Writing a Book = Open Heart Surgery {gulp}

I am writing a book.

I have dreamed of writing books. I have dreamed of having written books.

I have imagined that I could write a book that could capture all the beauty that my heart yearns to express.

But I have not actually written a book.

I am writing a book.

Writing a book is... revealing.

The one thing that all finished books have in common? They are finished. Completed. The author kept going and going and going and <pant pant> going... then one day found closure and moved on from a dreamily perfect ideal to release it to the winds of the world.

Writing a book has revealed to me that all the going takes a very long time. And that finishing is not for the faint of heart.

It has shown me that I have even more left to learn than I thought. About writing... about my topic... about myself.

It has cast a spotlight on my fears... there are times when I think about this book and I feel like the whole world is a blinding beam silhouetting all my deepest anxieties... all the tender parts of me exposed to the heartless throngs.

Oh there are so many reasons not to write this book. The lack of a long string of letters after my name (credentials!); the bookshelves that need organizing; the baby goats to watch; the possibility that maybe just maybe I am not smart enough or talented enough to pull it off; the cookies to bake; the laundry that needs folding; the wrenching pain in my soul when I realize that what I am writing about is the hardest thing in the world to live but I must try in my every waking moment to live it; the deep knowledge that I do in fact fail to live it every waking moment...

... but...

I am writing a book.

I am relying on God's grace. I say this with all my heart: if this book is ever finished and published... if you ever see a copy of it that is not an email from me of some word document of a chapter (ha!)...  yes, if there ever is an actual book... this is why:

For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves
- 2 Corinthians 4:5-7

Not me. If this crazy thing ever comes to completion... no, when this crazy, gloriously beautiful journey comes to completion, it will be because of Him. I am not fit for the task. I am out of my comfort zone. Way way way out of my comfort zone.

And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
- 2 Corinthians 12:10

Yes, I'm relying on His grace as I slowly stitch words together. Lord, be glorified!

{Author friends: it would bless me greatly to learn your favorite tip for keeping head down as you soldier onward with your writing projects. Would you tell me in the comments? I have learned so much from other writers! My burning question right now... is it just me and my pace or does writing a book really take forrrrrreeeeevvvvver?}
 
 photo credit

Do You Feel Just Ordinary?

Do you ever feel too ordinary to be used by God? Too busy cleaning up messes and bandaging knees to be important in the kingdom?

The alarm rings. You get out of bed, like every day, and stumble to the kitchen. Your hair is lopsided as you start water for tea, rustle around in the fridge for a bite to eat. You were tired last night and left crumbs, so you grab a cloth to wipe down the counter while the water boils. As you reach for the sink faucet, your bare foot kicks the pile you swept after dinner but forgot to sweep into the dustpan. You mentally add things to your to-do list for the day.

By the time you settle with your bible to snatch a moment with God, you feel the weight of the ordinary bending you down.

You and I are steeped in the ordinary aren’t we? Swimming in the mundane details of daily life. Yet when I crack my bible open, the extraordinary… the supernatural… flies off the page and into my heart. Do you feel it too?

To read the rest of my post today at Do Not Depart, click here...

YOU choose - get the good in your head

Do you ever feel like your brain belongs to someone else?

You know what is right and what you want, yet you keep thinking about the opposite?

Like... you know you want to feel well and not eat things that make you sick, but you just think and think and think about eating sugar.

Or you know that your friend really loves you but you can't stop thinking about the thing she said that hurt your feelings.

How about this - you tell all the other moms you know not be so hard on themselves about how hard it is to keep up with the house, but deep inside you are sure you are a horrible human being because YOU can't keep up?

It's ridiculous.

All that stinkin' thinkin' gets you nothing and nowhere, but it sure delights the enemy of your soul.

As a stinkin' thinker myself, I'm not exactly in a position to preach, except for I'm going to preach, sisters!

Look, what a way to distract, right? I mean, you could be thinking about an absolutely gorgeous plate of life-sustaining food, but you're distracted by that sugar. You are feeling sorry for yourself because you can't/shouldn't/whatever and are completely ignoring the fact that GOOD GRIEF you are opulently wealthy and can eat just about anything you want and it can all be good for you! What a gift!

