After more than twenty five years of being a Christian, I still feel like I know so little.
Oh, sure, I’ve got a head full of intellectual knowledge, but when it comes to knowing and loving God personally, and living a life based on that relationship, I still feel like a novice.
Something has gone wrong along the way.
If you are a writer, the chances of you getting a book published by a traditional publisher are tiny. And the chances of you striking it big by self-publishing aren’t much better. That’s what I’ve read, anyway.
But, who cares!
If you need to pray, pray. If you need to sleep, sleep. If you need to get down on the floor and build a LEGO tower with your kids, get down and build one.
Don’t believe the lie that there are a million things you need to do right now. There is only one.
Do what you most need to do right now.
Those three words sum up writing for me. Using simple implements* to do something incredibly difficult: capture truth.
Whether it’s realism in a character, an accurate portrayal of the facts, deep, personal honesty, or the weight of an existential truth, our goal as writers is to capture it—with as much force and clarity as we can.
Don’t underestimate the power of your writing.
You may not think your blog is of much consequence, or that your everyday thoughts inspire many people, but they could be just what I need to hear.
You may not have 100,000 readers—or even have 100—but I might be reading, and I might be the one person you needed to write that new post for.
But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. (1 Pet 3:15, NIV)
Richard Dawkins would say I’m deluded for believing in God, and there’s always the chance of course, but I’m betting he’s wrong.
From my notebook:
It seems to me that if we only have a little bit of faith, that’s where we have to start. As long we do something with it—a bit like in the parable of the talents (Matt 25:13–30).
From time to time I’m going to feature a blog I really like—one I think is truly worth reading. And naturalchurch is one of those.
Tobie van der Westhuizen, the author of naturalchurch, is a long-time and passionate follower of Jesus. He’s a Bible teacher, cartoonist and columnist, and he and his family are part of a church that meets in their house, in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
I interviewed Tobie by email recently, and as you’ll see, he’s a thoughtful and engaging writer, with a good sense of humour and a single-minded focus on Jesus. He is also an advocate of what he calls ‘natural church’; but I’ll let him talk about that.
Not everyone wants to start a blog or write a book and broadcast their words to the world—some would cringe at the thought!—but there are reasons to write even for no audience at all.
It’s probably because I’m approaching forty, but words like purpose, significance, calling and legacy are on my mind more and more these days. And judging by discussions I have with other people my age, they’re on their minds too.
It’s starting to sink in that our lives (here, at least) are finite, and that, maybe, we ought to make the most of the time we have left.
