We Want to Buy You a $150 Dinner

A Christmas show giveaway, A huge reveal, and What to do on Tuesday

Hello! Hope you’re well. Three things for you today:

1. A SWANKY GIVEAWAY
   
   Do you have tickets to the Holy Ghost Stories Christmas show?? We’re just about to the two week mark, and we want you there. Yes, the venues are Hogwarts-level stunning. Yes, the musicians are wildly talented. Yes, cello behind a story makes your heart melt. But the real reason you should come is singular: Come meet God. Justin, you say, I can meet God on my couch. You created a whole podcast to help me do that.
   
   Touche.

   But you know how relationships work—sometimes you need a a new dress or a special restaurant or a new song to help you see one another in a fresh way. Isn’t that true with God, too? Wouldn’t it be more meaningful and memorable to put on a shirt you actually have to iron, to walk into a holy space, to sit beside people you love, and to let your eyes be opened to the presence, power, and faithful love of your Immanuel God?

   

   Christmas is about a God who arrives right here in the middle of our ordinary lives in the most unexpected and extraordinary ways. Let this Christmas show be your sky full of angels testifying to the glory of Yahweh.
   

   And how about a giveaway, because I love you? If you buy two tickets or more between now and the end of the week, you’ll be entered into a drawing to win a $150 giftcard to an excellent restaurant near your venue. (There are some really good ones in both Nashville and Northwest Arkansas.) No need to register or anything—that will happen automatically when you buy the tickets (if you buy them between now and midnight Friday).
   
   Delicious food and a Holy Ghost Stories take on Christmas? What a night this is going to be. Grab your seats and we’ll contact the winner on Monday 12/2.
   
   

   
   

2. A NEW PROJECT FROM HAZEFIRE STUDIOS

   
   Big news! I’m delighted to let you in on something that’s been in the works for a couple of years now. Yes, years.
   
   On January 7, Hazefire Studios (the nonprofit storytelling outfit that brings you Holy Ghost Stories) will launch its second major project: The Happiest Saddest People.

   

   What is The Happiest Saddest People, you ask? It’s an audio memoir—one story told over 16 episodes, written and narrated by author and Hazefire Studios partner JL Gerhardt. It’s an exceedingly personal story about the wounds from which we live, the hurts that shape the way we see God, and the pain that might lead us back to Him. Full of soaring delight and aching sadness, it will lead you on an exploration of what it means to be human and to receive the presence and work of God in everything.
   
   I’m telling you: You will love this story.
   
   Episodes will drop weekly beginning January 7. We cannot wait to share this with you. To make sure you don’t miss anything, follow the Instagram account—things will start happening there soon.

3. AN EXCITING THING TO FUND
   
   Giving Tuesday is next week, and you’re going to love what you get to enable.
   
   Here’s what you may already know: whether it’s creating episodes of Holy Ghost Stories, writing and scoring the new audio memoir you just heard about (The Happiest Saddest People), planning and executing live shows, consulting one-on-one with painters, writers, and musicians, or teaching parents how to root their families in the Kingdom Story, we spend our lives fully devoted to the task of telling true, beautiful stories for the glory of our God. And you participate in that work with us. Whether you’re a patron of Holy Ghost Stories, buy tickets to a live show, host a Storied Family workshop, buy a copy of Bonfire, or make a one-time gift, every dollar goes directly to the work of Hazefire Studios—telling stories that become worship.
   
   With that in mind, on Tuesday we’ll share a new adventure we think you’ll love. We’ll be raising $15,400 to make it happen. You’ll be shocked at what’s possible for the price of a mediocre used car.

   

   Be sure to keep an eye on your inbox (and on Instagram) on Tuesday—we’ll let you in on everything then. Good things coming!!

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That’s the latest! To recap:

• Don’t forget to grab two or more Christmas show tickets before midnight Friday to have a chance at a $150 dinner the night of the show.

• Follow The Happiest Saddest People on Instagram so you don’t miss the launch.

• Stay tuned for a wonderful way to partner with Hazefire Studios on Tuesday.

What a time to be alive.

Gratefully,
Justin