The truth is, I’ve never thought much about writing. Never felt a talent for it. Sure, I scribbled things down now and then over the years and Dad and Mom would say things like, “You need to write!” But I always took those words as kind of like being poked with a needle. Sharp and maybe ‘NO’. Stop! Stop saying that! It sounds like a commitment that maybe I don’t want. Like babysitting your younger siblings who you knew would never respect you and secretly had already decided to ignore everything you said the minute your parents left. And I struggled with the biggest question, “What would I write about?” I’m not a Tom Clancy, or a Kay Kuzma, or even a Gertrude Chandler Warner. I have only rambling thoughts and, most of the time, interruptions, and I NEVER keep a journal or bullet points or…….
OK. You get it, I’m a mess!
And then God spoke.
I don’t type those words easily. This was not a light show or a boom of thunder or a firm grip on my shoulder holding me down in a chair “til you finish that job” kind of moment. This was a ‘quiet in the night’, ‘solo drive down the highway’, ‘lonely hotel room’ kind of conversation. Writing is not a career path for me. It’s a holy walk.
What is YOUR holy walk?
2 Samuel 23 is subtitled ‘David’s Last Words’ (NLT). David was a writer. A poet. A singer/songwriter. He was also a warrior, a shepherd, a king, and a “man anointed by the God of Jacob.” That’s a tall order. How did he balance all those talents? I ask this honestly and globally.
If God gives you gifts, (and you ALL have them), how do we balance them with a seemingly endless list of to-do’s? And how do we accept them without including exhaustive sighs and overwhelming fears of not-good-enoughs?
Friend, please realize that your talents, your gifts, are God given. And there are so. many. ways. to package them in our ordinary lives. Those of you with the gift of song raise that music to glorify the Lord and the rest of us are served with the sound. Those of you with the gift of culinary savvy spin spoons and feed the weary, serving the hungry. And those of you with the gift of organization put to order rooms and programs to serve our senses and you’re following God’s law of order in this big universe. And you’re following King Solomon’s Proverbs 18:16, “Giving a gift works wonders; it may bring you before important people!”
And who’s more important than the children of God?
Take a moment this week and write down your gifts. You’re already using them. It’s the happy joy tool designed just for you that brings you satisfaction at the end of the day. It’s the true art within that helps you unwind when life’s a bit upside down. And it’s that red thread that reminds us to be thankful unto the Lord, keeping us from becoming foolishly selfish. Then ask yourself if God is nudging you to step out and use it in a slightly new light. And if you feel so inclined, if you feel your own talent walking towards holiness, share with us?
purely searching for gifts,
~kathy
kathy brower 