Before the great eraser does his job...

Eager Emily pre-stiletto hike over to the conference to begin information overload.

It's 11 pm.  I should be sleeping.  My 6 am wake up call will jerk me out of my [hopefully] deep sleep and throw me into another full day of the most intense cramming experience of my life.  I should close the laptop and enjoy the silence.  

But I'm so afraid I will forget what I learned tonight.  It was just an evening.  A few hours of honest heart sharing, wise advice dispensing, and eager question asking.  And God spoke to me.  Directly.  Touching the deep facets of my soul and reminding me that if you strip away all the layers of confidence and determination, insecurities and not good enoughs, He still remains.  Steady and unchanging.  As in control as He ever was.

So before I slip into my silent slumber and wipe clean the chalkboard of my mind, leaving only smudges and streaks of the wonderful things I learned today, I want to share a few little truths that stuck out - that need to be transferred to note cards and filed away for reflection when I have the energy to reflect.

From Lysa TerKeurst:  The propensity of our reactions will determine the potential of our reach.  Typical reactions will give us a typical reach.  God honoring reactions will give us a God-sized reach.  2 Chronicles 20 - King Jehoshaphat RESOLVED to inquire of the Lord in the face of extreme opposition.  He redirected himself to a predetermined stance.  How will I react in the face of Satan's best attack or my own pride and insecurity and laziness?  Will I remember who I am and whose I am?  

From Cecil Murphey:  When we write, it's a ministry.  The results of that ministry are in God's hands.  Our success or lack thereof isn't because we're talented or educated.  It's because it's the sovereign choice of God.  Your test is to be faithful - not to sell books.  

Make a commitment right now to never stop learning more about the art of writing AND to do whatever you can to help other writers become all that they can be.

Dear God, show me the truth about myself...no matter how wonderful it may be.

From Lisa Whittle on reaching twenty somethings:  You HAVE to get edgy.  Think outside the box.  They don't want to be told what to do or how to live.  They want to see you living it and they want to understand why you live the way you do.  They are not interested in doing Bible Studies the way their Mama's did them.  

Those are the highlights.  And it's only Friday.

I walked into my room tonight to a silence that blared loudly in my ears, sharply contrasting the constant flow of thoughts and words that has been my life for longer than I can actually remember.  I turned on the TV to drown out the ringing of nothing at all and almost immediately traded it's white noise for the more soothing tones of Joshua Radin. 

And now I will sprawl out on a queen size bed in a hotel room that possesses charm and cleanliness that The Hunk would never appreciate as I do.  And I will rest because tomorrow there is more chalkboard scrawling and soul stretching to be done.

Wish me luck!