When our eyesight gets blurred, we go to the eye doctor. I love the feeling of finally being able to see clearly with a new pair of glasses. The strain of being out of focus is removed, and life immediately gets better.
I was seeking focus in my writing career, so I came to the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference. After the first day, I was confused and frustrated, but that evening two strangers and fellow writers gave me encouragement and prayer support.
Then writer Alton Gansky spoke. Though his message was to a room of 500, he was speaking to me. His topic: Focus.
He quoted from James 1:5-8, which reads,
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
If we are going to seek God’s wisdom in our writing, we have to believe. Then he shared one of “Al’s Axioms:”
Trust God or don’t.
If I believe God’s brought me to this point in my writing career, I need to stay the course, even when a wave knocks me down. Trusting God means standing up and pressing on, otherwise, I’m double-minded and unstable.
Josh Billings says, “be like a postage stamp, stick to one thing till you get there.” That’s what I needed to do. Continue in the thing that I know the best, that I’m the expert in, for which God has equipped me. Gansky said that “the problem with creativity is that it comes up with new ideas all the time.”
There is a Russian proverb that reads, “if you chase two rabbits, you won’t catch either.”
I was suffering, because I was chasing every rabbit that came to mind. I came to my first writers conference with four proposals to pitch, and each one was unique from the other. What was I thinking?
Now, however, I’m thinking clearly. I know who I am and what I’m good at. You may see the changes coming soon in my blogs and platform, so get ready. I’ve got new glasses on, and I’m ready to face the world!
How’s your focus? Ask God for wisdom, but watch out and don’t doubt.
Grace and Peace