Dipping the Quill Deeper: The Senior Guard

by Eva Marie Everson @EversonAuthor

The Bible is filled with verses that instruct the older generation to teach and lead the younger. 

My son, do not forget my teaching … (Proverbs 3:1)

[Older women] are to teach what is good, and so train the young women … (Titus 2:3c)

I remember being younger, wondering if I’d ever be considered old enough to even remotely be considered wise enough . . . or knowledgeable enough … or intelligent enough. Would my “words of wisdom” ever be sought after? Considered worthy?

Not too long ago I left my role as vice president of my HOA. When I put in my resignation, my fellow board members said, “But you’re our voice of reason” as their cry for wanting me to stay.

Yay, I thought, I’m finally old enough to be the voice of reason. 

Back in My Day

I came into the world of Christian publishing in 1997, the year I turned 40, the year I thought I had finally come into full adulthood. 

Mmmhmm.

Now, at 66, I’m the “voice of reason.”

And, I admit, I am (at times). I’m calmer about most things. I see things from different perspectives. I don’t jump to as many conclusions and I tend to act rather than react. 

When I entered Christian publishing, I was 26 years younger and several pounds lighter. “Tiny,” is how one of my more seasoned colleagues described me. (It’s true what they say about spending too much time sitting in front of a computer or laptop.) I came in green as Ireland’s grass and nearly clueless. I met “older” men and women, those who had paved the road and plowed the field for those like me. (I put quotes around older because a few were around my age, but most were, literally, older.)

I listened to what they had to say. I watched the way they worked, their methods of success, both in their work life and in their spiritual life. 

While I have grown older and fluffier, a few of them have since retired or gone on to be with the Lord. But I’m also wiser—that “voice of reason.”

And Then Came Late May 2023

I arrived at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference in late May of this year. This conference is one of my favorite events of the year (I lead the spiritual track and direct the contests, including the industry-wide Selah Awards). I’ve been a part of the conference since 2003, having only missed one year (even though I was invited) due to my brother’s terminal illness. 

There was a moment—one I cannot quite tell you the exact second of—when I realized that I, at 66 and with 23 years of experience in Christian publishing, had slipped into the role of a senior guard. This came as I noted the number of young faces or the array of new faces—the junior guard. 

Wisdom and reason felt as though it had given way to age and, let me be honest, worthlessness. Am I even relevant, I wondered. Even with my position, with my accomplishments, with my awards … do I have anything left to offer?

But then I remembered the senior guard from 23 years ago, those icons of faith and business who helped shape me. What an honor, I realized, to be that person to the junior guard. 

Teach, lead, direct, be an example … these are the commands and instructions of God (or a general paraphrase). But this is a directive that comes with a warning. 

Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly (James 3:1).

Oh. Yay.

Home Again, Home Again

Sadly, after BRMCWC (or any conference I attend), the fun and fellowship came to an end. Like everyone else, I returned home. That first morning, I sat bleary-eyed with my cup of coffee and, in the silences, laid everything out before God. All my memories of the past senior guard. All my thoughts. My concerns. My confused feelings.

But mostly my desire to be my best in the senior guard position. Beautifully, He granted me the grace to see things from His perspective. This is the order of things, and you are a part of My order.

Okay, Lord, but can I keep up? Can I keep running this race?

Where You Are

You may be new to the world of Christian publishing (junior guard) or you may have loads of experience under your belt (senior guard). No matter—you have a place in God’s order of things. Every one of us is important in this ministry and in this business. And it is both. 

My encouragement is this: enjoy your current position, whatever it is. Grow there. Thrive there. Be or become the voice of wisdom and reasoning by listening and learning, no matter the guard you are currently a part of. You’ll know when it’s time to pass the baton, but as long as you can, run.

And run well. 

TWEETABLE

Dipping the Quill Deeper: The Senior Guard from author @EvaMarieEverson on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

Eva Marie Everson is the CEO of Word Weavers International, the director of Florida Christian Writers Conference, and the contest director for Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. She is the multiple award-winning author of more than 40 books and countless articles and blogposts. She is also an award-winning speaker and a Bible teacher and the most recent recipient of the AWSA Lifetime Achievement Award (2022). 

Eva Marie is often seen at writers conferences across the States. She served as a mentor for the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild and taught as a guest professor at Taylor University in 2011. She and her husband make their home in Central Florida where they enjoy their grandchildren. They are owned by one persnickety cat named Vanessa.

Eva Marie's latest book, THE THIRD PATH, takes a look at 26 of the questions God asked in the Bible, then makes them personal to the reader. The premise of the book is currently her most asked for continuing workshop at writers conferences.