Tag Archive | purpose

Author Confessions: When Purpose Drives You

Nov17
Reading Time: 4 minutes

Author Confessions: When Purpose Drives You

I got a text from a new author who is pursuing getting a book published. It won’t be something the pubishing house I work with would go for, but it is exceptionally good. I’ve spent time with this author, encouraging her, coaching her, and helping her network to pursue getting the story that is on her heart, out to those who will benefit from it. Purpose drives her.

My husband is up early to pick up a helper that he pays to get work done at our property, fixing things, getting his soon-to-be-classic truck road-worthy, and overseeing the building of our home. Purpose drives him.

When I’m in the midst of writing a book, or focused on edits or marketing, I hate to be disturbed. When my kids were younger I once forgot to pick them up from school because I was so into the story taking shape. My sweet Middle Hobbit asked me why I was late. I said “I was writing,” almost ashamed to admit that to my grade-school son. He wisely suggested, “Maybe you should set a timer.” And after that, it is exactly what I’ve done! Purpose was driving me but it needed boundaries!

When you find a project where you lose time and are eager to get up early or work late… purpose is driving you.

I guess the question I have though is this: Is this purpose driven life for your benefit or for others?

The first woman I mentioned is called by God to write out what could be considered deeply personal and embarrassing moments in her life. While she is making it fiction for the sake of protecting others, it is very much her story. There is no way most people would do that and work hard writing, rewriting, editing, meeting people, speaking in front of groups, if God were not putting that purpose on her heart. Her book is unique in its format which would not work in traditional Christian publishing but I’ve encouraged her to write it anyway. Purpose drives her.

When God gives you a specific purpose–you need to obey.

My sweet husband, dubbed MacGyver but those who know him best, is the same way. Building a home was something we both felt God was calling to. Cleaning out a home and huge garage/shop and putting a house on the market, moving out, putting stuff in storage and living in a small apartment which is comfortable but challenging for me because of the lack of space for the things I love to do. Probably 90% of my craft/books/office are in storage. I’ve been out on the construction site myself because for both of us, purpose drives us. God called us here and we can hold tight to the vision He gives us for the life and ministry we will be able to lead from that location. Purpose drives us both.

Meeting one-on-one with authors is a sacrifice of time, energy and can involve travel. I don’t do it a lot–but when it do it is because God has given me a desire and giftedness to encourage those. His purpose drives me.

Writing, marketing, editing. I’ll admit that sometimes I try to avoid that hard work, but it can be fun as well. It involved energy and focus to write a story. To edit it requires, time, energy, and a dying to self to brutally tear apart those words, sentences, paragraphs, and chapters. I need to be obeying God’s purpose and when I am in the grove – that purpose drives me.

Doing hard things are easier when God’s purpose drives me.

I am an introvert but when God calls me to step out of my comfort zone, I try to obey. It becomes an intentional purpose. I’ll confess I cannot do that without Him at work in me. He’s opened up the doors to meet people and connect with them in my new neighborhood. With challenges we’ve faced between the house and even just getting new checks to our new address, the staff at my bank has become quite familiar with me. None of it is their fault so when I go in and proclaim “Your problem child is back!” They laugh because I have tried hard to be someone who brings more than checks to deposit or problems to solve. I hope to bring joy and encouragement and leave them feeling better than before I walked in because I want to show them Jesus. Only Jesus could enable me to do that. Only Jesus could provide the opportunities to connect with 10 people, so far, in our apartment complex (only four addresses live in our hallway). I’ll confess, my attention seeking puppy, Oliver, helps with all that! Who can resist his cute face? So far no one!

The question I have for you is what is the purpose God has placed on your heart? What are you doing to pursue that?

 

Author Confessions: When Discouragement Hits Hard

Dec16
Reading Time: 2 minutes

Author Confessions: When Discouragement Hits Hard

I have struggled with depression pretty much all my life. Even with medication there are days when it can hit hard. Add winter in Wisconsin and the lack of sunshine, Seasonal Affective Disorder can get mixed up in there. I’ve learned to relax into that reality and make adjustments when the energy level sinks and my body indicates it needs more rest than activity, or conversely, needs connection more than isolation.

I had a challenging November. Somehow with lots of extra free form writing I managed to finish National Novel Writing month (Nanowrimo.org). Lots of words to be deleted from that document! The story wasn’t finished but I’m hoping that it will be soon so I can start working on the editing process.

Surgery for me the week before Thanksgiving, and then last Wednesday, surgery for my husband, makes for challenges to navigate.

With all the chaos of November, I didn’t get my December marketing done and I will confess I was discouraged with the reality that only one person who read my latest Christmas novella, I’ll be Gnome for Christmas, wrote a review. I did a Facebook live for the first time to promote the book—and no one showed up. I understand. We are all busy!

I have to do some reevaluating again… Why do I write? It is a calling I believe, but is it really having an impact in this crazy world? It’s not a financial boon in any way for our family. It is a sacrifice of discipline getting my butt in that chair and hands on a keyboard to come up with a story, and fashion characters out of thin air that hopefully will relate a message of hope and faith, and maybe even fun that will entertain and encourage a reader. Or show them a true, vital faith that can be theirs.

