Frazzled, hot and nervous! I pulled into the Drury entrance with my heart racing. The conference was about to start and I only had 10 minutes to check in and unload my luggage. I left work with plenty of time to get there, but traffic became congested just miles away from my exit. I jumped out of the truck with my purse and entered the hotel with a frantic look on my face. I was greeted by a gentleman whose voice lulled my soul and instantly I started to calm down. He checked me in and explained all the pleasantries to me, although I’ll admit I was paying more attention to the thoughts running through my head than the fact that I could get free water, soda, and popcorn.
As he handed me my keys to my room I smiled, thanked him, and rushed back out the door. I managed to find my room and ran into a lady I had met once before at another writer’s conference I attended earlier in the year. We hugged and then she asked, “Do you know where we are going?” I frowned and said, “No.” She smiled and said, “I’ll wait for you and we can go together.” My racing heart started to calm down once again, as I knew everything was going to be alright.
We hopped on the elevator and found the conference room full of chatter. The ladies were mingling and I quickly found my spot at the back of the room in the corner and sighed. As I observed the women who were all excited to be there I was thankful that I had made it and couldn’t wait to see what God was going to do.
The next four days were nothing like I expected. I was accepted, encouraged, prayed for, and loved on. We had a full agenda from 8 am -8 pm. Our days went something like this: Breakfast, worship, devotional, LEARNING, lunch, LEARNING, dinner, worship. We started our day praising God and ended our day praising God. After worship, we would practice our speeches in groups. This was the best time of fellowship.
The big day came when we presented our 3-minute speech, better known as the sizzle reel, to all the ladies. This speech was recorded and after the speech, we headed out to take headshots. We spent the morning listening to speeches, crying and laughing, cheering and being lifted up because we all crossed the “chicken” line and for many faced our fears. That night we had a celebration, walked the red carpet, and graduated from Christian Communicators Conference. The tension that had filled the conference room that morning had dissipated into excitement and joy.
Each lady had their own experience, and as far as I could tell was enjoying every moment. As for me, I walked in overwhelmed by the what-ifs and unknowns, and I walked away overwhelmed by the affirmations, acceptance, blessings, and love of my new sisters in Christ. I have finally found “my people”. The ladies understand me and support me. God is faithful to those who obey Him.
