Jeff Dixon’s Disney novels have been capturing readers’ imaginations and sending them on Disney scavenger hunts for six and half years—ever since the first book, The Key to the Kingdom, was published in December 2010. One couple took their love for this series one step further. Jeff Dixon emailed the following story to us a few months ago. With his permission, we’re excited to share it here. An Invitation to Wed I am sitting in my office and my phone rings, the caller ID says the following . . . DISNEY. Hmmm . . . that is odd, why in the world is Disney calling. But I am an annual pass holder, I frequent the resort often, maybe it is a survey, so I answer the call. “Hello.” “Hi, is this Jeff Dixon?” The voice on the line asks. “Yes, it is.” “Is this the Jeff Dixon that is the author of a series of Disney books?” Now, I hesitate. In an instant a tidal wave of thoughts go rushing across my brain. Why does Disney want to know if I am the author who writes Disney books? Is this the moment that we always knew might happen? Is this the cease and desist word because we have been maybe too successful? I am tempted to come up with a creative answer to avoid the question, but the slight pause yields to the truth. Is this the cease and desist word because we have been maybe too successful? “Yes, I am that Jeff Dixon.” “You have written the Dixon on Disney—Key to the Kingdom series, correct?” (Again, I am thinking—here we go . . .) “Yes, that is correct. I am Dixon on Disney.” I am sure there was no real significant pause, but in my head it seemed like there was a delay that took forever. Then came the response. “Great, love the books. I have another question for you.” “Sure, ask away,” I say, breathing for the first time since I answered the call. “Are you still a pastor?” inquires the Disney rep. “The official title is Transformational Architect, but for conversation sake we can go with ‘pastor.’” “Do you have a license to do weddings in the state of Florida?” “I do . . .” I reply with a bit of whimsy. Because saying “I do” in reference to a wedding question just strikes me as funny. I think the moment was lost on the other end of the phone. It may not have been a good connection. “So glad we found you. This is Disney Fairytale Weddings. We have a request from a couple for you to perform their wedding here at the Walt Disney World Resort. We are just verifying that you are the correct contact and we will inform them to reach out directly to you if that is acceptable. Perhaps we can schedule you for this event. Have a magical day.” Almost instantly I was contacted by a couple who shared the following story with me: Every time we go to Disney World we take your books, all of them. We spend time every vacation tracking down the things you have written about in your series. Can’t wait for the next book. Please don’t let it end with four, we want more. I recently proposed to my wife to be on Main Street USA. (They included a picture of the moment for me to see.) We are from Indiana but get to the resort at least three times each year. We knew we would be a long way from home but we decided that we wanted to be married at WDW. As we realized our pastor from home couldn’t come, we wanted Grayson Hawkes to do our wedding. Of course, we know that he is a fictional character and couldn’t pull that off, but we thought that since you created him, this fictional world we love, and you are a pastor author, maybe you could do the wedding for us. So if we can’t have Hawk, we want you to do the wedding, please. The conversation continued with the story of their life as a couple, how God had brought them together, how Disney and the stories I wrote had been connection points for them, and how much the books had meant to them. The end result is that I will be doing their wedding in April on the beach at the Polynesian Resort at Walt Disney World as a part of Disney Fairytale Weddings. I figured you would like the story because, well . . . we are still in the book business and got another “blessing: from the Disney Company, which is nice. But perhaps it is a moment to encourage other authors out there. You just never know how God is going to use the story that you are telling. I know as writers there are many moments where you hope what you have to share and communicate will connect with at least one reader somewhere. A lot of times we never know the impact of what we are doing. But there are moments, when God gives us a glimpse and we see the power of a story. It will challenge, bless, encourage, and inspire . . . and it will change the life of someone else in ways that go far beyond what we ever imagined as we are banging out the words on a keyboard. You just never know how God is going to use the story that you are telling. So for all the other writers out there—keep on writing. It matters and God can use your story to bless and impact others. And when someone asks you if you write—answer boldly and say “I do.” (See? I did it again . . . a little bit of wedding humor wrapped up in storytelling there.) Alexis’s note: As I prepared the newsletter, I emailed Jeff to ask for an update. He responded that “the wedding went off without a hitch” and elaborated: I stood in front of the couple on the edge of the Seven Sea Lagoon on the white beach sand of the Polynesian Resort. A violinist played as the couple exchanged their vows, their families watched back at home as the wedding was streamed live back to them, and then they began their new life together with a dance along the shore with Cinderella Castle in the background. I was honored to be a part of it, and it is all a part of how God connects an audience to an author through the power of a story. I hope the rest of our authors find as much delight and encouragement in Jeff’s story as we do! As he says, “keep on writing.” You might not get a phone call from Disney Fairytale Weddings, but your words do matter, and you never know how God will use them. Be sure to check out Jeff’s books, starting with The Key to the Kingdom. The fourth one, Terror in the Kingdom, came out this past November.
