Going with the Flow

Someday when I am a famous writer and speaker I will be tell the story of my first writing conference.  I will share how nervous and unsure I was about going.  I will share how I wanted something new to wear so I could look confident even though I wasn't.  I will tell how I scraped together a little money and found a new top on clearance for $7 to wear.  I will share how the day before I left I realized that my flight home left a 10PM not 10AM and I had an entire day to kill without a car or a hotel room.  I will share how my hairbrush broke at 5 am the morning I flew out to the conference.  How I had forgotten, even though the rule had been in place for years, that you couldn't carry any liquid over 3oz on a plane and had to toss out half my toiletries at the airport.  How I planned to get there early and have time alone in the hotel room to pray and relax but when I arrived discovered my room wouldn't be ready until shortly before the conference started.  And I wondered what God had in store for me since clearly my plan for the weekend wasn't the same as His.

None-the-less, I had a wonderful weekend on God's schedule.  Before the conference I kept asking myself what I was thinking yet while there I never once thought to myself, "what am I doing here?"  I knew why I was there.  I don't exactly know what God's plan is but I know God is leading me on a new adventure and he was equipping and inspiring me through this conference, the ministry of Proverbs 31 and it's speakers.

I learned alot, got encouragement, confidence and inspiration.  And I made a few new friends like her and her and her and her and her and her.  While everyone was at different stages on their writing or speaking journey it was refreshing to realize that we all have the same fears and doubts and dreams and desires.  Still we step forward in the calling God has given us and wait in anticipation to discover what he will do next.

I think some of my highlight take aways are:

• Pray, Pray, Pray
• God does amazing things through people who simply listen and obey
• Write every day
• Don't let your ministry get ahead of your family
• You can't get published if you don't submit anything.

My friend Jen.  That is my $7 new top by the way. 

Cheri Keagy.  She led the music this weekend.  She has been at Hearts at Home a couple times and I really like her music.  She ended up sitting at our table at lunch which was fun although she was too far away to chat with.  Still I asked for a picture afterward as if we were now best friends.

Lunch.  OK I brought my little camera and it just isn't the same as the SLR., this meal was actually delicious but looks sort of gross in this picture.  Note the tea.  Instead of water everyone had sweet tea at their place.  Definitely the south.  One meal even included grits!

Since I had plenty of time to kill after the conference Sunday morning I got in line to get my picture taken with Lysa Terkeurst who started Proverbs31 and the She Speaks conference.  It would have been nice if I had bought one of her books to sign but I decided to just be tacky, ask for a picture and leave.

It was a wonderful weekend and I look forward to taking all that God has given me through it and seeing what He has me do next.