Scriptures of Encouragement...

"These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." John 16:33


'Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.' Isaiah 41:10


'He only is my Rock and my Salvation; He is my Defense and my Fortress, I shall not be moved.' Psalm 62:6

'Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.'
1 Peter 5:7

'For with God nothing will be impossible.' Luke 1:37

May you be filled with the peace of the Lord in whatever you are walking through this day and be encouraged that He does know ALL things!

Intercessors for America

If you have a few minutes, please watch this short video on praying for America. Jay Fesperman, who founded The Inn, was one of the founders of Intercessors for America, so we are very connected with this ministry. Throughout The Inn's history we have put major emphasis on praying for our nation, our leaders, those who are serving our country, etc. etc. etc. We set time aside every Wednesday night to do so.  I, myself, have learned it takes discipline in really praying for this country and I am still learning that. It's not so much that I don't ask the Lord to help this country, I do almost every day...that is a very simple prayer. But, to really get on my hands and knees and seek the Lord and cry out to him for our country is something I don't do enough of and know I need to and know that I should! This is an encouragement for us all to do so!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXOhLGLkUKg

Exciting News!

I had told you all the weekend we celebrated The Inn's 40th Anniversary was going to be exciting because my family was all coming in. My brother, Chan was bringing his girlfriend,Cameron and she was going to stay with Scotty and me for the weekend. I really love her...she comes quite often for a visit and I have really enjoyed getting to know her, so we were excited she was going to stay with us. That week (couple days prior to their arrival) I had taken my grandfather to Asheville for a doctor's appointment. I was sitting in the lobby and out of the blue I get this text from Chan with a picture of Cameron's engagement ring that said in a nutshell..."Nikki, I am going to do this. Don't you tell a soul or I'll kill you. I want to talk to Mom and Dad in person this weekend while I am home."  My reaction after I about fell off my seat was, "holy crap...and you are having her stay with me? I have to keep my mouth shut and walk in paranoia of saying something the whole weekend?...Are you insane?" But, I was so excited I could hardly contain myself. I was 100% sure Chan had already told Corby but wasn't sure if my sister had received the text. When we got in the car, I called Chan, congratulated him, found out more of the details. I was like, "Chan..you realize she is staying at my place this weekend and that makes me a little nervous." Chan was like, "I think it is great. This will allow me to spend some time with mom and dad and I won't have to worry about her being around the whole time so I can talk with them.  He told me to tell Scotty, so I immediately called him and his reaction, "Is your brother crazy for letting Cameron stay with you?" Oh gee, thanks for the confidence-ha! I, of course, found every way to defend myself! That night my sister called and ugh, I so wanted to ask her if Chan had been in touch with her, but I did not. At the end of the conversation Ellie said, "Can I ask you something? I said, yes. She said did Chan tell you the news?" Wow, I was so relieved that Chan had already told her so we were able to talk about it. Ellie was as nervious as I was about making sure we wouldn't let anything slip, but no one did. Chan talked to Mom and Dad on Saturday night, so we were able to talk about it when Cameron would go walk her dog or something. It was so hiliarious. I even had a super long conversation with Cameron about Chan and just played so ignorant. I kind of felt bad because I knew she was ready for this step but just acted ignorant to the fact. But, I really did want to know how she and Chan were doing, so this was just a fun way to ask : ) It was quite funny-
Anyway, to make a long story short...Chan proposed to Cameron last Friday in Charleston, SC. He had to fly to Honduras the following day, so we haven't heard when the big day is yet. I know it takes time planning these things, so we shall see. Think they are aiming for a Feb or March wedding. But, I am super excited about having a new sister-in-law. Cameron is a beautiful woman on the inside and out and we are thrilled she will be a part of our family! I wish I had a picture of them, but I do not. Actually, I do, but I have to scan it and don't have the scanner at home, so maybe I can do that soon and post a picture of the two of them!
So, congratulations to Chan and Cameron! We are all very excited!

