by Cherrilynn Bisbano @bisbanowrites

I hoped to attend the Blue Ridge Christian Writers Conference and felt confident I would be able to go.

The Lord’s Spirit whispered to mine,

You will be there.

I applied for a scholarship but was not selected due to high demand.

It’s ok, Lord, you have another way to get me there.

March and April passed. May was well underway. Our tax return would cover the entire cost of the conference.

Lord, please let us receive the money soon so I can attend.

Meanwhile, the women’s leadership team from my church asked me to speak over the weekend Blue Ridge started.

“I’d consider it an honor, but I might have to leave Saturday night to fly the next morning to a writers conference.”

“We’re fine with that, Cherrilynn.”

On the Friday of the retreat, I called the bank to see if the money had been deposited.

No.

 I called my husband to see if there was a check in the mail.

“No good mail, honey,” he said.

“God has until tomorrow to come through, or I won’t be able to go to the conference. I know he can do it, but I’m getting nervous,” I said.

[tweet_box design=”default” float=”none” inject=”#Writing #Writinglife #BRMCWC”]Writer, Our Last Minute Is God’s Perfect Timing by @bisbanowrites on @BRMCWC[/tweet_box]

“Honey, I’m so sorry. I wish we had the money,” he said.

“I’m not worried, I can’t be, I need to be present at this retreat and let God worry about Blue Ridge, I love you!”

“I love you, too,” he hung up.

 I joined the others for a night of laughter, chocolate, and prayer.

Saturday, I called the bank. No deposit.

I joined the ladies. We played fun games, learned about God, and ate great food. It was ten minutes to four, and it was almost time for me to speak. I phoned my husband.

“Any good mail?” I held my breath.

“A card addressed to you!” I could hear the smile in his voice.

“Open it, open it!” My heart stopped for a second.

“It’s a thank you card for speaking last week,” he said. “There is nothing in it.”

“I’m thankful for the card, but I want to cry. Why would God impress so heavily on my heart that I’m going? Well, He created the world in six days, He can get me there by tomorrow night.”

I hung up and fought tears as I taught.

Lord, the conference starts tomorrow night. I just want to confirm that I heard you correctly, which is more important to me than attending the conference.

I fell asleep on a wet pillow.

I arrived home early on Sunday, so I opened my laptop to let my Facebook writing friends know that I wouldn’t be attending the conference.

As I closed the laptop—BING!

Edie Melson sent a Facebook private message.

There was a last-minute cancellation from a scholarship winner. Can you get down here?

“Honey, God came through, can I go?”

My husband bolted up the stairs.

“What’s wrong?”

I showed him the message.

“All I need is the flight money, food, and lodging. We can afford that.”

“Do it!” My husband said.

I arrived in Asheville, NC, at 11 pm.

God performed many miracles that week. I made so many new friends.

The biggest lesson I learned—My last minute is God’s perfect timing.

Are you still waiting for a promise? Trust that He will answer. Join the conversation.

Cherrilynn Bisbano is an award-winning writer, coach, editor, and speaker. As former managing editor of Almost an Author, she helped the website earn the #6 spot on the Top 100 best writing websites for 2018 by The Write Life and Top 101 Websites for writers with Writers Digest. Cherrilynn is a speaker with Women Speakers. Her topics include leadership, book proposals, and the Bible.

She is a two-time winner of Flash Fiction Weekly. Her work in progress, Accidental Findings, won the first 10 pages award with, When Words Count Retreat. You can find her published in Blue Ridge Writers Blog, Southern Writers, More to Life (MTL), Christian Rep, Christian Voice, Refresh, and other online magazines. Cherrilynn is a contributor to award-winning, Get to the Margins-Author Anthology; Breaking the Chains; Heart Reno, Kiss Guilt Goodbye; and Chicken Soup for the Soul-Miracles books. Her latest book, Shine Don’t Whine, released October 2020. Cherrilynn proudly served in the Navy and Air National Guard, earning the John Levitow Military leadership award.  She lives with her eighteen-year-old son, Michael, Jr., and husband of 22 years. Cherrilynn loves Christ, Chocolate, coffee, and Cats. You will often find her on the beach sea glass hunting.