Joni Earickson Tada and Burt Kettinger - a wonderful evening!!!

Try not to be jealous, but I had the honor to be at the WIHS (our local Christian radio station) Annual Banquet, which had about 500 people in attendance!  The guest speaker was none other than Joni Earickson Tada!  Oh, was she wonderful!  I also was deeply blessed by her inspiring message and by the comforting music of Burt Kettinger. Wow! His voice is so warm and soothing, and his songs just drew me closer to the Lord.  Sometimes the whole congregation was singing along (even with Joni!), and it sounded heavenly.  No modern Christian rock concert can bring this kind of joy and inspiration I felt last night.  Joni gave away some books, too - I am looking forward to reading her book entitled, "How To Be a Christian in a Brave New World." For those who aren't familiar with Joni, she has a radio program called, "Joni and Friends", which airs nationally on Christian Radio Stations, and as she is a quadriplegic, she has a burden for disabled people.  She has started a ministry called, "Wheels for the World", and goes into poor countries delivering wheelchairs and crutches to disabled people who would otherwise be confined to a bed. She also brings the gospel to them.

I hope you enjoy the pictures!

This is the website for Burt Kettinger: http://www.burtkettinger.com/
This is the website for Joni Earickson Tada: Joni and Friends Radio Program

That table that was next to me were Joni's books that she was giving away.

This was Burt Kettinger's table (right across from mine) of CD's he was selling.

This was my table, which contained info about our church and Christian school, as well as books and CD's I've written.

My pastor's wife Nancy Atkinson and I, with our usual goofy selfies!

One of our favorite families, the Bennetts, were also in attendance, with some of their CD's, and also info for Hope Pregnancy Center.

A look down the hall at some of the ministry tables.

My best friend Nancy Atkinson!  We had a fun evening together!

She was talking with her hands, not getting ready to choke this lovely lady! LOL!
Notice the chimes - these were really cool for people to try them.  It represented our school's (and church's) chimes choirs.

The Bennett's table.

It was a great crowd! We had a wonderful dinner, and was fun getting to know some new people, and run into some old friends as well!

Burt Kettinger sang some beautiful songs that comforted my soul and drew me closer to the Lord.

Joni Earickson Tada - she made me laugh, made me cry, and warmed my heart.

In two weeks it is her birthday, so many people brought her a birthday card. I also put in there with my card my Beauty in Pain album; I hope it will be a blessing to her.

She was gracious enough to pose for many pictures. That's her husband Ken next to her.  He was so good with her, as she has some physical needs at times when she's speaking, such as help getting into a position so she can cough/clear her throat adequately.  She said such a wonderful thing: "Humiliation is the quickest path to humility.  God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble!" (James 4:6) Aren't you glad?