We were honored to host Aaron Ivey, Steven Bush, Jimmie Ingram and Philip Ellis to our small corner of the world.

Huge thanks to the band for allowing us to film the evening and post it to share. However, we will wait until the House Tour is over to post because we definitely don’t want to spoil it for anyone.

However, here is a sneak peak…

A couple of thoughts from me…

First of all, the evening left me speechless and broken, and my words here won’t in any way fully capture or express the evening. However, the evening has left me full of inspiration and hope, and even now (a week later) I’m still trying to process all of what was discussed. I really think my mind and hands will work it out through the journey ahead.

The band spoke and sang with an incredible passion that came through experience. They have obviously been deeply touched, and the stories shared that night also touched others deeply.

The beauty of their story? It’s authentic, it’s powerful and it’s something we can all enter into and be a part of. What is the story? Rescue and redemption.

They shared how close to their hearts that adoption is (it’s close to my heart as well), but they also shared how it’s close to God’s heart even more. They shared how the idea of adoption was first and foremost created by God, and how it’s one of the most powerful expressions of God’s love here on earth. And, I agree.

Additionally, the song Her Name by Jimmie was an unexpected surprise during the night. I don’t hear many songs about homelessness, but you can hear in Jimmie’s words that he sees past the exterior and sees what God sees on the inside (for video click here)

After the band had finished, there was an opportunity to sponsor a child through Compassion, and an incredible 11 children were sponsored. Truly unbelievable. That’s 11 children released from oppressive poverty from many corners of the world.

After everyone had left and we sat around our kitchen table sharing a meal with Bush, Philip, Jimmie and Aaron, the conversations continued as the early hours of the morning crept in. Their heart and desire to live out what they believe is powerful and inspirational. It is so clear that God is using their story to move mountains. What a joy to be a small part.

It’s my hope that the conversations that started that night will continue long after the band has left. It was an incredible honor to share the evening with so many incredible people who continually teach me new things about my faith. We all have such a great ability to make such a huge impact on the world around us, and the question now isn’t how we will, but rather if we will.

There really is no way to say thank you to the band for coming. It was a once in a lifetime moment and lives will forever be impacted by their visit. All we can do is thank God for them, their journey, their hearts and their gifts. It is changing the world one life at a time, and we our lives are richer as a result.

And, we are happy to know that Story is now home (read their blog), and our prayers are that Amos will quickly follow.

Would love your thoughts & watch for updates because the story is long from over…

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Other comments & thoughts on the House Tour

From Aaron - House Tour Bentonville

From Scott Page - Response

From Joshua Segraves - House Tour

From Amber Haines - Make art and give it away.  Un-numb a Culture

Make sure to watch the extend video of Philip & Kim Ellis’s amazing story about “Real Hope for Hai