Obviously, I am writing this post on one of the lower days. Healing takes energy and can make me tired but that can compound the feelings of discouragement if not depression! And honestly, at the moment I’m writing this, I’m more discouraged than anything.

This isn’t a pity party. No one comes when anyone hosts those! I’m writing an honest confession that authors face. Discouragement. Does what I do matter? If I stopped writing stories would anyone care?

The better question I need to be really asking is: What is GOD calling me to do? After all, it’s only HIS opinion that matters. More than any and book reviews or sales are not any validation of HIS call when the work of the heart is something He is only aware of. And that, my friends, is only a question He can answer. Many of the people in Scripture who were following God’s lead faced these same issues.

How do handle it when discouragement hits hard? I’d love to hear about it.

Maybe this old song by Caroyn Arends will encourage you as it does me: https://youtu.be/mwWy-T8WWFo?si=IVzJ1lgbS7REz-xg

Minnie’s Remarks: Lillian’s Last Christmas (Book Review)

Nov8
Reading Time: 2 minutes

It’s Minnie again. I’m glad Mom is giving me an opportunity here. Karen Malley’s latest Christmas novella, Lillian’s Last Christmas, could sound like a downer, but if you knew this Christmas would be your last, how would you celebrate it? The way that Lillian does has an impact that goes far beyond the grave.

Lillian hasn’t seen her college friends for some time but they had such wonderful memories together and had stayed connected through the years of life and hardships. Unfortunately, Lillian is facing the biggest of those but it is one that brings her peace and joy and she wants her friends to experience that as well. So she invites them to her home to celebrate Christmas with her.

When her four friends arrive she shares her sad news along with the joy that comes from Jesus and Christmas and her desire to experience that with them all. Her friends react in shock and dismay but decided to make this the best Christmas ever by celebrating major holidays she’ll miss next year, including her birthday. Each bring gifts and distinct personalities to the fun and their friendship grows stronger as they celebrate life, and a looming death.

Will Lillian get the dearest wish of her heart to see her four closest friends come to know the peace that can only be found in Jesus? You’ll have to read it to find out. If Lillian gets her wish, the party will someday continue in heaven which sounds like a wonderful Christmas gift to all.

I give this story five bones. Please pick up Karen Malley’s unique Christmas story, Lillian’s Last Christmas. It might challenge you to more purposeful as you  go through the upcoming holiday season. Oh, and leave a nice review after you’ve read it. It helps out an author a lot!

 

 

 

Lessons Learned while Writing: Omniscience vs Free Will

Mar21
Reading Time: 3 minutes

This might seem like an odd thing to learn about while writing fiction but hang in there with me. My master’s degree is from a seminary. I have taught theology and studied the attributes of God. His omniscience vs out free will is an issue people have been arguing about for centuries.

I don’t really have the answer to that debate although I fully believe in both. God knows everything which should terrify us. EVERYTHING. Every thought and intention of our hearts, our motives, the words we don’t say out loud but think. Our wants and desires. Our deepest fears. Amazingly enough, He wanted His human creation, dependant upon Him for every breath we take and every beat of our hearts, to have the freedom to accept or reject Him.

He didn’t want puppets to worship Him. He wanted people willing to give their all to Him because He called and we chose to respond.

Now we could debate about how could God, who knows everything we will do, give us free will since He already knows we will do it?

I can’t answer that. Some thoughts are far too lofty for this mere mortal.

But I came to a place of peace with this because of my writing. It is not a perfect illustration because again, as a writer, I’m a mortal, not eternal like God is.

When I write my story I have an idea of what the journey for my characters will be like and who they are. (Remember, these people don’t really exist even if they seem to in my mind).  I have a general concept of my ending. Since I write happily-ever-afters it will be a happy ending. There will be love. Maybe a kiss or a wedding, and regardless of where my characters start on their journey, they will have grown emotionally and spiritually. Because I’m human and haven’t written the book yet, I’m not sure of all the details of those journeys to love and greater wholeness.

Whether a writer is a panster (write by the seat of his/her pants) or a plotter, planning out general points of the story’s plot, our characters sometimes surprise us. I can have in-depth interviews with these imaginary people but they sometimes throw me for a loop with a memory, or an issue I wasn’t expecting. Sometimes they make a choice I didn’t anticipate. However, I get them to my desired end for the book.

Once the book is written I am fully aware of their choices and decisions and the precise ending.

God knows my beginning and my end. He has a plan and a purpose for my life but I still make choices. Unlike me as an author, God is never surprised because He’s already read the end of my story. He read it before I was even born. That doesn’t mean He dictated my path.

I’m not even sure if that fully makes sense to you, but it does to me. I can’t understand just how it really works with an all-knowing, sovereign Lord, only that I can listen for His voice and maybe I’ll make mistakes, but He will get me to my desired end and use me to fulfill His purpose here on earth. Maybe I’ll sport some bruises from my failures, but He will never stop loving me on the journey through my story.

And He is also the One who leads me as I write. How else can my characters surprise me if my God-given imagination didn’t let that happen? An imagination designed for me combined with my history and past experiences to create a story out of nothing because I am an image-bearer of the Creator Himself.

Maybe this is too lofty, but I’ve found peace in not understanding how it all happens. It is a holy mystery beyond my ability to grasp but His omniscience doesn’t negate free will and there is wonderful security in that truth.