Author: Selene Washington

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Happy New Year, P.I.M PALS! (🎀 o^-^o)/ 🎄🩰

I hope that all of you are having a wonderful start to the New Year! ✨

Welcome to today’s blog post called, “Do Not Compromise! (The Nutcracker Edition)”! 🎄🩰✨

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In early December 2023, I performed in my first-ever Nutcracker ballet production, which consisted of four shows in total! 🎄🩰✨

It was a great experience, and I loved it! However, rather than talk about my experience performing in the Nutcracker, instead, I am going to talk about another personal experience that occurred during the time leading up to my first Nutcracker ballet performances. So without further ado, let’s begin! 😁

For the Nutcracker production, I was selected for the role of the maid. The maid was a featured role, and given that this was my first Nutcracker production, I was rather pleased to be selected for it. It also meant that I could be a part of the party scene in the Nutcracker, which is one of the scenes that I always loved watching growing up. However, before I could get too comfortable in my role, a problem arose specifically related to what I would have to do in a few of my scenes. In the party scene of the Nutcracker, I was told that I would have to pretend to serve alcoholic beverages to the adult guests, and later pretend that I was drinking a bottle of alcohol myself. 

Such actions were typical for the role of the maid and served to add a little comedy to the show and stir up amusement within the audience. Despite such positives, I very much did not want to pretend to serve alcohol or, even worse, pretend to drink alcohol myself. This is because I do not drink alcohol myself, and because I believe that alcohol is something that should be avoided. This belief is based on Biblical scriptures that warn against the dangers (the main danger being the sin of drunkenness and its effects) of alcohol, which are described to be a mocker, a brawler, and are as dangerous as a serpent’s bite or an adder’s sting (Ephesians 5:18; Proverbs 20:1; Proverbs 23:29-35).  

Because I hold this belief, I felt like I would be compromising my beliefs and values if I were to perform those actions for my role, even if I was just pretending. My conscience simply was not comfortable with it. Some people who know my beliefs regarding alcohol were also attending the show, and I was concerned that they would see me pretending to serve and drink alcohol and consider my actions as a compromise too.

Additionally, I heard that there was already controversy regarding the alcohol-related scenes in my dance school’s Nutcracker. In previous years, before my appearance, my dance school had received a lot of criticism from parents who were concerned that the alcohol scenes in the show were promoting alcoholism in front of their children. Specifically, parents would complain about someone who is under the legal age of drinking alcohol playing the maid in the Nutcracker, and pretending to serve and drink alcohol. With me, a young adult at the appropriate age to drink alcohol, now playing the role of the maid, controversy regarding that issue seemed to be alleviated. However, I still felt concerned that I would still be promoting alcoholism, despite being of the age to drink alcohol, due to my beliefs regarding alcohol. 😐

Given all of my concerns regarding my role as the maid, I started to contemplate whether I should express my concerns to my ballet instructor. However, I unexpectedly found that the decision was much harder to make than I thought. This is because I had a fear that if I expressed my discomfort and concerns about promoting alcoholism in the Nutcracker, as well as my unwillingness to do such actions as the maid due to my beliefs that are based on Biblical scriptures regarding alcohol, I would lose the role of the maid and be taken out of the party scene in the Nutcracker, which I loved, and perhaps be taken out of the Nutcracker production entirely. 

Ultimately, I found myself in a dilemma. Considering that I always dreamed of being in the Nutcracker, I became concerned about losing this opportunity if I expressed my concerns centered around my beliefs and values. However, if I did not express my concerns and chose to still pretend to serve and drink alcohol in the Nutcracker, I would only then be going against my beliefs regarding alcohol. And because I am thoroughly convinced within my own conscience to avoid alcohol, and I believe that it would be wrong for me to drink and/or promote alcohol because of how the Bible describes it, I would only then be going against my conscience and therefore condemn myself, which is a sin according to the end of Romans 14 (NIV) in the Bible, where Paul talks about not going against our conscience if we are thoroughly convinced that something is sinful or not.

