My eyes grow wide as I stare at a large blank white space. The pulsing of the little black line grows louder and louder the longer I look at it; I can hear it chanting at me: “Write. Write. Write.” My fingers brace the keyboard, and I type.
“No, no, no…” Backspace.
I dwell on my thoughts a little longer and type again. I cock my head to the right,
“No, no… still not what I want.” Backspace.
Confident, I type a whole paragraph. “Ugh! No!!!” Really long backspace. *slams keyboard against the wall* (Just kidding..)
My thoughts run rampant with doubt: “What do I have to say? What makes my words important? Why should I try to be a voice among the millions of other voices? What’s the point?”
God bless, Maya Angelou. Her words bring me comfort as I wrestle to write and find meaning in it.
“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
Oh, this is so true.
To write is to defy the urge to keep quiet and tell the story that's been written on your heart. Click To TweetTo write is to give a voice to the passion that’s been birthed in your soul.
Your story matters. Your words matter.
However, even though these words inside of us might be eager to come alive in our blogs, actually being obedient to write those words can be hard. When I first started a blog, I was very random and sporadic about it. I wrote when I felt like it and when it was convenient for me. Within the past year, I’ve felt this nagging in my heart to get serious about blogging consistently and really investing in what I write.
At first I was super excited, ambitious and motivated. As time went on, I started to realize the excessive amounts of time, effort, brain juices and help of the Holy Spirit this whole “blogging thing” was going to require. The more I pressed into writing, the more I doubted that I had anything to write about. I was stumped on topics to write about and blogging became more stressful than enjoyable. I questioned if it was worth it to keep obeying this call to blog or if I really should just smash that keyboard against the wall and call it quits.
Slowly, God began to reveal to me how much different my blogging would be if I invited Him into the process of it all. Most of the time I was blogging, I had the idea that I was writing for God. I was constantly trying to come up with things that would bring Him glory, display His truths and point others to Him. But, He showed me a different perspective. Now I see that it is entirely more enjoyable, joyful and exciting to write with God. By starting off my writing time with prayer and realizing that blogging is a team effort, a lot of the pressure fell off, and I was blessed by the time spent writing with Him.
This idea of writing with God instead of for God allowed me to see blogging as an encouraging experience not only for those who would read these words, but also for myself. My “Write Nights” as I call them, became my favorite nights of the week because I got to spend time with God while doing what I really love. When I think about these nights, I can hear the beckoning of His words written in Psalm 27:8 which says, “My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.” And my heart responds, “LORD, I am coming.” I want to listen and respond to God’s heart before I even start to write about it.
I believe that when we invite God into our processes, our obedience in what He has called us to do becomes more of a blessing than a burden. Invite Him in. Enjoy His presence. Soak up the blessings along the way.
Photo credit: Pixabay
Kaitlin Garrison is a wife to a youth pastor and a mom of two rambunctious puppies. She is a lover of writing, singing, and a good chat over coffee on the porch. She is passionate about investing in the next generation of women to follow Christ with their lives.
I needed to hear this! Thanks for the timely encouragement. So good.
Tanya, I’m glad it encouraged you! ❤️❤️
Yes, Kaitlin!
I love everything you had to say here. So often I, too, feel like giving up on this whole writing thing, because frankly I just can’t do it. At least, not on my own. Your post is a confirmation of what I have been reading in the Bible and hearing from the Holy Spirit: He is leading the way, I’m just to follow hard, one step at a time.
Thank you for sharing!
Only by grace,
Kelli
I know it can be so frustrating on our own. I’m still learning the whole “listening” thing! Thanks for your encouragement and confirmation! ❤️
Kaitlin, your blog has been instructional, inspirational and convicting for me. I am a novice blogger. I just started on this journey in June. You have pointed me in the right direction in terms of perspective. I love the way you said it. “Now I see that it is entirely more enjoyable, joyful and exciting to write with God.” You are so right. I need to be on a writing team with God the living word. WOW! That’s profound. I look forward to reading what God and I write next. Love you dear!
Calvonia!
I’m so glad you were encouraged! I’m glad God doesn’t call us and then make us walk it alone. I can’t wait to read what You and God write! ❤️ I love you too!
Thanks again Kaitlin for guest posting. What a blessing you are to others. We will definitely have to do this again!