Today’s guest post is provided by Cindy Sproles.

May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. Psalm 20:4  

God spoke to me on a riding lawn mower—of all things. There wasn’t a major revelation or an earth shattering event, just a riding lawn mower.

I’d just gotten home from my first writers’ conference and the words of a successful author, and now dear friend, rumbled inside my head. “…your words may never fill a book on the shelves of Lifeway. They may only be meant for the guy sitting next to you.”

Okay God, I thought as I bumped down the grassy hill trying to keep my mowed rows straight. My desire is to write. I’ve wanted that since I was a child. I just wanna write. Can you use me?

God replied, “Perhaps.”

Thus began the road to being a writer. I find it hard sometimes to maintain as a straight line while mowing. Same thing with my spiritual walk.  I veer from side to side, straying from the words He’s placed in my heart, and leave a crooked trail that looks a little yanty-wampling (that’s Appalachian for wacky). Still, God knew my desires.

God promises to make our plans succeed but I think his definition is different from mine. I don’t have a novel on the shelves of Lifeway, but I have literally hundreds of devotions and I found out this week just how meaningful that is.

My friend was nominated for a Christy Award (The Christian equivalent of the Oscars). She invited me to an evening of accolades and fanfare. All in one room stood Christian writing’s elite.

Before the doors to the dinner hall opened, I sat awkward and shy at a small table. I wasn’t sure I could talk to the guy who wrote Braveheart or to the woman who’d captured the heart of women’s fiction. So I sat, star struck and tongue-tied — terrified to move or open my mouth.

An older woman touched my shoulder. “Christian Devotions? You’re She Said aren’t you?” Her British accent rolled off the end of her tongue as she waved her husband to my side. “I love He Said, She Said. I’ve booted my husband under the kitchen table more times than you know after reading you two. What impact and what bravery, to place your hearts on display for us all to learn from.” She pressed her ruby red lips against my cheek, then thumbed away the lipstick print.

“God uses you.”

She wasn’t a writer, a producer, or a publicist. She didn’t edit or pull in acquisitions. She was the mother of one of the Christy finalists – she was, an example from that first writers conference, the one next to me…the one that counted.

God equips us for the mission He has in store. With His foresight, He knows the exact moment He can use us…the second He can give us the desires of our hearts. Lord let me be a writer, I’ve prayed. This week He he gave me the desire of my heart. I am a writer, given the words that touched this woman’s heart.

He gently orchestrates the events of our lives, perfect to His will, to make our plans succeed in the venue they’re needed. Sure, I’d love to stand on a stage as a Christy finalist someday, but for now I’m good—satisfied that in the bustle of a noisy room full of big-name writers, God quieted the sound so I could hear the words of this one woman. God uses you.

Never be afraid to voice your desires to the Father. He’s placed the gifts inside you that will bring about the desires of your heart. Speak up and He will listen.

Cindy  is the founder of Mountain Breeze Ministries and cofounder of Christian Devotions Ministries. She has contributed  to Novel Journey and Novel Reviews, and Christian Devotions. She has written for PML Programs and contributes to the Times-News.net. Her devotions and articles are published weekly in several newspapers across the country. She cowrites the He Said, She Said devotions with Eddie Jones that publish in Common Ground Christian Newspaper. Cindy is the coauthor of He Said, She Said: A Devotional Guide to Cultivating a Life of Passion.
Cindy is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers. She attended Johnson Bible College and graduated with a BA in Business from the University of Phoenix in 2008.  She has led Sunday school, teaches women’s study classes and also in on-line teaching forums. She is a contributing writer to CBN.com . Cindy speaks frequently for ladies’ conferences, special events and teaches at writers conferences across the country. Contact Cindy if you would like for her to speak to your church, club or group. You can visit Cindy at www.cindysproles.com