Divine Appointments

God has been nudging me since the first of the year to write again. While 2020 gave many people the extra time to develop a new hobby or hone a passion, I found myself focused on new grandbabies and family.  Though writing has been a constant in my life, that period of time until now would see me with my longest drought as an author.  Odd since the past four years have had plenty of material to draw inspiration!

New Years Eve, God prompted me to compile a collection of my devotions from this blog and share with friends.  "A 52 week Journey to JOY."  What I thought would be a handful of women interested, grew beyond my imagination.  I started writing out the names of the women on my calendar to pray for as each week began.  And soon, God would use that space tenfold to fill it with names. 

It was the boost I needed to pick back up the pen and share my God-given gift with others.  

A short while later, I discovered a writer's conference hosted by one of my most beloved and respected Christian authors, Liz Curtis Higgs.  The workshop filled quickly but I was blessed to be among the group of writers attending and counted the days eagerly until the event.

I am home now fresh from the conference and filled with every emotion in awe of how great our God truly is.  There is no doubt this event came in His perfect timing. Going, I hoped for inspiration, motivation, and possibly connections, but what I didn't expect was for this weekend to be a healing balm for my soul.

God used people to send me a smile, a hug, or an encouraging word I didn't even know I needed. I found myself often lifting up prayers of praise in the midst of the conference for how wonderful He is. But the "WOW God" moment is one of which I'm still in awe...

An introvert by nature, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and sat with different people every opportunity, wanting to meet and hear stories from other writers. Coming back to the gathering place for lunch, I almost passed up the table I'd last visited but something told me to sit again.  (I know now it was God)

We exchanged excitement and notes from the workshops. And then, one of the ladies, Tammy, commented about a new favorite author she'd discovered. When she mentioned her own child loss story, my momma-heart connected and I began to share as well.

We'd both lost sons.  

Both boys were nearly the same age.
Both 15 years ago...

To put two grieving mothers together, who were moments ago strangers, is God led. Then, to discover our boys were the same age and to hear they passed on the EXACT same date....but God.  It was a goosebump, tear-filled ending to an experience I will forever treasure.  November 29, 2008, will hold an extra special meaning now.

Tammy, Liz Curtis Higgs, and me

What a divine appointment, to meet the momma of the son who met Jesus the same day as mine!  How Great is our God!