MID WEEK MOTIVATION - April 1, 2026

This is going to be a disaster.

No, it's not.

At 11 p.m., Jackson was on a walk.

He had walked an hour away from his house.

He sent me a picture of the church.

You walked to the church from your house?

Yeah, so I was walking and I went through my neighborhood and then I went up, get well, went all the way across Cherry Tree to this playground.

No, no, it was fun.

They frown on grown people.

We were like, We were busting it down on that playground, dude.

It was fun.

But so I recorded myself.

So then I looked at my phone after I recorded myself, and my phone's at 1%.

And so I texted Fallo and I was like, hey, like I was just telling her what I was doing.

And then um she's like, I'm coming to get you.

I was like, no, it's okay.

I'm good.

And you know what?

As we're just like her.

Yeah.

As we're going into his neighborhood, his sister goes blowing past us.

My sister also asked where I was.

So I told my sister as well.

So we had to call my sister on her phone.

Did they call 911?

No.

You know, I don't I don't know why they can't let a guy just walk.

And he was wearing this in all black.

I was wearing this.

Walking down Ghetlow.

Because I put it on after my shower.

You had already showered.

Yeah, it's just the wall.

I won't even Okay.

No.

All right, cut.

You're listening to the Midweek Motivation Podcast from Desotto Hills Baptist Church in South Haven, Mississippi.

Here's your host, Mark Lewis, David Burgess, Laura Ulrich, and Pastor Grant Diegall.

It is a loaded studio today.

I've muted all of y'all's mics so I can actually get through the intro.

Welcome to the Midweek Motivation Podcast for April 1st.

Did you know that this is April 1st, Dave?

I did.

Happy April Fool's Day.

Right.

It's our day.

Yes.

It's our time to shine.

And we're here at DeSota Hills Baptist Church.

I'm Mark Lewis, and I'm here with Dave.

And we also have two special giggly guests.

Would y'all introduce yourselves?

Hey, I'm Jackson Dale.

And I'm Fallon Benson.

Now, we are here today because we had a mission trip.

So, Dave, let's start with you.

Tell us what y'all did over spring break.

All right.

So over spring break, we loaded up one of our buses and a rental and took off to Orlando nonstop drive.

Took us 15 hours total travel time to get there.

It was great.

When we got there, we worked with uh 1002 church in Orlando.

They meet at an elementary school, East Lake Elementary School, and we helped them blitz the neighborhood by canvassing, having gospel conversations, handing out invitations to their Easter service, uh, which they will be uh you know holding that in a week so or a week and a half or so.

So it's uh we we worked, we walked, we served, and we were really tired, but we also had fun, a great team building experience, and we are gonna plan on going back, Lord willing, spring break next year.

Okay, and y'all had a lot of fun.

Let's let's talk to you two.

Jackson, tell us.

I I mean we had so much fun.

Um, that was one of the greatest weeks of my life.

Um, just going down there, you know, in Orlando, Florida, one of the best cities in the world, and uh being able to minister to those people.

I mean, it was it was a great time.

And Universal is pretty all right too.

Well, absolutely.

Now tell everybody who you are a little bit about yourself, in case our listeners don't know.

So uh I'm Jackson Dale.

Uh, currently attend Northwest Community College.

I'm a sophomore there, I'm 19.

Um, I'm the intern here at church, and I'm a leader as well.

And so uh I teach um seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth in the mornings on Sunday morning.

And so yeah.

And you are currently pursuing the medical field.

That is correct.

Yes.

Uh End goal is orthopedic surgeon.

I love it.

All right, Fallon.

Our listeners can't see Fallon's facial expressions right now.

All right, tell us a little bit about yourself.

Um, I'm a freshman at Northwest as well.

I'm going into kinesiology to do occupational therapy.

Um I don't have as many packs as him.

I just go here.

Well, how long have you gone to DeSota Hills?

We could start with that.

Um I guess since my like freshman year.

Sounds like 22.

Yeah.

Something like that.

So yeah.

Okay.

And tell us about like when y'all heard that this trip was going to happen because it was a pretty fast.

This would put we put this together pretty quickly.

For sure.

Did y'all immediately think, ooh, that's something that I think I would enjoy doing, or do you have to be talked into it?

Um David mentioned it weekend of Dean Out, and then every time I saw David after that, if he wasn't texting me about it, he was like, Hey, we're still going to Orlando.

You still have time.

And then It was like the week before, and I was like, There's still time, but there's not enough time.

Yeah.

It was super last minute that I even went, but I'm really glad that I did.

Same question, Jackson.

Yeah, I mean, David kind of wrote me into it, you know.

I mean, I wanted to go, but um, yeah, David definitely played a part.

Okay.

Starting with you, what happened or how is the tr how did the trip affect you or what happened like in a way that you didn't expect?

