Thursday and Friday an avalanche of friends just dropped right into my life and it was wonderful. Some I've known a long time, some I only get to see now and then, and some were brand spanking new. But all were just the best people you could ever imagine! I feel so loved!
On Thursday afternoon I played shuttle bus driver for the Proverbs 31 Ministries She Speaks conference. I picked up two wonderful ladies, one that works for Strang Publications and the other with the David C. Cook Publishing Company. We had a long ride and got stuck in Charlotte rush hour traffic so we were good buddies by the end of the ride.
When I dropped them off at the hotel, the Proverbs 31 speaker team and staff just happened to be finishing a photo shoot and returning to the hotel so I got to see some wonderful friends that I only see now and then. It was like one big hug fest and I so enjoyed seeing them. Did I mention how much I love the ladies of Proverbs 31 Ministries?
The next morning I returned to the hotel to meet some brand new friends, Kelly and Sonya. We ate breakfast together and then went to their room to talk and pray. They are both attending She Speaks this year and I can't wait to hear what God does while they are there. Precious ladies! This is Sonya, me, and Kelly. 
From there I rushed to a nearby restaurant to meet up with some local and out-of-town bloggers, one of which is NESTER!! Ever since I found out Nester lives in my town I've been wanting to get together with her and let me just tell you that she is every bit as cute, charming, and sweeeeet as she seems on her blog. Love her, just love her! I really enjoyed getting to know some other ultra wonderful bloggers too. In this picture we have me, Nester, Emily (Nester's sister), Karla, Jo-Lynne, and Sarah. 
Me, Nester, Emily
Karla, Jo-Lynne, Sarah
Then it was back to the hotel to see if they needed any help with the She Speaks conference. Dumb question! Of course they weren't going to turn down help! I helped with the resource table and got to see many other Proverbs 31 ladies that I didn't catch up with on Thursday. Plus, I got to see some other friends that I only get to see at this conference including a very precious friend, Charlotte. This is me and gorgeous Charlotte.
I'm so glad that I also got to spend some time talking with my sweet friend, Micca. She wrote her first book this year (I'll let you know when it comes out) and I helped her with first edits. In the process we became friends. She is so encouraging and I wish I had remembered to take a picture of her!
I stayed and helped until supper time which meant I got to hear the opening message by Lysa TerKeurst. Up to that point I couldn't figure out why I was even at the conference. I mean I wanted to help and I definitely wanted to see all these terrific gals, but I didn't know I was actually there for any particular reason. Then I heard Lysa's talk and it was exactly what I needed to hear. God spoke to my heart in new and different ways, both challenging and exciting. I went home a very full girl in every way!
Dear Lord, thank you for seeing fit to bless my life with so many beautiful, encouraging friends. They are the sisters I never had!
8 comments:
Bonita!
Can I just tell you how happy I am that I met you! You are the one that I was looking the most forward to meeting and your genuine personable personality did not disappoint.
Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy day to see me! Girl, I just adore you!
Hi Bonita,
I was so glad to meet you with these ladies for lunch. My sister thinks so highly of you and so do I! You are simply delightful and I wish I was sitting across from you instead of on the same side of the table so I could have talked with you more.
I hope to see you again!
I had the BEST Time! I will send you an email in a couple of days, after I recooperate and let you know how everythng went, but it was just wonderful. I have lots of praying to do for direction of what to do next.
It was so nice to meet you. Thank you for being an encourager to me.
And please email me a copy of the photos we took together, if you can.
Hi Bonita,
It is so great that we got to meet eachother! You are precious and such a big part of why I am pursuing God's call on my life to write. God blessed me in an amazing way and I'd love to tell you about it. I am still trying to get back into mommy life so I'll have to e-mail you later this week with the details!
You are such an encourager and a wonderful lady to know!
The Lord is so gracious to bless us as we walk along the path, and it is always refreshing to hear about it when it happens. Blessings!
TM
Hey there girl,
I am so enjoying reading your blog and catching up with you...since I didn't get to do that at all at She Speaks. Thanks so much for all you did to help. I am so glad you had hte blessing of seeing so many friends, too! My role as MC had me hopping during pre-session times so I only got to see your beautiful smile at a glance as I grabbed someone from the hall that needed to be backstage. I don't even remember who it was, I just remember thinking - "Oh, there's Bonita, I wish I could talk to her!"
You are precious my friend and I am so excited for the ways God is using your gifts to encourage and equip others. I'll never forget our simple beginnings on the newsletter. Think of how all of that prepared us for such a time as this...amazing!!!
Love you!
Renee
This sounds like such a great time! I can't wait until the year I can finally make this conference, and FINALLY meet you face to face!
I can't believe we didn't meet at the conference!! What a bummer. Next summer for sure, we will meet up! Looks like you had a blast though and met some wonderful sisters in Christ.
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