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February 10, 2015

"Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."  Matthew 5:14-16

I am a writer.  I have been since I was less than 10 years old.  I remember I'd write stories about all kinds of things.  I even made up an entire language once.  I wanted to use it for characters in a book I created.  It was pretty unbelievable.

Although I got away from writing to work on other things, it was always in the back ground.  I remember having conversations with two different professors about my writing.  One was an English professor.  I could not stand that man.  I was convinced he hated me, so I always got very nervous around him.  He would grade my work hard, and I had a C in that class.  The only reason I ended up with a B overall is because he had to cancel class due to an illness.  He gave everyone with A's an A, and anyone with a B or lower a B.

Before he had to cancel the class, he invited the entire class over to his house one evening for a special class.  We had a chance to eat, work and have a brief one on one session with him.  In my one on one, he asked me if I was a writer.  I told him no.  He said that I should be.  It was during this session that I realized this man did not hate me, he saw something in me, and wanted challenge me in my writing in order to get it out.

A little later down the road, another professor from my major complimented my writing.  I was attending her office hours to review a major research paper assignment.  She asked me if I planned on going to graduate school.  I told her I wasn't sure yet.  She said, "You should.  You're a really good writer."

After those interactions, I carried the title of great with me.  I believed that I was great, I walked in that.  When I was led to write Stumbling Toward Jesus, I wasn't sure what it would be.  But when I finished it, I believed it was something that would really draw people to Jesus.

And the blog...writing every day is tough. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE IT!  But it can be challenging making the time, looking through Bible verses to find the one that aligns with whatever I am writing on, etc.  No matter how much I love it, or how great I am, it is a challenge at times.  I've had days and nights when I've been like, "Uh...okay God...what do I write about today?"  I start each night writing and out of nowhere, God puts a word in my spirit to share.  And all I can say is, "Wow! God did that!"

We all have gifts, God gives us gifts.  We are to use them to bring glory to His name, and make Him known. If we do not use them, we can quite possibly lose them.  As a writer, I am convinced that no matter how great our gifts are, God is able to take us and make them better.  He is awesome, and He cannot fail.  If He has commissioned us to do something with our gifts, He will go before us and prepare the way.  He will guide our footsteps and light our path.  And He will make us better for Him.  All we have to do is be obedient and pay attention to what He's trying to communicate to us.

PAG