Impact 2021 "The Secret"
I am really not sure how to own up to this, other than just getting on with it.
I was irritated
I was frustrated
I was not content….
Those were the feelings I had when I found out Impact could be digital again. Look, we did the best we could last year. But I for one did not want it again.
Then things started to open up.
So when Lipscomb offered us the option of running a three day version of Impact, where we had to find our own housing. I honestly did not love it, but I had to put on my best Phil; 4:13 face. It was not “fully” what I wanted but it was all I needed. So the Impact board went all in.
So enough about all that stuff.
To quote the theologian Bob Seager….Let's “turn the page”
“Impact 2021 “The Secret” The 30th Year of Impact.
What a reunion!
Incredible! Fabulous! Those are the only two words I can think of.
For the last two years, about once a day, I have heard Brewer say, “I want my Impact back”.
We got Impact back, and Brewer was on cloud nine.Thank you for loving him, and allowing him to live on stage.
And this past week, on more than one occasion I started to tear up because “Impact” was back.
Wednesday night, oh man Wednesday night that was a party! It was maybe one of the greatest nights in Impact history. You laughed, you cheered, you worshiped, you listened, and it was a celebration that blew my mind.
But let's start here, let's go back a couple of months.
I mean I gotta be honest, I was more than a little worried about Impact 2021 even when we were given the green light.
It was hard. Once we got word we could start on Impact 2021, we had no concrete ideas on what to do. We had no idea how many folks would come. We had never done this before. By the time we were certain Impact was going to happen we were already in the Spring sports season. Every youth minister knows that the spring is crazy busy, especially April and May. (Thus my subtle nod to our lead character)
Never in Impact history have we completely changed our themes as late as we did this year. Never have we been so late to prepare, so clueless on what would happen and worried that it would not be the same.
Another major concern was this...As a camper you only have 6 maybe 7 years to attend, this naturally meant almost a third of our campers would be new to Impact. Would they get the running gags? Would they appreciate our style? Have we lost our edge? When Rubio asked first time campers to stand on Tuesday night about half of you stood.
There were other “complications”
To be honest it was not totally the same, I mean we had to do little things to accommodate for the lack of financial support. We had to change our stage, use less sound and technical equipment, and above all else not employ counselors.
This year we missed our counselors. We missed our college students who were Impact veterans who could lead by example. The folks who had spent much of their June’s as a part of our family. The folks who are first to laugh, first to cheer, ready to talk, and there to listen.
It was a loss
But there were alot of things that remained the same.
Lots of youth ministers who made the best of it and brought groups, lots of familiar adult volunteers. Our security guards who sacrifice their own time to help. And of course our roadies. Every year the roadies form this unique bond. It’s really amazing how it happens every year. The roadies are such a great group.
There was Bob Ross, Mr T, Little House, Mr Bill, Patrick Chapel, The Pump It Up Crew, Intern Kim, and a few new faces. Wilderness Explorer Russ, The Backyardagins, Adult Calliou. We broke several sets of glasses before actually presenting Tucker with a pair of real color blind correcting glasses.
But I think one of the best running gags and maybe the most memorable fell into our laps. Actually it was very real and not a gag. On the day before Impact we were asked not to play music we did not have a license for by an attorney at the University. We were not kidding. This turned into one of our best gags in a while, as the Lipscomb Attorney became the villain of the week and actually closed the last night of the skit.
Speaking of this years skit. Well, it was awesome. I can’t ever remember a reaction to a skit like that on the last night. The story of the “Last Inheritance of Lady Yearwood” was one of the most challenging stories ever to write, but one of the most satisfying finishes I can remember.
When thinking how we should kick off Impact 2021 the one thought I had was...It needs to be something special. Skid and Steve immediately began negotiating to bring Ken Medema back to Impact. We also had the return of Danny Ray on Wednesday night. Danny is probably Impact’s most popular entertainer of all time. Over the years I cannot remember anyone who has played the Impact stage more than Danny? Maybe Taylor Mason or Lost and Found?
Got to say here our keynoters Josh Ross, Josh Jackson, and Skid did awesome jobs. And Jordan House and his worship team, man it was great to have worship back in that Arena. I had forgotten what over a thousand folks singing sounded like live.
Well, this has gone long enough
Ironically this is one of my longer summaries for the shortest Impact ever. I think a lot of us were just stunned on Wednesday night standing there realizing it was over.I saw more than a few tears.
I am just going to wrap up by saying this. I am looking forward to next year. I pray we get our full Impact back. Those of you who could not join us at this year's reunion, I hope you come back next year. You missed one heck of a party last week.
But no matter what happens…..I know the secret.
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