Last week, my husband and I had the opportunity to go on a one-day retreat in Brookshire, Texas. The event was mainly for those who serve as communications leaders and directors in churches (like my husband does), but I attended as well because 1) As a staff wife, I’m in church communications by association, 2) I knew it would benefit our work at Priority because we’re all communicators here, and 3) One of my most-favorite authors was the speaker and I completely, totally wanted to stalk meet him!

If you have never heard of Jon Acuff, let me just give you a small glimpse into his world. His breakout moment came when he started a blog several years ago called Stuff Christians Like. As a pastor’s son, he knows how ridiculous Christians can be sometimes. He gets us because he’s one of us! So he writes about things like Booty, God, Booty, Giving Your Kid a Biblical Name, and Jesus Jukes to encourage us through laughter, satire and sarcasm (and you know how I love me some sarcasm!) If you want the perfect book to give to your teenage son who’s convinced that following God means you can’t have fun anymore, buy Jon’s first book, Stuff Christians Like and put it in your bathroom. Good times!

But several years ago, he also started writing about dreaming, and hustle and chasing after God’s calling on your life in a way that is both practical and risky all at the same time. He joined Dave Ramsey’s team and worked for several years as a speaker and writer encouraging businesses and individuals to embrace their entrepreneurial spirit. He is now a New York Times Bestselling author of three other books including Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job and Your Dream Job, and Start: Punch Fear in the Face, Escape Average & Do Work that Matters.

So basically, he rocks.

And basically, I’ve been stalking him.

Through his blog, his other blog, Twitter and Facebook, I’ve admired him from afar, but never met him… until last week!

My husband and I arrived at the retreat facility, met a few other attendees and grabbed breakfast and coffee before sitting down. I picked a table right up front and made myself comfortable. From the corner of my eye, I saw Jon come into the room. “Be cool!” I told myself. “Don’t make eye contact! Don’t make it embarrassingly obvious that you know what town he lives in, his children’s names and that he just ran a half-marathon a few weeks ago because you read about it on Twitter. Just chill!”

And then Jon came over to us, introduced himself and Sat. Down. At. Our. Table! (Are you kidding me with this!? I’m having coffee with Jon Acuff?! Pinch me now!) For several minutes it was just me, my husband, and our new BFF Jon just chatting, sipping coffee and laughing like old friends.

It was seriously so much fun!

So many times, we admire someone from afar and when we finally meet them, we’re smacked in the face with disappointment. The person we talk to face-to-face completely contradicts the one we thought we knew all this time. You know the type. The movie star who is too glamorous to talk to fans. The author who is too big for his britches to autograph books. The singer who has no time for the little people like us.

But what a refreshing moment when the real person matches the persona.

There were only thirty-five attendees at the retreat that day, so it was an informal, intimate setting. Not only did Jon deliver three amazing and inspiring talks, he also embraced the atmosphere of the event and had personal and meaningful conversations with almost everyone there. He did not have an air of entitlement to him in the least and he appeared sincere, approachable and refreshingly real.

In fact, he was so approachable that we took a selfie together!! Looks like I have my photo for this year’s Christmas cards! LOL!

So if you are looking for something new – some Christ-centered inspiration that is zero parts snooty and all parts funny – I encourage you to check out the Acuff lineup. (Pharisees need not apply.)