A Dream Come True

Dreams DO come true! 

These thoughts rolled around in my mind last Saturday, as I headed the Chattanooga, Tennessee for my first book signing. The devotional book was called Pearls of Promise. Forty-six writers in all had contributed but only 5 were able to attend this event. This was only the second time I have seen my writing in book form.

The day began at 11 am with a delicious lunch at Sticky Fingers. Our fellowship was lively as each of us shared stories. There seemed to be an instant sense of friendship and camaraderie. And then…the ribs came. They were the best ribs I have ever eaten. We laughed about getting a ‘BBQ sauce anointing’ while we tried to keep the sauce off our clothes. The manager was so taken by our group’s joy that he gave each of us a complimentary bottle of the sauce. I thought, Blessings are beginning to flow already. Thank you Lord. You have made my expectancy rise.

By the time we arrived at Barnes and Nobles around 12:30pm, everything was prepared for us. As we greeted Kelly, one of the store’s managers, he told us of his faith and commitment to make our time as fruitful as possible. Right before 1 pm, we all circled around (even Kelly), held hands, and prayed for God’s best. Along with signing a bunch of books, these are some of the highlights that followed:

Instant connections between all other

Christian authors presenting books there.

No competitive spirit among us.

Praying and ministering with a young father, Robert

about his newborn son, Nathan (mother-Rebecca)

who was born 6 weeks earlier with Gastroschisis

(born with intestines outside the body)

Kelly brought bottled water for each of us.

Authors ministered and prayed with other authors.

Words of prophesy were given and confirmed.

Prayers went upwards for one author who had not shown up

because her husband had been in a car horrible accident the day before,

and was in critical condition.

Kelly brought over oatmeal cookies in small white bags.

One of the author on our team got a call that her

little fourteen-year-old dog had to be put to sleep. She was heart broken.

I could hardly believe I was signing books and ministering

to people’s needs right in the middle of Barnes and Nobles.

For years, I have shopped at the store in our area and said, by faith,

“Yep, one of these days, I am going

to have a book on their shelves too.”

By the time 3 pm came, we could see that God had done something special with our newly formed friendships. The cohesiveness of our group did not happen just because we were all writers. It was because we all had servant hearts. Somewhere, we grasped that this day was not about promoting our own book and ourselves but about showing others Christ and being a living epistle for His glory.

What God-given dream are you working towards and expecting to manifest? Can you spread the Gospel of Christ through it? No matter what, don’t give up on your dreams. God is faithful to manifest what He has prepared you to do. Just keep moving forward by maturing your skills and the knowledge of Christ. Then one day, when you least expect it, your dream will come true.