The Greek scholar Archimedes stepped into his bath and
suddenly realized that he displaced water exactly equal to his body’s volume.
He was so excited that he ran through the streets, shouting “Eureka! Eureka!—I
have found it!”
Prompt:
Did
you have a Eureka moment when you knew you wanted to be a writer? Or maybe you
sensed God’s calling as a gradual process. Or maybe you always knew you wanted
to be a writer. Tell us your story.
Writing Retreat - June 2011
One turning point came for me the summer of 2011. I was newly
retired and had more time to develop my writing.
I also had determined to begin writing more intentionally.
Before plunging into my writing projects, I went on a
private writing retreat. My goddaughter Clara was graduating from high school,
and I drove from Calgary to Victoria to attend her graduation.
The drive took two
days, and I used that time to think, read, and plan. I
asked God to reveal His vision for my writing,
My guidebooks were my Bible, a devotional book, my
journal, and Janice Elsheimer’s The
Creative Call, a book that focused on freeing and developing the artist
within us. “We will find the
artist God intends us to be when we...become open to his plan and to the
inspiration of His Holy Spirit. Only then will we experience personal artistic
revival,” she wrote.
My mind filled with
ideas. Like the jangling key ring of caretakers where I had worked, these ideas
called out to be noticed. Yet my goals were not too clear.
I asked God for keys. Keys to unlock God’s purposes for my writing. Keys to develop my writing
skills. Keys to bring God’s love and healing to my readers. And the key to
depend on the Holy Spirit for our source of inspiration.
Since then God
has been faithful. I look back on that private writer’s retreat and see the
beginning of my art becoming empowered by the Spirit, sometimes
giving meaning to others that I could never have thought of on my own.
Clearly your private retreat with your Bible and God unlocked a turning point for you. Thanks for your words of inspiration.
ReplyDelete"Like the jangling key ring of caretakers where I had worked, these ideas called out to be noticed." What a vivid picture, Sandi. My need is to remember that God is the caretaker, God holds the keys. This will stay in my mind. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteYour line about the 'jangling keys' also stood out for me. What a great simile!
ReplyDeleteI love how you allow the Lord to use your creativity. That is a goal of mine. Really enjoyed this post~
ReplyDeleteI loved your word picture of the key ring. It made it so easy to see those keys you were asking God for. Thank you for this inspiring post.
ReplyDeleteTrusting God for your writing has been quite a trip. Thanks for the inspiration, Sandi.
ReplyDeleteI liked the way to asked God for keys and He faithfully answered your prayers. Beautiful. Thanks too for sharing The Creative Call book with us. I am always looking for good books to challenge my creativity.
ReplyDeleteSandi, you have inspired me on how to focus for my upcoming writing retreat the end of this month! I am trusting that God will give me direction as he has you. Happy writing!
ReplyDelete