The Power of ONE in a Writer's Life

by Rachael M. Colby @RachaelColby7

The writing road is an arduous journey. “Suddenly I question everything, especially my abilities as a writer, and I just want to turn and run the other way,” a writing friend said.

When we’re not making progress as we’d hoped, discouragement can set in, and temptation beckons us to turn away from our call. I’ve found it’s harder to go in the opposite direction than where God’s leading—which is forward.

Following Jesus means letting Him set the pace and carrying on as He calls, even when we don’t see results.

“My writing is amateur. But it’s still frustrating putting words out into the world to the sound of crickets.” she said.

“They set algorithm to trend only hate and propaganda. The Gospel or anything positive never trends,” another friend said. “If you watch trending lines, you can tell it’s being manipulated. It’s so negative.”

Sometimes I too get frustrated trying to be heard in this noisy world where often there’s less visibility of our posts than before the days of cancel culture and algorithms. But if God has called us to a task, shouldn’t we get to it? He knew our message and the challenges we’d face. The world is dark. Jesus commissioned his followers as the light of the world.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16 NKJV)

The Gospel has never been trendy, but it still gets its work done—one by one. Jesus often took the time to minister to one person. He only had 12 apostles and not nearly as many followers as the Roman emperor Ceasar, or the Pharisees and Sadducees, the religious leaders of the day. And even Jesus’ few followers deserted Him for a time. That didn’t stop the Gospel.

Never mind what others are doing. Let’s focus on what God is doing and the work He has for us.

Sometimes we labor long and seem to lose rather than gain ground. I’ve offered my gospel tract as a free download via my blog’s resource page and social media and handed it out with candy on Halloween for years with little feedback. On Halloween 2023 I went to bed disappointed to have only given out a handful of tracts as fewer families than ever before showed up at our door.

Two days later, I received the following anonymous comment on my blog: “I meant to thank you for posting that Halloween tract. We had a very successful night and handed out 1,000 candy bags with tracts.”

Though we may not see it initially, when we’re faithful to serve as called, in His time and way, God blesses our harvest.

“Neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” (1 Corinthians 3:7 NKJV)

“I sometimes feel I have nothing new or important to say. There are a lot of words out there. Do mine matter?” another friend asked.

God created us with the desire to be a part of something greater than ourselves—for a purpose. We glorify God when we use our gifts to serve as He calls.

What if the words you write influence someone to not give up on life, or introduce one person to Jesus so they can know Him and make heaven their home?

“If we only lead one soul to Christ, we may set a stream in motion that will flow on when we are dead and gone.”—D.L. Moody

The Good Shepherd leaves the 99 to rescue the one lost sheep. Even if our words impact one or a few, what matters is that we obey God by sharing His truth. The work is worth the reward of the one who hears and follows Jesus.

What if the call right now is to encourage one person to go for their dream or embrace their calling so they can change the world?—Is that enough of a reason to write? What then if we quit?

In 1855, Sunday school teacher Edward Kimbal visited and shared the gospel with Dwight, a young shoe salesman. Dwight L. Moody became one of the leading evangelists of his time and is estimated to have preached to 100 million people.

In a letter to D.L. Moody’s daughter Emma, Rev. Billy Graham expressed the tremendous influence her father had on his life.

“I am wondering if you all are really aware of the many movements that now exist throughout the world that flowed from the ministry of Dwight Moody.”—Rev. Billy Graham.[1]

A February 2018 article by Lifeway Research stated the following about Billy Graham:

• 2.2 billion—estimated number of people who heard him preach.
• 215 million—estimated number he preached the gospel to at live events.
• 2.2 million—estimated people at his crusades who responded to the invitation to become a Christian.[2]

The Billy Graham Evangelical Association continues to grow, win souls, disciple and equip people for their call, and meet needs globally. And Edward Kimball, the Sunday school teacher who shared the gospel with D. L. Moody, shares in this fruit.

Persist. Serve. Write that one piece, share one more time. Then do it again. Never underestimate the power of one.

“Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” (Galatians 6:9 NKJV)

Rachael M. Colby has a heart for reconciliation and a passion to uplift those who serve in tough places. She writes to connect cultures’ questions with Christianity’s answers, inspire faith, and motivate.

Rachael is an award-winning writer in the categories of articles, devotions, essays, poetry, flash fiction, and children’s picture books. She is a longtime member of The Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild and a protégé in the Cecil Murphey Mentoring program.

Her work has appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul, the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference Blog, online publications, anthologies, and the Oak Ridger newspaper.

This Jamaican-born wife, mom, beach bum, artist, work in progress, makes her home in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. She runs on copious amounts of coffee, chocolate, and a whole lot of “Help me, Jesus,” and blogs at TattooItOnYourHeart.com.

[1]https://moodycenter.org/articles/billy-graham-and-d-l-moody-obedience-to-the-call-of-god/

[2]https://research.lifeway.com/2018/02/21/billy-grahams-life-ministry-by-the-numbers/