Tonight at the church talent show, my daughter was determined to show off her ballet moves. She was really tired of me bugging her about whether this was something she should do or not.

But when it came for showtime, she got a second too long to think about all the people staring at her.

Her dad was standing on the stage waiting for the impending tears. We expected them. He tried to do their favorite game – lift the ballerina. But she was too scared. She just melted in his arms. His safe arms. He took her outside and let her feel the disappointment of not facing her fear. He didn’t try to “fix her.”

I think I might love him just a little bit more for his handling of this situation. He didn’t try to fix her. He just loved her.

Isn’t life like that sometimes?

Too scary to face. Standing center stage with everyone anticipating your next move. And you’re frozen. Stiff. Afraid to speak. Afraid to cry. Afraid someone will laugh at you.

All of these things happen to us at some point. We all get embarrassed. We all forget the most important line. We all freeze up.

But there’s a strength we can tap into when stage fright is staring us in the eye – our Father’s strength.

He does just what my little girl’s daddy did tonight. He wraps us in his arms of comfort and strength. He holds us while we deal with our fear. He wipes away the tears.

And when we’re ready, he tells us to put one foot in front of the other. He doesn’t try to fix us. Instead, he gives us a new perspective. A new hope that next time will be different.

And all we have to do to get that strength is to go to him. Just like a little girl with stage fright. All she wanted was the comfort of her daddy.

I think the lesson here is that we don’t need to be afraid to run to our Father. We don’t need to have stage fright from sharing our deepest fears with him. I also don’t think we need to be afraid to share the little things. The nagging things. He’s got the power to help us work through it.

Isaiah 41:10 says, “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”

That picture of my little girl in her daddy’s arms is what I see when I read that. Tap into that strength and keep on dancing forward.