And so, reader, this dilemma that I found myself in is what I wanted to share with you because it represents a truth about life. In this life, many opportunities will present themselves before us that can relate to our deepest dreams, desires, and goals. While these opportunities may be greatly appealing, many of them could seemingly be grasped at the cost of your core beliefs, values, and principles. Specifically, for Christians, there are many opportunities that the world may offer us that may be greatly appealing and rewarding but would require us to do things that are unbiblical and would cause us to compromise our relationship with God. In these types of situations, it can be very tempting to compromise our principles and values, so that we can take advantage of such opportunities, especially if such opportunities are “once in a lifetime” and could be lost if we choose to stick to our beliefs.

So, when faced with these kinds of dilemmas, where we struggle to choose between our beliefs or a “wonderful” opportunity, what do we do? Well, for us as Christians, the first thing we ought to do is seek God’s guidance regarding the situation. However, reader, based on my experience, do not be surprised if God is seemingly silent when you are in these types of situations. When faced with such difficult decisions, we often ask God to reveal to us the outcome of our decisions, or even pray for Him to guarantee us a particular outcome.

For example, in my case, I would have liked for God to guarantee that I could still perform as the maid in the Nutcracker, even if I expressed my unwillingness to pretend to serve and drink alcohol. However, God did not guarantee anything, but He was by no means silent. Through my family, God instead encouraged me to stick to my beliefs, express my concerns to my ballet instructor, and trust in Him to help me stand my ground no matter what the outcome would be. And just to be clear, I am saying that God encouraged me to trust in Him despite the outcome, NOT trust in Him to give me the outcome that I want. Even if I should lose the role of the maid and be removed from the party scene in the Nutcracker or the Nutcracker production entirely, I should still trust in God and not let this lost opportunity cause me to turn away from God. Additionally, considering that God is the one who gave me the desire to dance ballet in the first place, I should trust that He has a plan that is even better than my plans. After all, as Psalm 25:10 (NIV) in the Bible states, “All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of His covenant”.

After being encouraged by God through my family, I decided to express my concerns to my ballet instructor and was prepared to lose out on being a part of the Nutcracker for the sake of not compromising my more important beliefs. And so, with an anxious heart, I communicated that I was not comfortable with pretending to serve and drink alcohol based on my beliefs.

And to my relief and delight, reader, I was not removed from the Nutcracker! Instead, to my surprise, my ballet instructor and the other organizers altered my role so that I did not have to pretend to drink alcohol, and instead of serving alcohol, I would instead be serving a well-prepared tray full of fruits, cheeses, and bread. And so, come showtime, I was able to comfortably perform my role as the maid as I was no longer concerned with compromising my values and promoting alcoholism. The fact that I was still able to perform in the Nutcracker is something that I consider to be a blessing from God and I am ultimately thankful to Him for allowing me to still perform. Ultimately, however, the greater feeling of satisfaction resulted from standing my ground and choosing not to compromise my principles, beliefs, and values, even if it meant losing it all. ✨

Therefore, reader, as you can see, thanks to God’s encouragement, I was able to stand by my beliefs despite my fears. And though I was prepared to lose a wonderful opportunity and trust that God’s ways are better than my own or the world’s, by His grace and mercy, I was still able to perform. Let this be an encouragement to you, reader, to always commit your ways to the Lord and to trust in Him always. God always knows what’s best for us, so when we choose to do things our way instead, we could fail to reap the benefits of following the will of God.

For instance, take for example the real-life story of Jesus Christ praying in the garden of Gethsemane in Matthew 26:36-46 (NIV) in the Bible. In the story, Jesus Christ was praying in the garden of Gethsemane, talking with God to see if there was some way He did not have to suffer and be crucified on the cross. The Word of God says that Jesus’s soul was overwhelmed with sorrow and that He was stressing to the point of death over what He knew was coming. Ultimately, after each prayer to God, Jesus still expressed that He would not commit to His will, but to God’s will. This is easily understood when we remember that Jesus being fully God, was also fully human. As a human, Jesus, throughout His life, was faced with many of the temptations we experience in our lives. One of these temptations includes selfishly preserving our own well-being over the well-being of others. In the garden, Jesus Christ denied this temptation, just as He did all other temptations, and instead chose to go through with allowing Himself to be arrested, tortured, and crucified. And it is thanks to His decision that we, as sinners, have been forgiven of our sins due to Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and can receive God’s gift of salvation and have a personal relationship with Him.

