I’ve been watching West Wing on Netflix. This is my favorite quote from the show. It's a little story one character tells. It's great and it perfectly illustrates why I do stand-up the way I do.
Here it is:
This guy's walking down the street when he falls in a hole. The walls are so steep he can't get out.
A doctor passes by and the guy shouts up, 'Hey you. Can you help me out?' The doctor writes a prescription, throws it down in the hole and moves on.
Then a priest comes along and the guy shouts up, 'Father, I'm down in this hole can you help me out?' The priest writes out a prayer, throws it down in the hole and moves on.
Then a friend walks by, 'Hey, Joe, it's me can you help me out?' And the friend jumps in the hole. Our guy says, 'Are you stupid? Now we're both down here.' The friend says, 'Yeah, but I've been down here before and I know the way out.’
I love that.
And that’s the big idea behind my stand-up show, TELL A GOOD STORY. If you have a story of what God has done in your life, you have friends who need to hear it. You need to let them know you’ve been in the hole, too. But if you’re still stuck in the hole now, you need to know there are people who have found the way out, and it’s Jesus.
Watch the clip: