Be Grateful in Spite of Your Suffering

I settled into my seat just a few rows back in the mezzanine and surveyed the crowds surging across the performance hall. As I had expected, the audience was composed largely of young adult males, though there was a substantial number of women, older folks, and even a few children present. The man sitting next to me (who had driven nine hours from Missouri for the show) assured me that, while the speaker never gave quite the same talk twice, I would enjoy it. I was fairly convinced I would, too. As the lights dimmed, a young woman stepped out from the wings and introduced the speaker. Speaking highly of him (which she could not but do, being his daughter), she thanked us all for attending, then gestured to her right and asked us to welcome her dad.