A
new writers conference? It sounded nice—to have a conference right here in the
Mid-South. But every time someone in our group brought up the subject, all I
could focus on were the negatives. Our group was too small to facilitate a
conference. We had no money to pay speakers or rent a venue. The economy was
bad. Other conferences that had been around for years were seeing major drops
in attendance. This was not a good idea.
Eventually,
April Carpenter made an executive decision—“We’re going to hold a conference,
and I’m going to direct it. I need volunteers.”
My
hand went up of its own accord. I not only volunteered to lead a workshop but
also act as registrar and coordinate the website construction. What was I
thinking? My parents were in very poor health, and their demands on my time
left me little occasion to write, much less work a conference.
Then
Jeris Hamm came on board as marketing director. Her enthusiasm was contagious,
but every time she expressed concerns about overflowing a room large enough to
accommodate seventy attendees, my negative side resurfaced. I told her not to
worry. We’d be lucky to have twenty-five. She finally had to tell me to stop. I
was dampening her enthusiasm.
The
day of the conference arrived, and everything was going beautifully. And yes,
more people registered than I’d expected. Halfway through the first keynote
address, Jeris came out to the registration table and asked how many attendees
we had.
“Fifty-one.”
“Oh,
my goodness!” she said. “When I signed on as marketing director, I prayed for
fifty attendees.”
“Oh,
my goodness!” I said. “One of the registrations was complimentary. We have exactly
fifty paid attendees.”
My
lack of faith never dampens God’s plans. He counters every no with a yes, every
negative with a positive. He knew who needed to attend our conference, and He
brought every writer who needed to hone skills, network with others, and be
encouraged.
Now
we’re doing it all over again. How about you? Is God calling you to develop
your talents for His glory? Join us at the 2015 Mid-South Christian Writers
Conference on March 7.
Oh, Tracy, how well I know that negative spirit! But God is so faithful, isn't He, so I'm going on the offensive. This conference will be a huge success! Even better than last year's A-M-A-Z-I-N-G one!
ReplyDeleteThanks Tracy for recapping last years conference so elegantly! I'm with Pat, this years conference will be an even bigger success! Thanks for all you hard work. You continue to AMAZE me!!
ReplyDelete