I struggled with it for weeks and prayed over it and talked about it with Terrell (and Elizabeth and my mom), and prayed some more and cried some more before making a final decision. I struggled with the decision for 2 reasons. One was leaving my little man. I wouldn't just be leaving him to go down the road a few miles, I would be leaving him to get on an airplane, go out of state and into a different time zone, and to be away from him for 3 days (the longest I've ever been away from him). It was a traumatic experience just thinking about it. The second reason the decision was so difficult was because I would be flying/traveling by myself. (I have flown to Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Rochester, NY, and Honolulu, Hawaii.... but always with my youth group or my parents or my husband.) Flying alone and making my way through 2 airports was a huge deal to me. Everyone else from my group of "Premier girls" were flying out on Tuesday or Wednesday. Well, that was out of the question for me. I knew I didn't want to do that when the actual Rally didn't start until Thursday morning and I was already having a breakdown about the thought of being away from Thursday through Saturday. So my only option was leaving out Thursday morning and flying solo. After praying about it some more (again) I felt like God was granting me the courage to go ahead and attend the Rally and that leaving on Thursday morning (by myself) was the best compromise. That way I would be able to experience almost the entire Rally, but I would only have to spend the night in Fort Worth for 2 nights instead of 3 or 4 like everyone else. Okay, so the decision was made and it was one I was at peace about...except for one little breakdown I had when the reality started setting in. Once I was able to think clearly again I just started praying and I literally felt the weight of all my worry and tension and doubt be replaced with peace and calm. Then I knew this is what the Lord wanted me to do and through Him I'd be able to leave Garrison and Terrell for a few days and travel to Texas by myself.
I didn't sleep much at all on Wednesday night, but Thursday morning Terrell and I were up before the crack of dawn so we could make it to the airport on time. My sister Anna spent the night with us Wednesday night so she could be at home with Garrison when we left. Terrell walked me into the airport up until security and then tried to remind me of the direction I needed to go and my terminal and gate number. We said goodbye at security and I was shaky but okay. I made my way to my gate, took a bathroom break, waited to board, and then made it on the plane and in my seat without any trouble. The flight was actually pretty quick and before I knew it I was in Fort Worth waiting on the curb for the Super Shuttle to take me to my hotel. Whew! I made it without any hiccups or drama!!
Elizabeth met me at the hotel and I literally just left my bags in the room and then we walked down the street to the Convention Center so I could check in and get my name badge and all that good stuff. Fort Worth is central time so I was there about 11:00 central time and hadn't missed too much from that morning. When I went in they were actually introducing the new line of Fall jewelry (it's beautiful!) and after that we all went to lunch which was served in a huge room there at the Convention.
The rest of the day consisted of trainings, testimonies, awards and recognitions, entertainment from the Ron Lawrence band, and then one of my favorite parts of Rally~ Premier Around the World. All of the ministries and missionaries supported by Premier were introduced. The missionaries who were able to be there actually walked across the stage and introduced themselves and told what country they were serving in or what city in the United States they were serving in. It was amazing to see just how many ministries and missionaries Premier supports and to hear the names of all those different countries. Then 4 or 5 of the missionaries gave a short testimony about where they serve and what they do and how Premier has helped them and provided for them over the years. I feel SO blessed that the company that I'm a part of is doing so many great things to help spread the Gospel and that as a jeweler I'm helping them do that. My favorite part of all was when Joan Horner (Premier's co-founder) asked one of the missionaries from Argentina to sing "I Pledge Allegiance to the Lamb". (I remembered this song from middle school... it's by Ray Boltz). He had a beautiful voice and he sang the verses in Spanish but when he got to the chorus he sang in English and the entire arena of 9,500 ladies (and some men too) sang with him...
"I pledge allegiance to the Lamb
with all my strength
with all I am
I will seek to honor His commands
I pledge allegiance to the Lamb"
It was amazing. I think half of us cried through the song and I still get chills remembering it. It was so moving and once again I was reminded of how Christian based Premier is and that this business and company is God-ordained. The rest of the night was great too because Andy Horner (Premier's founder) spoke and he is such an inspiration to all of us. But "Premier Around the World" and singing the Ray Boltz song was the highlight of my first day there.
