LONELY LIFE OF A WRITER

-John on the isle of Patmos

The life of a writer can be lonely.  Anyone who is serious about pursuing their dream of writing will quickly learn that they are in a world to themselves; you see things differently.  You have to steal away to a quiet place sometimes for hours or days until you can express a thought in your head.  Others around you are watching television and enjoying the simple things of life but you carry a burden until your piece is completed.   You become disciplined and committed to a deadline even if the deadline is in your own mind.  There are things that you write about that may be very personal, controversial or far-fetched.  Imagine the looks Albert Einstein got when he wrote about the theory of relativity in 1905.

Not everyone can sit in silence; some people have to be doing or saying something.  It is more than just not talking; it’s getting into a place to ponder the ideas that come to mind; never being without pad or a pen.  It’s a place where there are no horns, no grass cutting, and no music or weed whackers; no running water, phones, or slamming cabinet doors, nothing but the trees blowing in the wind. I love it when it’s so quiet you can feel it.  

Some suffer from writer’s blocks where they can’t fill the blank pages in front of them.  My writing has been based on my experiences with God so I have an abundance of material.  My hurdle comes when writing through pain or a heartache or the joy of deliverance; expressing it all in under 600 words. 

God has been faithful and has answered miraculously when I’ve faced adversity. That’s when I learned writing is one of my gifts, because God moves quickly on my behalf so I can get back on task.  Writing serves a dual purpose for me; it keeps me sane and I get to tell how real God is.

Now I thought the best scenario for me to write in was peace and quiet but in reality, my best stories have come while I was under pressure in the midst of confusion and stress.

I considered the writers of the books of the bible and the conditions under which they wrote the New Testament.  They were beaten and imprisoned for expressing their beliefs. They were killed all but John the Apostle.

He was the only apostle to die of natural causes. He still suffered for His beliefs and writings about Christ.  John, the Apostle was a cousin to Jesus and one of  His inner circle.  When he wouldn’t stop writing and talking about the things he had witnessed about Christ, he was put into a cauldron of boiling oil and flung in a sling shot of sorts to the Isle of Patmos where he was banished.  God kept him alive so he could write the things in the book of Revelations.

I think of the accidents I’ve faced and the tragedies I’ve survived and know that God is keeping me alive to write about His glory.  He delivers me so miraculously because He knows I’ll write about Him to encourage someone else.  He places me in the camp of the enemy so that while I suffer I will call on His name and write about how He delivered me.  I think about the family and friends that have betrayed me and turned their back on me and write about how grateful I am to have Christ on my side.   He never promised it would be easy but He did promise it would be rewarding (Matthew 16:27).

God has placed great gift in all of us to edify or encourage each other.  He says and I’m a witness that your gift will make room for you (Proverbs 18:16).  From my soul to the paper in front of me, I write about the God I love and serve.  Take up your pen and write of His goodness to you.