This week we (our kids) had two days off for ‘fall break’. So last Friday the family set off for a few days vacation. Can you guess where we went? I’ll give you a few choices:
1) Memphis, TN – Graceland (home of Elvis)
2) Atlanta, Georgia - big city, lots to do
3) Destin, FL – huge beach destination, very popular in TN
4) Shipshewana, IN – Tiny little Amish town in Northern IN
That’s right – Shipshe (that’s what the locals call it).
And now, the question is why?!?!
I wrote a musical. A two hour musical based on the life and ministry of Simon Peter. And this little town of horses and buggies and homeade bread and big homes with no electricity boasts a 300+ seat theater. 
My musical, The Rock, The Redeemer and The Resurrection Morning has been playing there for a couple months and closes this weekend. I took the family to check out a performance.
The BlueGate Restaurant and Theater serves hundreds and sometimes thousands of people from all over the country each week. Homestyle food served by women in aprons and caps create an atmosphere of a much more simple life than most of us live. The owners have a vision to bring professional, bible-based musicals to the area and through a series of relationships I got asked to write a musical for the theater. 
I wish thousands were coming to Shipshewana to see my show…but most come for a local flea market that is just enormous. Really… it goes on forever and ever! And the people come to town in busses to check it out along with the dozens of local storefronts selling all kinds of stuff. Our hope is that they will eventually get into the habit of seeing a musical after they purchase their favorite purse, t-shirt, sock puppet, or Amish inspired quilt made in China. We’ll see!
Many thanks to the great cast of the musical…thanks for working so hard to see my vision come to reality…thanks for using your talents to encourage others…thanks for being so darned talented and so easy to work with…and thanks for your very kind words of encoruagement to me!!! I am very grateful.