Recap of this past week-

I am sitting here this morning trying to figure out how to describe the past couple of days...you know when something is so special it is hard to put into words how you truly feel. Right now, I find my heart filled with so much gratitude, appreciation, joy, love and no doubt hurting a bit (my sister and her kids left at the crack of dawn this morning and I always find my heart aching when they leave : (   The Inn's 40th Celebration was absolutely wonderful!  I can't begin to tell you how hard the staff worked to prepare for this event...the amount of work that was put into preparing The Inn in general was unbelievable. We are so blessed to have such a dedicated staff.  I wish I could go into detail about all that happened, but it would take forever for me to type it all. So to sum it up, it was just all around an incredible weekend...from the fundraiser on Friday night to seeing so many wonderful friends who have been a part of The Inn for the past 40 years...it is hard to express how joyful my heart was over the weekend. It was so much fun having my family home, always sad when they leave...you know, I don't care how old you are, when your family has to part seperate ways, it is always hard. We are all so spread out now that when we get together, I just find myself trying to grasp every second I can with my family because you know everyone is going to have to leave eventually, so I just try to take in every moment I can! I love my heritage and the atmosphere I grew up in. I know with out a doubt that I am very blessed and for whatever reason the Lord chose me to be in the family I am in and for that, I am very grateful.
So, now that this event has come to a close, I have another exciting event planned this weekend to see three of my closest friends.  The four of us girls have been the best of friends since highschool and like everyone else, our schedules don't allow us to see each other as much as we would like, but when we all get together, it is like we all just pick up where we left off. We are driving up to Blacksburg, VA to celebrate my friend Corie's 33 birthday. It will be just the 4 of us girls...I am looking forward to a weekend filled with so much laughter that when you see me next time my face will probably be stuck in a smiling position because Jennifer (Wiggins) Nelson has made us laugh so hard! That girl is a hoot...there is no one who can make you laugh like Jennifer! We all ran cross country together in high school and have remained the best of friends ever since. I love these girls-
My dear, precious husband continues to crank out hours and hours at the theatre. It is a good thing he loves what he does! It was so funny the other day I had this man walk up to me and he was talking to me about the theatre and said, "Well, I guess the theatre is Scotty's second home." Laughingly, I said, "No. Actually our home is his second home because he is at the theatre more than he is at home." It is true! I am very proud of him. We are working on Jekyll and Hyde and holy cow...you all better come! It is going to be quite the show. There is one song that lasts 7 minutes (it is a group number) and the amount of choreography/movement that this song has in unbelieveable! I just hope I can remember it all! But that is not the only song that requires such...it is so funny because I was dumbfounded at the number of people who have no idea that my husband has to come up with all the steps, movements, costumes, sets, etc. A lot of people ask me..."well, in the script doesn't it tell you how to do everything?" Um, NO! The script only gives you the words you say on the stage.  But, if you have never done a show before, how would you know? I love to brag on my husband. He is amazing and I am just so proud of him and thankful he is able to do what he loves to do!
Well, folks...that is all for now. I could share a zillion other things, but time is running out. I have to pick my 95 yr. old grandfather up and take him to the doctor and go for our weekly outing to Wal-Mart. No lie...I will be in Wal-Mart for 3 hours with him, so if you are in the area...feel free to stop by! We will be in one of the aisles.
May your week be filled with all the blessings in the world! Be encouraged!
Nikki

A little update...ok, maybe a long one!

