My cats were quietly snoozing nearby when I checked my e-mail yesterday. In my inbox I found a pleasant note from the manuscript submission coordinator of the Mount Hermon Christian Writer’s Conference. She was informing me that my manuscripts had arrived and that I still have twelve days to relax before the conference begins. At first I smiled. My manuscripts made it safely there. That was fast!
 Then I shrieked. The cats jumped up, looking up at me with big round eyes, their backs arched.
“Twelve days? TWELVE DAYS? It can’t be only twelve days!”
I went to my calendar and counted. Oh. She was wrong. It’s NOT twelve days.
It’s TEN!

“Nooooooo!” My cats fled the room.

Okay, so here’s what I still have to do. I must print and critique 20 pages for each of the other members of my mentorship class. I must write, polish, memorize and practice my two sentence elevator pitch so that it sounds natural, compelling and confident. I must pack for every conceivable type of weather. I need to re-design my one-sheet (not a requirement, but I found it very helpful last year). I need to decide which worskshops I hope to attend and print out the necessary handouts. I should go over the faculty list and decide who I need to get appointments with and who I should try to sit with at one of the mealtime sessions.

I can do that in ten days. Right?

Oh, yes. And I need to pray. Pray that my heart is calm. Pray that I am confident, but not overbearing. Pray that my manuscript gets placed in the right hands. Pray that I am able to meet the “right” people (by God’s standards, not mine). Pray that my plane doesn’t crash on the way there. Or on the way home.
I informed my hubbie last night that I had entered full panic mode. I loved his response — so filled with wisdom, as always. “Why panic? What happens at the conference is not really up to you. Is it?”

At first I sputtered. “Well, no it’s not up to me . . . but . . . but . . .” I took a deep breath. He is right. He’s always right. It drives me batty sometimes, but over the years, I’ve come to accept it. He’s right. This is not my show — it’s God’s. My list seems a bit less important when I think of it that way.

So, I think I’ll move that prayer part up to the top of my list. I’ll probably still find myself hyperventilating from time to time over the next few days, but I will try to remind myself of my hubby’s words. It’s not up to me. Whether or not I get everything done. Whether or not I pack the right stuff. Whether my elevator pitch is stellar or a confusing mess. . . If God wants great things to come out of this conference, they will. If this isn’t the right time — then I will have to wait.

So, I’m off to focus my mind, my heart and my soul. Later today I will work on focusing the other extraneous details.

Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

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