There's no question that Deeper Still was absolutely saturated with Truth. All three ladies - Priscilla, Kay and Beth - did an incredible job teaching straight from God's Word, and we're going to be talking a lot on the blog this week about what God said through them to the over 19,000 people in attendance.
But as is always the case when a bunch of women get together, there were lots of laughs this weekend, too. And there was one particular moment - at the end of the conference when Travis and the praise team were leading us in "Shackles" - that was probably my favorite.
It's also probably the only time in my life when the phrase, "Break it down, Kay Arthur. BREAK IT DOWN!" has passed through my mind.
It was hysterical.
Who knows? Next year we may have Deeper Still: The Musical.
I'm going to be honest and let y'all know that I pretty much haven't stopped crying for the last 36 hours.
Deeper Still was so far beyond anything I could have expected or imagined. I could write for the next ten years and wouldn't be able to capture the experience.
In fact, as I sit here and try to figure out what to say I can feel the tears coming again.
Have you ever had one of those moments where you thought you knew what to expect and then you get there and realize you really had no idea what you were getting into?
Like maybe marriage? Or motherhood?
This was kind of like that, but different.
From the moment the music started on Friday night, I was so overwhelmed by the presence of God. I cannot begin to describe it.
In my mind I had thought I'd write some stuff about Beth's cute pink jacket, Priscilla's beautiful hair, and Kay's ability to make 74 years old look stunning. And all that stuff is true.
Just look at them.
And I will need to discuss it at some point.
But more than that, I heard three incredible ladies BRING IT like I have never in my life experienced.
I watched the LifeWay staff juggle an overwhelming amount of details that left me in complete awe of their organizational abilities, especially considering it's a good day for me if I remember to buy milk at the grocery store.
I heard Travis and the Praise Team hit notes that I will not be able to hit even in heaven.
And I felt the presence of God descend on Philips Arena in a way I will never be able to describe.
It was awesome. It was powerful. It rocked me to my bones.
It made me wish I could buy all of you a plane ticket to Deeper Still Las Vegas so that you could experience it for yourselves.
We'll be posting more pictures and sharing more throughout the week.
For now, I need to take a nap for maybe twenty minutes or three hours.
I'd love to hear from you if you were there. What was your favorite part?
Before tonight, I had never attended a Deeper Still Event.
Let's just say that I am a fan.
In fact, it was totally worth getting up at 4 a.m., packing only a carry-on and waiting in the longest airport security lines EVER.
I'd do it all over again. Even the 4 a.m. part.
Priscilla Shirer brought a WORD tonight about when God calls you into the wilderness. And I can't really get into more than that tonight or I will start to cry all over again.
But rest assured I took about six or eighteen pages of notes and will write a full re-cap next week. It was incredible.
In the meantime, here are some pictures.
This is the sea of women waiting to get into Philips Arena.
That is a lot of women.
Travis brought the house down during worship and not just because he was wearing a really cool vest.
I think y'all know who these ladies are.
We'll be back with more tomorrow, but I have now been up close to 24 hours.
We just walked over to the Philips Arena to see what was going on, and we immediately noticed a bunch of women sitting outside the entrance.
I thought maybe a church group was meeting to go eat an early supper or something, but then I realized HOLD ON - THEY'RE WAITING FOR THE DOORS TO OPEN.
Four hours before Deeper Still starts - and there were at least 100 women waiting for the doors to open.
I seriously hope they get the seats of their dreams. Because that is some dedication.
This is (L to R) Nancy, Cindy, Kim, Kendra, Karen and Sandy.
Sandy has been waiting since noon, so obviously she is committed. She's also from Louisiana, and if I could take her a big ole platter of boiled crawfish, corn and potatoes right now, I totally would.
I think it's important to support people with well-defined seating goals, don't you?
All of these women are so excited, and it's really heartwarming to see how they are talking and getting to know each other as they wait patiently for the doors to open. There is already an incredible sense of community here this weekend.
Melanie and I are sitting in our hotel room in Atlanta, gearing up for A FRESH WORD tonight at Deeper Still. I'm actually a little bit incredulous as I look around our room, because Mel and I both managed to get all of our clothes for the weekend in a small carry-on bag.
Let me repeat that: WE MADE IT HERE WITH ONLY ONE BAG A PIECE.
It's a summertime miracle!
Anyway, we'll be posting when we can (just not during the teaching, oh have mercy no). We're really hoping to be able to post some pictures of different groups here this weekend - church groups, Bible study groups, family groups, etc.
Because while there's no doubt that the music and message will be phenomenal this weekend, the community among women will be phenomenal, too. And we'd love to spotlight that as much as we can.
Hope you're having a great Friday...we'll be back in a bit, interpeeps!
Melanie
Melanie
Sophie
Sophie
Paige
Paige
Kris
Kris