I entered January with high hopes and a very detailed schedule. I did this so that I would move forward and "be successful" in my writing life.
Guess what?
My writing life is like my life in general, things rarely go as planned.
Only a couple of blog posts marked my progress at the end of the month, and I entered February with no editing completed. But oh, did I have confusion, frustration, and not a little guilt.
As I looked back over my month and my failure at this to-do list, several truths came to mind. I share them with you in the hopes that they'll encourage you in your own frustrating times, writing-centric or not.
First, God is sovereign. If it was His plan for me to do everything on my to-do list, it would get done. But more importantly, it is not my faithfulness but His that guarantees the outcome of a situation. Too often I rely on my own sufficiency and must be reminded that only He is all-sufficient. I can't force something He hasn't allowed OR screw up something He has. If UnClean is to be published, it will be. I can't mess that up, even if I do fail at blogging, reading books on craft, networking, etc. I can be a good steward of my gift and trust Him and His plan, but nothing rides on my shoulders alone.
Second, I must be asking Him what He has planned for my day, week, month. Maybe something else is more important than item #4 on my list, but if I don't have a humble, open spirit I will view that important thing as an unwelcome interruption and object of frustration rather than as an opportunity.
Third, writing isn't the only thing God has for me. Sometimes I view my call to writing as my CALL. However, it's not the most important ministry/activity in my life; it's one of them. A dear friend recently reminded me of the eternal significance behind my keeping Miss Thing. How convicting. I don't nanny only to pay my bills and fulfill my call to write. Right now, I am called to nanny and write and blog and be a good friend, sister, daughter.
Fourth, no progress isn't really no progress. Even though I didn't edit in January, I was thinking about the novel and making notes. In a similar vein, waiting and being faithful in other areas prepares me for my writing future. (see Lynn's insight on this).
Finally, guilt gets you nowhere. I can't change what was left undone in January, but I can fix my eyes forward and work on my goals for this month.
And that's just what I'm doing.
3 comments:
Thinking is a VERY important part of writing. Perhaps the most important. But we often don't allow ourselves the time to be quiet.
Good for you, with your revelations! :)
This is such a wonderful post! Great insights, Charity! Thanks for sharing your heart with us!
@Susan, being still and quiet is definitely a discipline that I have to actively cultivate; it doesn't come easily to me. :) Thanks for your encouragement!
@Alycia, Thanks for taking the time to let me know it was an encouragement to you! I'll be honest, comments like yours make being transparent a little more rewarding.
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