What Keeps You Going?

Today was one of those days. Nothing really went wrong. I had a pleasant cup of tea and snuggled my dogs before planning write. And then... nothing. Just not really in the writing mood.

I kept finding things to do to distract myself. Ever been there? Laundry, dusting the piano, watering flowers. Finally, after a few hours, I sat down in the office chair to try writing again.

It was hard. Like studying for an exam in college after you've just taken cold medicine. Nothing was wrong. I just wasn't feeling it. I've found that this happens sometimes.

We all have moments of elation in our callings. We go to conferences and get so excited as we catch a vision of where our writing might take us. We meet wonderful friends online and swap work, so happy to get positive feedback on our precious WIP from mentors and critique partners. We have those moments--those often quiet moments--where God whispers, and we know... we just know... the things ahead are nothing like the things behind. We know the calling is worth the work it takes to get there.

But then there are other moments--the everydays--when it's so much easier to sit back and not write. To turn on the TV, or grab a book, or get lost in Facebook statuses. Before we know it, another day has passed, and maybe we didn't pull up Microsoft Word at all. Maybe we didn't feed our calling. And maybe a little part of it dimmed.

If we're not careful, we can slip into this it's-still-my-dream-but-I'm-just-not-feeling-it-now routine, that, over time, undermines our calling. Whatever you feed, grows. All it takes is one glance at my weed-filled garden to prove that! So feed your dreams. Feed your calling.

But how do we feed our God-dreams? Through daily discipline. Through the mornings we don't want to get up early and the afternoons we feel tired and the nights we want to watch TV. I am so bad at this sometimes. I let myself get caught up in a bunch of distractions.

I would encourage you to write down your dreams and a timeline for when/how you want to achieve them. Pray about these goals, and ask God if He has more.

We have to be intentional if we want to dream big dreams. They aren't going to come true on their own.  How do you build a stairwell to the clouds? One step at a time. :)

What do you do to help stay focused when your daily routine seems busy or boring? How do you make yourself say no to distractions?

Running for Our Calling

I Corinthians 10:31, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."

Recently I saw a teenager from church post this verse on his Facebook status as a way to shame people out of watching movies because they can't glorify God, apparently. And that bothered me, so it got me to thinking, why do we as the church have such a hard time with this concept? And what does living our lives for the glory of God really look like?

The best I can tell, it has a lot more to do with the motivations behind our actions than the actions themselves. Sure, we should avoid sin, but what if there's more to it than that? What if we have a higher calling, something to run . . . towards instead of away from?

We often hear this verse associated with things we shouldn't do. Don't watch R rated movies. Don't have sex out of wedlock. Don't say curse words or look at pornography. And I agree wholeheartedly--it's of vital importance that as Christians, we avoid these things. That we avoid the sins that would burden God's heart and make Him displeased.

But there's so much more to live for.

Notice what the verse is really saying. It's not a list of things we shouldn't be doing. You often hear teenagers asking youth ministers about the lines of appropriate behavior. How much is too much when it comes to difficult friendships, dating unbelievers, even kissing. But what is wrong with our doctrine that we've encouraged young believers to ask these things, to come to think of faith as a line we shouldn't cross rather than a marvelous light we're running toward?

Far from a list of sins to avoid, this verse takes on a different tone entirely. The English major in me can't escape the word "for" in the latter part of this passage. We are to do everything for the glory of God. Wow. Now there's a new thought entirely.

God has given you, and He's given me, the blessing of today. Often, I find myself going through the day, satisfied to not commit any blatant sins. But battles are never won simply because warriors didn't do anything that day worth mentioning.

God has placed a purpose upon your life, upon your heart. Allow me to encourage you today. We aren't made to be running away from something. We're meant to run toward something else entirely. Whether that's smiling at your kids while you're doing the dishes, or whether that's polishing the WIP you feel will never see the light of a bookstore, remind yourself today. God has a plan for your heart, for your life. And sometimes the littlest steps accomplish the biggest things.