Like what how did you feel coming back, maybe versus going down there?

Um, you know, it just made me more aware of, you know, my ability to to speak about Christ and um, you know, to share his word to other people.

Um, you know, like like the Great Commission was just on my mind a lot, and you know, the ability to uh make disciples of all nations.

And so like while we were down there in Orlando and we were, you know, ministering to those people, I was also thinking about South Haven and about, you know, people in my school who uh need the word of God.

And so um I've been having more conversations up here and I've been trying to talk to my close friends more about um you know, it's about Jesus and you know, a lot of my conversations have been more in Christ than say beforehand.

I've been more um aware of that.

So I love it.

Fallon, were you terrified to talk to people like that?

I I don't know because you are a social person.

We should start with that.

But I am, but having gospel conversations is hard for me for some reason because I always feel like I'm like like forcing it on them.

And it's hard.

That's hard for everybody.

It always like I was always so uncomfortable with it.

But this this trip definitely opened me up to it a lot more.

But the biggest thing that surprised me while we were there is so many people were surprised that we were like inviting them to church and like just surprised that we were like out there having those conversations.

And that was really eye-opening too.

That we can we need to come back here and do that around our church and for people around us that we see every day.

It's an indictment, is what it is, on culture today, because nobody wants to do that.

And so, I mean, come on, Dave.

What what are some things that happened on the trip that um encouraged you?

I know you said you were very encouraged by the outcome of how we did, how we performed, and and how the students worked.

Definitely.

So uh our goal was to go down and just figure out with these mission trips, you know, you have an agenda, like, but it's very loose, you know.

So our goal was to go down there and just kind of let the church planners talk to us, tell us kind of what they're expecting, what they need.

And it kind of happened on a day-to-day basis.

We were expecting to go there, be flexible, be fluid.

It's a mission trip.

Not everything is gonna turn out the way we expect.

So we went and we uh we talked to the church planners, and they said, Hey, we have a task for you.

We want to invite everybody around this church area to church to attend our Easter service coming up.

And so I mentioned this at the meeting, but in their three months of leading up to launching this church, that's all you do is canvas neighborhoods and say, hey, there's a church coming, we're gonna start meeting here, and this is we want to invite you.

And so they for three months canvassed um and they passed out six thousand flyers and inviting flyers, okay?

Six thousand, and then we get there and there's two other teams, and we we had the biggest team there.

There were two other teams, but combined, we passed out five thousand fly uh flyers in like four days.

Okay.

So we were walking, talking, handing out flyers, and and and just the way that these these students, what surprised me most is that their hunger and desire to serve and to go out, get the job done, uh and and do it without complaining was something like, okay, this is the Lord.

This is the Lord working, this is the Lord working in our hearts, moving, using us.

And so it was so refreshing, encouraging.

Hey, God wants to use us here and abroad, so let's be faithful, let's be people who want, uh, who have a desire to serve Jesus by serving others.

Okay, and you said that the church ended up having uh some issues with their location.

They thought they were going to get a chance to move, but ended up falling through.

Did y'all do, did y'all help them logistically with some other things besides just passing out the flyers?

Uh yeah.

So the last night we were there, we uh helped with a service project.

They were they're having like, they're doubling their numbers of students to school uh in this fall.

So we had to move just entire closets, tables, cabinets, desks, move them to another location to store books, to store the church's things.

Um, and so we worked on that project that Friday night.

Okay, but leading up, so there was some service and some, you know, hard work and service going on, but leading up to the trip, uh, again, the church was like pretty convinced that they were gonna switch venues, they were gonna leave the school and go to another church building location with land, and they were gonna use that building.

Well, that fell through like last minute.

And then on the other side of the trip, we kind of found out why, like, okay, the Lord is in this, even in the falling through of this seemingly good deal, like the Lord was in it because now they had a meeting with the principal of the school and they're putting the church's uh letterhead on their letterhead, like their logo on their letterhead saying, Hey, anything that goes out to the school, these parents are gonna get and they're gonna say, see that, hey, there's 1002 church is meeting in this school.

And so they're gonna be present when there's events going on at the school that are school related, the church is gonna be present.

There's and it opens the door to some huge ministry opportunities to have VBSs at the school, to have sports camps after classes are over.

Um, because in Orlando, like people are dying for this kind of stuff and they're not getting it.

Like the people who live there, I mean, churches in Orlando charge for VBS.

They charge for VBS because it's another form of like relatively cheap health, I mean healthcare, relic relatively cheap child care child care.

But this church, they want to go and offer it for free, which is unheard of in Orlando.

Which sound that just sounds that whole culture sounds insane.

It is totally different than what we're used to because there any given time in in the summer, there's a free VBS in our area every week of the summer.

Right.

They have nothing.