The next day was really great too. We enjoyed some amazing entertainment, training, and testimonies again. My favorite part about Friday I think was hearing all the testimonies of how Premier has touched and enriched lives and made such a difference for so many. Everyone who spoke was such a great testimony not only to Premier, but to God's faithfulness and love. Our group joked that we were at a revival instead of rally. We all grew closer to the Lord and came away so blessed from everything that took place. I also loved when Beverly Terrell (an Executive Director who has been with Premier for 22 years) came out to train and had us sing "This is the Day that the Lord has Made". It was just amazing. That's the only way I can sum it up.
Saturday was probably my favorite day because I knew I would be in Georgia later that night, and it was Patriotic Day. We all wore our red, white, and blue and the arena was decorated and there were men and women in various uniforms all over the place. There were special performances, guest speakers, and recognition of all those serving in the Armed Forces. They even had fireworks inside the arena. One of my favorite parts was when the choir was singing all the different songs for the Armed Forces and those who were there would come on stage. When they got to the Marines' song, 2 Marines dropped down from the ceiling onto the stage. Everyone went crazy when that happened. I loved the history lesson from Rick Green about preserving liberty and returning to the principles of the Declaration of Independence. And, I really loved Andy Horner's "Lest We Forget" speech. He told his entire story of immigrating from Ireland to Canada, how he met Joan, their move to the U.S., and how they eventually founded Premier. Then his daughter came up and we all sang "Count Your Blessings". Again, it was like being at a revival....amazing.
The Rally ended at 4:30 central time on Saturday and then we were all off to the airport. (Thankfully it worked out for our group to be on the same flight home.) Since our flight didn't leave until 8:30 we took our time at the airport and ate at Chilli's for supper. We arrived in Atlanta about 11:25 PM that night. Terrell picked me up and as soon as I got home I went in Garrison's room to look at him and make sure he was okay. I also silently thanked God for taking care of us both while we were in different time zones.
I am very thankful that I went because it was such a blessing to me and I know my implementation of what I learned will be a blessing to my business. The biggest thing I took away from the entire experience was literally belief in Premier. Belief that Premier is an honest, Christian company that puts people before profit, belief that Premier supports minintries and missionaries around the world, belief that Andy and Joan care about each and every one of us, and belief that I can make my business anything I want it to be. I also came away feeling as though I had just seen firsthand the heart of Premier... honoring God, serving others, and enriching lives. It was a great experience and I'm looking forward to Terrell being able to go with me in the future.
Speaking of Terrell... he was so great while I was away. He always kept me updated on Garrison and how things were going at home. He was extremely supportive and encouraging and I'm very thankful for that. He made the entire trip (and separation anxiety) much easier on me. And, I'm really thankful to Anna for spending the night Wednesday and keeping Garrison part of the day Thursday, Ms. Kathy for relieving Anna on Thrusday and keeping him on Friday too, and my parents for coming and giving Terrell a break on Saturday. Daddy played golf with him while mama kept Garrison and they spent the night Saturday so Terrell could pick me up at the airport. I'm really grateful for everyone's help and support and knowing that Garrison was well taken care of gave me peace of mind while I was away. So thanks everybody!!
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Bedtime update: We've had all of our bedtime issues resolved for the past few weeks. We finally figured out that it helped for us to give him his less-than-half sippy cup of milk in his room instead of the living room and that if he did cry once we left, it was only for 30 seconds to 2 minutes. We just timed him and it never lasted longer than that and after about the 3rd or 4th night, he didn't cry at all. We did eliminate the morning nap, but only for a few days before it was back. It was just way too obvious that he wasn't ready to give it up quite yet. He was soo tired and even seemed exhausted before lunch time. So we're going to wait on him to tell us when he's ready. We'll see how he does once preschool starts...that may officially get rid of the morning nap.
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