Think about this for a moment, reader: What if Jesus, in the garden of Gethsemane, decided not to do God’s will? What if He decided to not allow Himself to suffer and die for our sake? Sure, if He chose not to do God’s will, He could have spared Himself from the suffering He experienced, preserving His well-being, but as a result we would not have been saved and freed from the bondage of sin and death, and all of us would be eternally separated from God once we die. But because Jesus instead trusted and obeyed God’s will, we now have salvation from sin and can spend eternal life in heaven with God if we put our trust in God the Son, Jesus Christ, and accept Him into our hearts and our lives as our personal Lord and Savior. ❤️

From Jesus’s experience, we learn what to do when it comes to deciding between God’s will or another option. We may be at times reluctant to do God’s will, especially if doing so may bring about suffering or great costs, such as in the case of Jesus. However, also in the case of Jesus, we see that following God’s will, no matter what suffering or costs that may bring, is ultimately better than following any other path. By choosing to do God’s will, Jesus did suffer greatly and died on behalf of all sinners, despite being completely sinless Himself and innocent of any crimes. However, in the end, Jesus resurrected with a new body and freed us from the bondage of sin. Now, Jesus is in heaven, alive and well, and will soon return to earth to bring to heaven all those who have put their faith in Him! 🙌 💕✨

In conclusion, reader, when you find yourself in situations where you have to choose between a “good” opportunity or doing God’s will, you should always choose to do God’s will. Even if you find that the opportunity is “once in a lifetime”, something that you longed for, and something that you could lose if you choose to stick to God and your values, you should still choose God and your values. Even in cases where God does not guarantee your desired outcome and the only thing that is seemingly guaranteed is suffering or loss, you should still trust in God and believe that He knows what’s best for you. This is easier said than done because there are many wonderful opportunities out there that even the enemy, Satan, will try to offer you and convince you to not follow God’s ways. Do not fall for this, for as Mark 8:36 (NIV) says “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit (or lose) their soul?”.

Do not be afraid to stand up for God and what you believe in. Ask God for the courage to choose Him when faced with another option that may be extremely tempting. As Jesus told His disciples in the garden of Gethsemane when He found them sleeping instead of praying like He requested, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41 (NIV)). Even when following God’s will seems to come at a great loss, have faith and know that when you follow God, your Father in Heaven will seize your stance and bless you with far greater than what you lost! ✨

Thank you so much, reader, for taking the time to read this post! I hope that it has served to encourage you when you are faced with shiny opportunities, events, or situations that could cause you to compromise your principles and values. My experience has served to strengthen my resolve to always be a light for Christ, even in the ballet world, and never be afraid to speak up, not compromise my principles and stance, and most importantly, trust in God, no matter what happens.

I wanted to do this post right around the beginning of the new year because I thought that it would be good for those of you who are starting to make New Year’s resolutions. I encourage those of you who are making resolutions to align them with God’s will and to not compromise your principles, values, and/or convictions when trying to accomplish your goals for this year (and all other years). Additionally, though this post is not about alcohol, I hope expressing my own convictions regarding alcohol will encourage you to maybe think twice before you pop a bottle of alcohol in celebration of the New Year. 😂

Furthermore, I want to thank those who supported my first ballet performances in the Nutcracker, and I thank God most of all for giving me the opportunity to perform and the strength and courage to perform at my best in front of people once again.

As I finally close, reader, I want to thank you again for reading and I wanted to leave you with this Scripture verse to encourage you in times when you may have to choose between God or anything else:

“Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord. Joyful are those who obey His laws and search for Him with all their hearts. They do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in His paths” (Psalm 119:1-3 (NLT)).

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I hope that you found this post to be valuable and encouraging, reader, and if it resonated with you, feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section down below, for I would love to hear from you. You can also share this post with a friend or family member who may need to read it as well. 🤗🤍

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Thank you, P.I.M PALS, for all of your love and support on my blog, P.I.M & PINK, in 2023 and all of the years prior. 🫶🏼💕

May God bless you and protect you, and I pray that all of us have a safe and healthy New Year (and all of the years to come) filled with joy and peace, and we will in Jesus name! 🙏🤍

Lay any burdens you have at God’s feet, and look forward to the beautiful plans that God has in store for you and everyone in 2024 and so forth! ✨

(人^▽^) ~ Happy New Year, P.I.M PALS! ♡

Your P.I.M PAL,

Selene 🩰