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Today as I considered “people who pointed the way,” I realized that the expression carries a double meaning for me. So far, I’ve been featuring individuals who have helped me develop as a writer.
But each of these people has also pointed the Christian way; that is, serving God in our writing as a mission to do His will. There are many more people to add to that group. Those who put on a Christian writers conference, those who teach classes there, and those who attend are all writing because they feel called to do so, to develop and use their talent for God’s glory.
A Christian writers conference is not just a writers conference. It is also a worship experience. The days begin and end with prayer, praise and worship led by talented artists who fill us with inspiration. The keynote speakers not only teach, they give their testimony about how God
worked in their lives as they followed the call to write.
As we leave the conference, we are blessed because we communed with other believers, we identified with a joint purpose for being there, and we were affirmed in our calling.
So today, I thank all of you who are part of a Christian writers conference for not only showing us the way to write, but also the Way to life.
Jesus answered, “I am the Way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
As you may know, Blue Ridge Christian Writers Conference is where Edie Melson and I both got our start. We went as unpublished, uneducated writers, and developed a friendship that has last since that day in 2001. What a joy to see what God can do through writer’s conferences. Not only in learning how to write, but also in developing the friendships that carry us through.
Vonda, I didn’t know the details of your history with Blue Ridge, but I knew that you and Edie were friends and that you both attend it. Since Blue Ridge was my first Christian conference, I feel more at home there. However, I went to Mount Hermon last year and found that there are people who feel the same way about that conference. I think they were both great and both unique, yet had the same Spirit that connects us all.