And and then if you don't have, if you're not from money, if you don't have money, if you're on the lower end of the income base in Orlando, like you're you're struggling.

Right.

But so the the church 102 wants to offer a few VBSs every summer so that parents can find some relief there and get exposed to the gospel and be ministered to.

I love it.

Uh is this the same church you plan on partnering with next year, God willing?

Yeah, Lord willing, it'll be this it'll you will partner with the same people.

All right, I love it.

All right, you two, we're gonna do something called.

I wasn't gonna do this, but I'm gonna, I think I'm gonna do table topics.

Okay, David, David's like, this is a day table topic day.

Here we go.

Table topics, table topics, table topics, table topics, table topics, table topics, table topics.

They're sitting here, they're all of a sudden nervous, right?

Table topics, right?

All right, so here we go.

Uh let's start with Jackson.

If you received an extra burrito when ordering at your local shop, would you say something?

I would thank them, and I'd thank the Lord for the for the free burrito, and then I'd walk out to my car and I'd eat that burrito.

Fallon, same question.

Same answer.

I'm keeping it.

This actually happened to him recently.

Are you serious?

Two weeks ago, he went to Burger King and ordered a quarter pounder meal, and they gave him a quarter pounder impossible beef meal.

Yeah, he didn't eat that.

Yeah.

No, they gave me the impossible, and I was like, hey, I didn't order this, and so they gave me another burger.

I received a package from Amazon this week, and I've never done that.

That was obviously delivered to the wrong place, but it had all of my information on the sticker.

It said Mark Lewis, my address, and it was obviously for an influencer, a female influencer, because it was a pink case for an Osmo camera.

It was like a pink top shirt of some sort, yeah, and then pink grips, pink batteries, everything for the camera.

I know I know our people can't see this, but that explains your outfit.

Yeah, are you sure you didn't order that?

I mean, I looked at you today and I was like, man, something new, I guess.

Use your imagination, people.

I've never had Amazon deliver something with my name on it that I know I did not order.

And I told Jennifer, I was like, I don't even know what to do with this.

Like, that's the safe answer.

There's not a there's not a way, there's not a way to call Amazon.

Hey, you sent me something that's not mine.

Like a church podcast, and I don't know what to do with it.

I will say I do like the the new camera decorations.

I'm sure you do.

All right, Fallon, would you write a reference for a friend you feel is poorly qualified for the job?

Uh I would love to say no, but I feel like I'm too nice to say no.

I'll be like, yeah, sure.

But what if your name gets slung through the mud?

What would your mommy say?

Oh, uh no, yeah.

Okay, I take it back.

I would talk to my mom and she would say no, and then and then I would say no.

I'd be like, my mom said no, I can't.

It depends on on the nature of like the job.

Like if it's in healthcare, you're like, oh yeah, they're great.

No.

Yeah, if it's like for McDonald's, I'm like, sure.

But if it's for something serious, I'd be like, uh everybody already says I talked to my mom too much.

I think if you're worried about your friend performing well at a McDonald's, then you probably need to find a new friend.

Okay.

Wisdom right there.

Would you would you write a letter for somebody?

Um, no.

No, if I didn't think they were gonna do well, then that would hurt them and then hurt the job as well.

Haven't I written you a letter before?

Wow, David.

Wow.

All right, and as a school teacher, I'm put in that predicament all the time, like for students that I know.

Same.

All right.

Is it the responsibility of the public school system to teach morals?

Yes.

I would say I would say it is, absolutely.

Um, because you know, some kids don't have the you know the blessing of too, you know, a sta a stable household, right?

And so um, you know, if the school doesn't, then who will?

You know what I mean?

That's a very wise answer, Fallon.

Oh yeah, I would agree.

I'm glad I didn't get this question.

Because I don't know, but yeah.

I definitely for people that that need that stability and people to tell them stuff like that, yeah.

Well, you were glad you didn't get that question, but you're about to get this one.

When is it okay to spy on your kids?

We probably should have videoed this podcast.

We never video them, but yeah, it's true, that'd be funny.

The the term I don't know the term spy.

I would say like my parents would like go through my phone and stuff when I was younger.

And I know that I needed them to.

Like there was stuff on there I should have been saying, people I shouldn't have been talking to.

So I'm thankful that my parents did that when I was younger.

I I don't I don't wouldn't use the term spy though, like secretly behind their back all the time.

Well, I think students, most students would consider it spying if they're even looking at their phone.

Uh like, are my kids' eyes open?

Are my eyes open?

Then I'm I'm watching.

You got you got uh you got a thought on that one?

I mean, you know, it it just depends on how how well you trust your kid, I guess.

You know, if your kid's been acting bad in school, acting up, then maybe it's time to look through that phone, you know.

Or maybe if they're going on a date with someone, maybe you don't approve with, and you know, pull up in the whip, like window rolled down, like driving by, you know, going 15 by their parked car, you know, just getting a little luxe, you know.

