Writing is nothing new. From the earliest days, the Creator God encouraged men to write:
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write down these words…”*
This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD:…”Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you.”*
Generations later, four men wrote their perspectives as inspired by this same God, allowing us to gain amazing insights into the life and ministry of The Christ who came to save. I love the way John ends his book, expressing a writer’s dilemma:
Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.*
Maybe that’s why he was given opportunity to write another long book before he died — God knew he loved writing.
To me, the Bible is the greatest example of why we write. God puts the desire in us to have a way of not only remembering but sharing life with others. We may write, as some of the biblical writers, books of history and fact. We want events recorded for our children or the population at large. This story, this life needs to be remembered.
Yet, the Bible is not just historical writing, it is poetry, songs, stories of purpose and inspiration. That’s what I love about this book that’s been in our hands for millennia — it can speak to any person, not only because it’s inspired by the Holy Spirit, but because it’s multi-faceted in genre of writing.
When I ask myself why I write, I find that it’s because I’m compelled. Something happens in my life or in the world, and I immediately want to write about it or just write it down to remember. I find that the writers I know feel the same way. There are words bursting to get out, to be shared. Writing is that avenue.
I also write because there is an underlying gifting. While the craft of writing can be learned, and I will be the first to say that I have much to learn, I do believe that most writers are gifted to do so and have been using that gift in some way throughout their life, before ever writing their first book, poem or story.
The final reason I write is because I have a story to tell. Sometimes that story is in the form of fiction, while it can also be in nonfiction. Whatever the form, my work focuses on the Christian life and witness, God’s Word and missions. I write out of my life experiences, for they are what God gives me to share.
You may notice that I did not say I write to make money — probably because I don’t make any! Many writers do see financial gain from their craft. If this comes my way, I won’t turn it away, but I never want the “selling of books” to be the reason I “write books”. If that happens, I will have strayed off the path God’s intended for me.
So, do you write? What story is impatient to come out? Write and leave the fruit of your labor to God.
Grace and Peace
Exodus 34:27a (NIV)
Jeremiah 30:1-2 (NIV)
John 21:25 (NIV)