Hi Friends! A few weeks ago, our family spent a carefree week in Costa Rica. (It was a lovely getaway. I posted a few favorite pics here.) Per usual, I unplugged for the duration and so returned to an overflowing inbox. Among the routine missives I found one fun surprise: an acceptance letter from Just Between Us magazine saying that a short piece I’d submitted months earlier had been accepted for publication.

Years before that submission–and I do mean years, 10 at least!–a friend told me a personal story that I found so encouraging I asked her permission to write about it in the hopes of finding a publisher so that thousands more women might likewise be encouraged. I titled the piece “The Gift.” But once I’d written it, to my chagrin and surprise, I couldn’t find a publisher. The problem seemed to be that it was an “as told to” story, and most publishers wanted stories written by the subject herself.

After those first attempts, I tucked the piece into a virtual drawer. Every few years I’d pull it out again, dust it off, try again. Same results.

About a year and a half ago, I decided to shut down my freelance writing in order to focus on other projects. But before closing the doors for good, I sorted through old files to see if anything might be worth submitting one more time. “The Gift” again caught my attention, and after a little research, I found a new-to-me publication called Just Between Us, an online magazine dedicated to “encouraging & equipping women for a life of faith.” I gave my piece a quick polish and hit SUBMIT. Then I shuttered my freelance shop and forgot all about it.

Until Friday a couple of weeks ago when I received this fun little reminder about how often perseverance pays off.

I’m delighted this little piece has finally found a home. And as is God’s way, the timing was perfect, coming as it did on the heels of a vacation, and so long past the point when I thought this story would ever see the light of day. It felt, in fact, just like a gift.

I hope you’ll follow me over to Just Between Us to read “The Gift.” It’s short, I promise, no more than 500 words. But I’m pretty sure you’ll be blessed, just as I was when I first I heard my friend’s story so many years ago.