I like it.

Last question.

This is a softball question, okay?

What's your favorite breakfast?

Oh man.

Dude, that's a hard one.

Give me a breakfast burrito with salsa.

Speaking of burritos, we're already right back to the burrito.

Yeah.

You know, give me the hash brown scramble bowl from Chick-fil-A.

And I put like a little extra hash browns in it with like that jalapeno salsa.

It's a really good breakfast.

Mine is a plate stacked high of French toast with really crispy bacon.

Sounds for sure.

Yeah.

Sounds delightful.

I was gonna say an uncrustable because I had an uncrustable for a breakfast.

Oh my.

But I just out of time this morning.

So I'm saying uncrustable.

Okay, so that's your favorite.

We're not all of a sudden I tried it once and it's my favorite thing.

I just love it.

That's like me saying, What's your favorite meal?

And you're like, Campbell.

Like in a perfect world where money is not an object, and you have a chef sitting at your house to cook you something every single morning.

What is your favorite breakfast?

And if you say uncrustable, you're putting the headphones down and you're out.

Um, okay, I'll have to say like a really good breakfast burrito, then probably.

You stole David's?

Yeah.

Screw it.

Yeah.

Okay.

Yeah, we're gonna break.

All right, that is table topics for the day.

Table topics.

We're now gonna move to our devotion portion of the podcast that we call the midweek moment.

And for our listeners, we could not put up the podcast table and all the fancy mics today because we've got four people stuffed into this office.

So Dave has no table and he's got all of his notes and his Bible and everything spread out on his lap.

So if you hear a sound, it's probably the falling Bible and him trying to collect his notes.

No, it's gonna be fun.

You know, we'll figure it out.

All right, hit us today.

All right.

So I have uh been reading this book called Gospel Threads, okay?

And it's all about how God's people are to thread the gospel in and out of every aspect of our life.

In our, in our joy, in our happy times, in our good times, and you know, our in our awe and acknowledgement of who God is and his character.

We thread gospel, we thread the gospel in and out of our lives, even in the times that are hard, right?

So that's the that's what a believer's life should reflect is that God is good all the time.

He's good to us even when things are hard.

And so this uh that's the the premise of the book is threading the gospel throughout each aspect of our lives.

And so, uh, and it's so cool because he he starts out with the character of God.

Um, this book is written by uh David Platt, and he talks about the character of God, and it is to cause it the readers to reflect on God's character, right?

And so he throws it out that God is holy.

And what he means is when he says, when God is holy, it means that he is unique, he is separate, he is the only one of his kind.

And so he is very different than us.

We are unholy, we are sinners, and this, knowing this characteristic of God, should call his people to worship him because of his holiness.

And again, in addition to his holiness, we talk about God's justice, how it is inflexible all the time.

He justifies the innocent and condemns the guilty.

And so, again, we thread what's true about God based on his holiness, his justice, that God is good and he is going to execute goodness and justice.

So he is worthy of worship.

And last, uh, we we think about God's holiness, we think about his justice, and then we think about how gracious he is to sinners.

He demonstrated his graciousness, uh, his grace characteristic uh by sending his beloved son to die for us.

And so this is really the crown jewel of our the human experience is that we, in spite of our injustice, God is just.

In spite of our um unholiness, God is holy.

And God loves us so much that he wants to reconnect us.

And he sent his one and only son to do that.

And so, as followers, we think about God.

We think about who he is.

And I'm going to point to a passage of scripture real quick, Revelation 21, Revelation 21, 3.

And this is what it says.

And this is God's goodness and holiness and justice.

And this is what he's doing for us.

And it says, and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.

He will dwell with them, and they will be his people.

And God himself will be with them as their God.

So God is holy, God is just.

And in order for man to actually stand in God's presence, is because of his gracious.

His graciousness found in the cross.

Thanks for listening, and thanks to all of our guests in here today.

If you don't have a church home, we'd love to see you here on Sunday morning.

You can catch our services online at Desotahills.com, our YouTube channel at DeSota Hills Baptist Church.

Uh, we also have this podcast for the youngins in here who had no clue, Dave, that we even had a podcast.

You did not know.

I did know.

I didn't.

I knew.

Yeah, trying to pull it up on Apple Music.

And then I did, I do think Fallon said it's a separate app.

It's the purple one, right?

Uh so hopefully you have all found the podcast.

And if you haven't, y'all can maybe spread the word on the podcast this week.

And maybe we'll have more than 27 listeners this week, David.

Let's do it.

All right, for all of our church family, we love you so much.

We'll see you here bright and early next week.

God bless.

This has been your midweek motivation.

We'd love to have you join us in person on Sunday mornings.

Our services are at 9 and 10 30 a.m.