Mississippi Pt.3

Today we got into our actual hotel for the week. It's quite nice and we're happy to get settled in. We pretty much relaxed for the afternoon, enjoyed the new hotel, unpacked and were together.
 We also had a good Taco Bell experience. I love when in life, something simple turns out really good and you just feel like talking about it. And you know that years down the road you'll go to Taco Bell for lunch and you'll be like, "That was good, but remember the Taco Bell in Tupelo. That was great! Southerners know how to do Taco Bell. That was a good experience." And it becomes a memory, even though it's such a small thing. Do you know what I mean?

Some of you may wonder what has brought us to Tupelo, Mississippi. Elvis is cool and all, but his birthplace wouldn't quite have been at the top of our list for destination sites. My dad's brief Facebook description sums it up, below. 

"So, we are driving South tomorrow to a television studio in Tupelo, Mississippi (the birthplace of Elvis Presley). At the thoughtful and generous request of The Potter's School (Springfield, VA) and the American Family Association, I will spend three days in an HD video studio recording a 12 part DVD teaching series entitled "Generations of Grace." It is a great privilege to have the opportunity to announce the glory of God, His grace, and His happy vision for family-life. The DVDs will be a tri-production of the AFA, The Potter's School, and our own Enjoying Grace Ministries. They will be distributed through the AFA, used by the Homeschool Channel and The Potter's School's international discipleship activities. Lots more to this unfolding opportunity, but that's the introduction, for all of you friends out there who we would ask to pray for us throughout this intense, exciting week. Pray for Bill Baxter as well, who will be recording conversational clips with me, that will be used throughout the DVD teaching sessions."

When they requested for him to come down and do these recordings, their plan was to fly him down for the majority of the week by himself. We immediately wanted to be a part of this with him and were able to make it work. Even if it meant just driving down and back with him so that we could be together, it was worth it. My dad is passionate about each member of our family. He shows so much love and care in each one of our lives and through every new circumstance and opportunity. 

We had to be with him for such a neat adventure. Our hearts are knit together. 

He'll be talking about the heart of God. The delight that the Father has for us, His children. The prodigal sons and their prodigal Father. The Pharisees and why they matter. God's lavish and abundant goodness and grace. I want to say more but my little bullet point sentences don't do it justice. This is defining to the vision of life and the Gospel that drives his ministry. It is good stuff. If you know my dad, you would know that these themes are dear to his heart.

My dad has been a pastor since I was born. Every Sunday that I can remember, he has woken up at 5 in the morning (if not earlier) to pray and finsish preparation for each message that he has ever spoken. He doesn't treat any of this stuff flippantly. He's an excellent speaker and could prepare on the fly if he wanted to, but he doesn't.
 Each day, for the next three days he will be doing four full teaching times along with conversational clips with Bill as well. Please pray for him! That's a lot of teaching in a short time. I know that He'll do wonderfully and I know that God will give him strength, clarity of mind and ability to do this very well.

 I hope that he's even able to really enjoy it.  

I'm looking forward to letting you all know how things are going along the way. It's fun and I am so happy to be here and a part of it. Bill will be in the studio with him for the whole time. Mom, Caroline, Grant, Jack and I hope to be there a little as well. Abbie, Stephen, Adam, Jackie, and kids are so sad not to be here with us.  We are too and we wish they were. But we've enjoyed talking with them along the way. They're the best. :) 

These words are always an encouragement to me and are a refreshing reminder today;

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, 

according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. 

Ephesian 3:14-21

I love that. He won't just do more then we ask, as if we could be too greedy to desire and ask for God's gifts. He will do exceedingly and abundantly beyond what we could even think. 
It is good to be His child.

Thank you all for your love and prayers!