Milligan Trip....Truth Project

I was given the opportunity last night and today to attend a regional training conference for Focus on the Family's, "The Truth Project." For anyone not aware of what that is (like me before this weekend), it is Focus' attempt to teach a biblical worldview through small groups. There are 12 DVD lessons that are really packed full of information. I was a little skeptical about how the weekend would go because a friend of mine had mentioned it and said he wasn't that big of a fan of it. But after hearing Dr. Del Tackett go through the curriculum, and the vision they have for it, I am excited to go through the material. Our society as a whole has bought into alot of lies, from politicians, the media, Hollywood, etc. This was a refreshing look at the biblical Truths that we have traded in for these lies.

The conference usually costs about $150 to attend, but through God's grace and provision, we were given free participant's passes through the son of a staff member here at the college (he is one of the main people invovled with Truth Project), free definitely fits into my budget!! Thank you Cathy and Gary Alan Taylor!

One of the greatest parts of this opportunity was that it was being hosted by Milligan College in Johnson City. I haven't been to Milligan's campus in about 6 years! We used to go to CIY there when I was in High School, but when they started having CIY at Lee University in Cleveland, TN, we started going there instead. It was great to be back at Milligan. I have alot of memories from the years I went to CIY there. The conference was held in Seeger Chapel, so during a break I started roaming around. I went into Lower Seeger, where Milligan's music department is. We had our His Time at CIY one year down there, and I could almost see everyone sitting there listening as Marshall recounted his inability to find Psalms during D-group, and when I went over to the gym I could remember many games of basketball, indoor frisbee, running up the slanted side walls from the lower level up to gym floor. And sitting in Seeger Chapel I could remember the many hours of worship lead by Jeff (I've just blanked on his name, I'll fill it in later! haha), and hearing speakers like Jeff Walling, Rusty Logsden, Tim Gray, Robin Sigars, and Gary Zustiak deliver amazing messages from the Word. And could distinctly remember the first time I heard Rich Mullins sing, as he gave an impromptu concert my first CIY, just months before his death. Or sitting towards the back of the chapel, listening to Willie Bolden preach, and finding myself walking up front during the invitation time! Wow, the memories I have from Milligan! Of course, I can't forget the amazing cave that is minutes away! That cave was the whole reason I went to CIY in the first place that first year!!! God works in incredibly mysterious ways! I'm not 100% positive that I could find that cave again, but I could remember exactly where we parked, haha. But it brought back great memories of roaming around the mountains looking for that cave for HOURS! And the moment when Tim and Tony both came to the realization that they recognized the spot where we were at, and then proceeded to point in the OPPOSITE directions for where we should go!

To top it all off we ate lunch at "The Firehouse," which is a great barbeque place in Johnson City. The restaurant is an old firehouse that has been converted, complete with an old 1925 fully functional fire engine. Part of our CIY "tradition" was to eat lunch there during our extended-rec day.

It was a great trip. The conference was very good, the speaker was awesome, and walking down "memory lane" is always fun!