Be thankful.

Or that friend? The one who loves you and oops isn't perfect? Did you ever say anything that came out differently from how you meant it? Or maybe you meant it and were just being thoughtless?

Forgive.

And your house... oh your house. Ugh. Houses are just, just... endless. An endless experiment proving entropy.

When you are lying on your deathbed, will you be saying, "If only I had spent more time cleaning my house!"? I think not.

Let it go.

Can we be more intentional about our thinking? How about this (the girlie version of Philippians 4:8)...

SISTERS!

Whatever is
true
honorable
right
pure
lovely
of good repute
excellent
worthy of praise

dwell
on
these
things.

Dwell, sisters.

Live there. Live in the true. Live in the lovely.

Live there in your mind. Find the beauty, choose the pure, look toward what is right and good.

You choose it, girlfriend, only you. You want power? You and only you have power over what you think about.

If you feel like you can't control the thoughts? Get your head right into the good book. Crack that bible. Read. Read quiet, read loud, just read. Get the good in your head.

Get your thoughts off yourself. Get them onto God.

Seek His face.

Trust me, when you are looking in the face of Jesus all that other mess? Fades away.

Focus. Use the power you have to choose where your thought life goes. Go to the light, friends.

 

Refining Identity {a book review}

The way you think about yourself affects every aspect of your life. Your view of yourself and your view of the world are intimately entwined. And at the very core of both is what you believe about God.

When I am talking with women about various struggles in their lives, I often notice a basic problem - lack of understanding of who God is, and who they are in Christ. If you haven't spent time in God's Word, your view of God will necessarily be shaped by your life experiences and your own personality. It is essential to dig into scripture to know God's truth about Himself, and about you.

"Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." - John 17:17

This is so important for all believers. So when I met Courtney Cohen at the Declare Conference, and heard about her new book Refining Identity, I knew I would want to read and review it for you all. Courtney welcomed my enthusiasm and graciously sent me an advance copy.

The title is based on the analogy of God as Refiner. Throughout the book you will find references to the process smelters use to refine gold to purify it, just as God purifies us.

Refining Identity begins with a scriptural study of who God is. Courtney leads you through the bible, seeking His nature and character. There is space for you to jot notes as you look up each scripture and discover for yourself what it says. Courtney adds her own observations and personal stories.

Then Refining Identity takes you through a process of addressing challenges and weaknesses you may have as you relinquish your identity to the refiner of your soul. This is followed by a beautiful embracing of the renewal that comes as the Lord builds you up as He created you to be. All throughout this journey you will be in scripture, seeking God's truth in His Word.

Near the end is an important chapter on spiritual warfare. Committed believers can expect to experience this challenge, and it is critical to be scripturally equipped to understand and deal with it.

And of course the precious completion of the refining process is when we are like shiny golden mirrors, reflecting His love. Not one of us will be perfectly refined until we are face to face with God, but the power of Jesus Christ in our lives shines even in our weakness and failings.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

We all find ourselves at some point asking the question "Who am I?" For a Christian, the answer is a combination of how God sees you through the lens of Christ, and the specific gifts He has given to you. As Courtney puts it:

"I am who I AM says I am."

Each of us was put on earth to glorify God and love others. But we often get caught up in distractions and become confused about our identities. Because of this we feel trapped and are unable to love with the freedom and joy that we have been given.

Only Jesus can set us free, only in Him can we be fully who we were created to be. If you are feeling trapped, if you are not really sure who you are, I encourage you to consider reading Refining Identity, and commit to the process of working through the scriptures Courtney has lovingly laid out. Meet your Refiner in His Word!

 

You can hear a little bit of Courtney's heart for this book in the above video.

Also, take a moment to stop by Courtney's facebook page today (November 26, 2013) for some special giveaways in honor of today's launch. You may even win a free copy for yourself!

 
disclosure: affiliate links are included in this post