Three Rights Make a Left

This week I want to introduce you to a truly remarkable young lady, Makenzie Hyde. This weekend she played the lead role in Mary Poppins to sold out shows in the Greenville Municipal Auditorium attended by thousands. Her stage presence was captivating, and she sang with the voice of an angel. To be sure, she was one of a huge cast of dozens of characters that included her sister Larissa who also put in a stand-out performance. There were dozens more people who worked behind the scenes, including her mom and her dad who worked tirelessly building sets for the production. The musical was bolstered by a top notch performance by the orchestra directed by Eilene Wiemar.

Musicals are a long tradition in Greenville and are beloved and well supported by people in Hunt County. I was impressed that it is one of the things that bind the community together. I was also impressed that there was one performance that is open to the public where theater goers could go for free and give a donation if they could. At the end of the performance, an announcement was made that this November the next musical will be Frozen II, and auditions would take place soon. So, keep checking the Greenville Municipal Auditorium Calendar for tickets if you would like to go.

Lori and I took our three grandkids, Harper, Isaac and Silas, our son Kaleb along with his wife Amanda, her sister Lori and her two daughters Delila and Malory. Their ages range from 5 to 10 and I tell you that to put an exclamation point on the fact that our grandkids and their cousins were captivated by the entire three-hour performance. Well, most of it anyway, but they were very well be haved. It was a delight to hear them as they filed out of the theater singing Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

As I said at the beginning, the point of this story is to tell you about a truly inspiring lady. Lori and I know Makenzie Hyde from Creekside Church of Christ where we have attended since December. Makenzie and Larissa are daughters of our minister Jimmy Hyde and his wife Jennifer. The entire family is an absolute delight to be around. What is remarkable is that they have only been in Greenville a little over two years. I had met Jimmy when I was with the Churches of Christ Disaster Relief Effort and he was the minister in Dewey where there was a bad flood several years ago. Jimmy also preached in Shawnee where I went to a tornado, but he was not there when I was. The point is that the Hyde sisters have only been in Greenville for a short time, and they have had a huge impact on the community as well as our congregation.

Makenzie has been in musicals since she was five years old, and it is not hard to see how her talent has captivated the theater group in Greenville. But she is so much more. Her most endearing qualities are her kindness, her caring for others, and her humble sweet heart. First and foremost, she is a Christian, and that is in a time when churches are having a hard time keeping young people. Makenzie and Larissa have a bond with our youth group that is unmistakable. Makenzie recently graduated from High School and plans to attend Sunset International Bible Institute in Lubbock, Texas, where she plans to major in signing for the deaf. It is amazing to me that a young lady with one of the greatest musical voices I have ever herd would aspire to communicate the love of Christ, not just with her voice, but with her hands and with her heart to people who can scarcely hear. She is truly an inspiration.

I can’t help but think of the words to one of my favorite songs by Stephen Curtis Chapman. Whenever the song is led in a worship service, I can never sing it all the way through because I get choked up with emotion. Writing about Makenzie Hyde made me think of this verse:.

“So listen to our hearts. Hear our spirits sing. A song of praise that flows. From those you have redeemed. We will use the words we know to tell you what an awesome God you are. But words are not enough to tell you of our love, so listen to our hearts.”