I find myself not blogging nearly as much as I did when I first started this whole blogging thing. I knew it would end up this way. I had literally been on my couch sick for over a month and was about to go nuts, so this gave me a little venue during that time. Now that I am back in the "land of the living," I have slowed down, but that is ok. I am a woman with a lot of words to say (my husband can vouch for that :) So sometimes I find myself starting to type and it will go on and on and I will stop in the middle of the story and be like, who the heck wants to read all this? Not me. I don't think it is so much the length of the story sometimes, but I start writing at 11pm and then I get too exhausted and find myself rambling on when it is that late. Funny story about that. If know my husband and me, we are a bit of "opposites" when it comes to our hours of operation. I have, for the majority of my life, always been a person who goes to bed earlier (meaning 10:30ish) and I am and early riser. Scotty, however, is just getting his second wind at 11pm at night and he likes to sleep in in the mornings. Depending on what is taking place in our lives with the theatre...  , depending on rehearsals, concerts, things going on at The Inn, we sometimes don't get home till 10pm, 11pm midnight,  etc. I have had to force myself to become a night owl. Plus, sometimes the evenings after we get home from all this are the only times Scotty and I can catch up on life. Anyway, it works a little better for him, harder for me...especially in the during the summers when I would leave home at 6:30am to be at The Inn. I need my sleep or I can become very irritable. Plus, this past year, I have been averaging about 3 hrs of sleep a night. For some reason, every morning, I would wake up about 3am and never go back to sleep. So, in saying all this, there is no doubt why I keep getting sick. So, I am making some changes as we speak, to help my body get some rest and stop getting sick! Anyway, back to the point of this. When we were in Florida it was about 11:15pm and Scotty and I had just gotten back in our hotel room and I was yawning and he said, "Nikki, you are so funny. You get so tired this time of night." Laughingly, I said, "I'm sorry, doesn't everyone else in the world get tired at 11:15 at night?" He was like, "I'm just getting my second wind." I said, "Well, you go ahead and get your second wind, but this girl is going to bed!" I thought it was really funny!
Anyway, we celebrated my granfather's 95th birthday this past week. Yep! He is unbelievable and overall in incredible health! I started typing this whole blog about my grandfather last night and it turned into a book practically and it was too late when I was typing it so I just stopped. I will go back to it eventually. But, to explain my grandfather takes a lot of words and time. He has been a trememdous blessing in my life since I moved back to Franklin (he lives with my parents). Boy, I think with me telling you stories about my experiences with him would make you laugh hysterically. He is one of a kind!
The rest of my week has consisted of rehearsals for Jekyll and Hyde, which I am super excited about. This show has some of the most beautiful music. To be such a heavy show in the sense of the story, the music is unbelievable and I am super excited about it! I had to take my grandfather to several doctor appointments that took up a good majority of my day(s),  and the rest of the time I spent scanning tons and tons of pictures for The Inn's 40th Celebration next weekend. I am putting together a picture show and it will be the longest picture show ever. But, we are keeping it running the whole day. Good thing because if you were to sit down and watch it, you would stay in the same seat the whole time and I don't think anyone wants to do that! Ha! I really have enjoyed scanning pictures. It has brought back so many special memories. I really am so incredibly blessed to have been raised in such an incredible enviornment and to have met so many different people that have come from so many different walks of life. It truly is amazing!
I can 't tell you how excited I am about this event. People are coming from everywhere...people that have been a huge part of my life through the years, people that I haven't seen since I was little, etc. Plus my whole family (everyone except my sister-in-law...we will miss you, Annie) will be here. Corby is coming in from California, Chan and his girlfriend are coming, and of course, Ellie and her family.  Ellie's father-in-law, John Beckett will be our guest speaker. You can click on his name and read his bio. He is an outstanding man and we are so blessed he is coming to share with us! Thursday night our entire board of directors will come in, Friday they will be in meetings most of the day, then Friday night we are having a fundraiser/dinner at The Inn and then Saturday everyone comes in for the day. Super fun! I will for sure blog about it!
Scotty had to leave early this morning to be at the theatre, so I am finishing up some photos (after I blog) and heading over to The Inn for a little while then we have to go to Atlanta this afternoon for Scotty to get some last minute things for Tom Sawyer. This play opens Tuesday, so please come see it http://www.greatmountainmusic.com/.
I hope your weekend is filled with many blessings!  Thank you for taking the time to read this long, rambling blog! I leave you with this scripture as an encouragement “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) - whatever you might be going through, be encouraged that God designed your life and His plans will give you hope and a future-
Nikki