by Lynn H. Blackburn @LynnHBlackburn
Do you ever wish you had all the time you need to write?
Do you let the fact that you don’t have enough time stop you from writing?
Do you wonder what the point of writing is when you can’t keep up with the pace set by other writers?
Are you waiting for the kids to go to school, the kids to go to college, the day your hours change at work, the day you retire, or the day you inherit a fortune from that rich uncle you don’t even know you have to get serious about this writing thing?
I often fall into the same trap. I let my busy life keep me from getting words on the page, and I justify it because the truth is that I have very little margin in my life.
I know I need margin. But I’ve already dropped just about everything I can, and a few things I shouldn’t have. In this season of life, the things on my to-do list have to get done, and I’m the one who has to do them.
But . . . I still need to write. I want to. I need to. I believe God has called me to.
So what am I supposed to do?
This is a question I’ve been bringing before the Lord on a regular basis. I’ve asked him to show me what I can do, and the answer . . . well, it wasn’t what I was expecting.
A few weeks ago as I sat in church, the worship leader mentioned the story of the woman who gave her two small coins at the Temple. I’ve heard this story hundreds of times. It isn’t new.
But on this day, it was.
Because as the story goes, Jesus commented that all those other people around her had given of their abundance, but she had given more because she had given all she had.
Y’all.
What if God doesn’t want us to write out of an abundance of time?
What if He doesn’t want us to write only when the creative juices are flowing? Or when the story ideas are coming so quickly that we can’t write fast enough?
What if he wants us to sit down at the screen even when we’re tired? Even when we only have a few minutes to offer. Even when we don’t believe there is an ounce of creative energy inside us. Even when we know it will take everything we have.
What if He isn’t going to answer our prayers to make it easier, but instead wants us to rely on Him for every word, every idea, every ounce of inspiration?
Honestly? I don’t know for sure.
But I’m about to find out.
If you’re currently writing in a season of abundance, enjoy it friends! Celebrate it. Be thankful for it.
But if you’re writing from a place of desperation, or desolation, or if you’re writing in the nooks and crannies of life, offer up the few moments you have. Trust Him for every word. Write with Him and for Him and in the strength and power that only He has to give.
Maybe we will never find ourselves on a list of people who’ve written 100 books. Maybe we will never be bestsellers.
But we can be faithful. We can show up. And then we can leave the results up to Him.
Ultimately, when the story is written, the poem complete, the study finalized, or the post published, He will receive all the glory. And that’s what it’s all about.
Grace and peace,
TWEETABLE
I needed to hear this today. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteLynn, thank you so much! I needed these encouraging words in my season of desperation. You nailed it with the words, “very little margin.” Writing during the intensely busy seasons of life is like trying to scribble notes into a very thin margin on a page,
ReplyDeleteFunny you say this! That's what I've been going through and the other day, I was reminded about writing WITH God. Something shifted within. Now, I'm finding I CAN do those short bits. 10 minutes? Okay, let's get the next thought down. Because at my age, I don't have "all the time in the world."
ReplyDeleteBTW Lynn, reading this really confirmed what God was showing me. Thank you!
DeleteExcellent post, Lynn, and just what I needed to hear. Thank you for simplifying the goal.
ReplyDeleteSo true. I keep thinking I need bigger blocks of uninterrupted time because it makes it easier to concentrate. But I have to take advantage of what time I do have. And I've discovered good writing time in unusual places by always keeping a notebook or computer with me. I was amazed at how much I got done at soccer practice.
ReplyDeleteThanks! Like everyone else, I needed to hear this today!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great message! Thank you. I, too, needed to read this today.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to reply to each of you individually, but I'm running out the door for my daughter's dance and both boys' baseball games. Another day to write in the nooks and crannies! Thank you for responses and I'm praying blessings over each of your writing endeavors!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Like pretty much everyone else who's replied, these are words I need to hear.
ReplyDelete"I have seven minutes, God. Sorry. That's not enough time. Maybe later." But days pass and "later" doesn't arrive.
From now on, the five or seven or thirteen minutes will be enough. I say all the time things happen on God's timeline, not on ours. Never connected writing to that statement. Until now.
Lynn, you so totally ROCK!!
Thanks for the reminder that we may have seasons of writing out of abundance, but, most likely, there'll be seasons when we write "in the nooks and crannies." I do pray that with either season, we lean in and rely on Him to supply the words He wants written!
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