My Lively Little Stones: Rocking out in Memphis

Monday, June 14, 2010

Rocking out in Memphis

At the end of last month, I had a chance to go visit my best friend, Josh Manning. I was going to make the trip to Henderson TN (about 7 hours away) by my lonesome, but the boys in our youth group decided they would like to tag along. We thought we would make a pit stop at Memphis, see the sights, see where I went to school, play some disk golf, eat some awesome food, and see a band. We were to meet Josh in Memphis and spend the night with him and three other Freed-Hardeman University students, before going to see Freed in the Morning.

So, we got to Memphis and stopped at a few places we thought looked interesting.

Seeing sights: Check

We drove around (I got lost) trying to find disk golf disks for about an hour and a half. When we finally found a sporting good store that sold them it was dumping down rain.

Disk Golf: FAIL!

So we went and took a short tour of my life by visiting the Memphis School of Preaching.

Visiting my old School: Check!

By this time we were hungry so we went to the greatest hot wing establishment in the history of forever, Ching's Wings. If you go to Memphis, there is a unwritten rule that you only hurt yourself if you break. Go down to Getwell Rd. and eat at Ching's Wings. It's a rule! I didn't write it, I'm just telling--ok so maybe I did write it, but it's a good rule. We ate about 40 of our 50 wings and I must say, this is the fist time I have ever seen a meal that these boys could not finish, or wanted to be able to finish more than this one.

Eat some awesome food: Check, Check! Yum...

So with full bellies and happy hearts we left Ching's to go to down town Memphis a hear a band. Which seems to have placed my name near the top of the boys' awesome list.

See a band: Check!

By now we were worn out and headed to Henderson to spend a night with the Freed Students.

Joshua Manning

Emory Buckner
&
Two guys not shown here (hey, you can't expect me to have pictures of everything).

They were a lot of fun to hang around, and they were kind enough to give us a place to stay and allow us to play video games all night on their big screen TV.

Night with Freed Students: Check!

The next morning we were to go and see Freed-Hardeman University... but I may not have realized that this was school break time and there were no tours to be had. Out tour was nothing more than a drive by with me telling which building was what. Which worked out because we needed to get back to Mena before nightfall anyway.

Tour FHU: EPIC FAIL!

Oh well, 5 out of 7 ain't bad, especially when you throw a trip like this together at the last moment. On the ride back we talked about the benefits of Christian Universities and planned a lot of things for the youth and education department. Good trip with a great bunch of people. I'm looking forward to our next road trip!

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Precious Gems

Let me explain this blog for you. It is based on the passage above, and the way I perceive my youth group.

Few people appreciate young people the way that they should. They are like many people who seeing an unfinished diamond or other precious stone think it nothing more than your average, everyday pebble and cast it aside. They don't recognize the great treasure that is within their grasp and they let it slip away. I'm no better, only different. I have trouble, at times, seeing past the problems, habits, and less than attractive attributes of those who count themselves as set in their ways. When I look at a child I can only see the potential.

When I was 5 or so years old, my grandfathers were my favorite people. My mother's father was a rock collector, or at least a rock lover. I would bring him all the amazing finds of the day and ask to put them in his rock polisher. He would often inform me that what I had found was glass, fools gold, gravel, flint, slate, or some other worthless thing. He meant no harm by this, he simply knew his rocks, and he taught me how to better recognize the worth of a stone. I am still that same kid, I see the beauty in the glass, pyrite, and gravel of the human variety... but you know what? With children, telling them that their worth something often raises their market value. I think I have gotten pretty good at spotting the gems (not that I really ever toss any rocks out). I believe I am learning to see each child as the Lord sees them, precious.

It helps that I have been blessed with an exceptionally good and godly youth group. These guys make up my joy and prove my labor in the Lord is not for nothing. They give me so much more than I could ever give in return, and I want them to have the recognition they deserve. So youth, if you are reading this, think of this blog as a display case to help more people to be able to see you shine. I love you dearly... and even with you guys not here I'm still tearing up the way I would if I tried to tell you this in person. God help me.