Fine Arts Festival Checklist

So you've made it past Districts, you've been chilling all summer, and now it's almost time for Nationals.

If you're in a panic as to what to do before NFAF, here's a sample checklist:

1. Pray, pray and pray some more.

We all know despite waht they say, that Fne Arts is a competition. We compete for the highest scores. But often times we focus on the scores, and loose sight of why we do Fine Arts at all. Fine Arts was designed to help us develop our gifts and talents for Ministry and God's glory. When we focus only on the points, we loose the real meaning of Fine Arts. Setting aside some time to pray is like Watching a Christmas Carol, It's a Wonderful Life, and reading the book of Luke at Christmas time. it reminds us of the true meaning of the system.

2. Invite some company over

A lot of times when preparing a human video, we surroud ourselves with people who think like we do. People from our church, our town, even our district can red between the lines of what we're trying to do or say with our video. But when you compete on a national scale, sometimes things can get lost. Things that seem so obvious to us, are incomprehensible to people from other regions, or even peopel with different cultural identities. Try inviting someone from outside your church (preferably somone who has never seen a human video or who is a non- christian) and ask them what they think of it. Try not to give them any "set-up" information, and take all of theircommments to heart. If they didn't get something, don't try to explain it, try to think of a better way to communicate it with in the video. You won't be able to explain anything to the judges.

3. Change it up a bit.

You've been practicing to the same song over and over again, so you're probably pretty tired of it. Try going through the whole video to another song, Classical music can work well. This can also help your coach or adult sponsors to see where the story holes in your video might be. Keeping time in your head will also help you if for some reason you can't hear the music at the time of performance.

5. Go chill out.

Take some time out with your group to just hang out. Bond as a team. One of the best parts about being involved in a group effort is bonding. Have fun!

6. Keep work time work time.

The way you practice is the way you perform. If you have been doing nothing but goofing off during rehersal, it will show when it comes to performance time. When you practice, leave problems at the door and focus on the task at hand. It will help you immeasurably in your persuit of a video worthy of merit.

That's all I can think of right now, guys. Have a great time in Orlando, and if you see me, don't forget to say "hi!"

:D