Isn’t that amazing? The very place where we may experience fear is the place God wants us to grow! The dark roads of life, with enemies all around, is the arena in which He is doing His best work in us. Although most of us much prefer the sunny uplands of experience, the truth is that we learn far more about God in the darkness, far more about life and far more about ourselves; than we ever do in the sunshine.

So I guess it doesn’t matter where you heard it first; whether in a TV interview, or a 3000-year-old song: “Use the difficulties”. “Lean hard on Him” and you’ll become a more authentic player in the studio of life.