Didactic' Isn't a Prehistoric Bird by Bruce Atchison

I'm attempting something I've never done before. Instead of writing another memoir, I'm working on a didactic book called You Think You're Going to Heaven? Since I've never written an instructive book previously, I feel somewhat intimidated at the size of this project.

Writing a paperback about who goes to heaven, from a biblical view, is an awesome chore. Since it's so important, I don't want to be like the people who add or subtract from the scriptures.

Look at the warning in Revelation 22:18 and 19 (BBE). "For I say to every man to whose ears have come the words of this prophet's book, If any man makes an addition to them, God will put on him the punishments which are in this book: And if any man takes away from the words of this book, God will take away from him his part in the tree of life and the holy town, even the things which are in this book."

I'd much rather take Paul's advice when studying and writing about the Word of God. We read in 2 Timothy 2:15 (BBE), "Let it be your care to get the approval of God, as a workman who has no cause for shame, giving the true word in the right way."

Additionally, I realize that sticking strictly to what Holy Scripture says and making sure I interpret it God's way is no easy task. Look at what Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 12:12 (BBE). "And further, my son, take note of this: of the making of books there is no end, and much learning is a weariness to the flesh."

Knowing this daunting truth, I still work to the best of my ability. Revelation 22:12 (BBE) encourages me through the weariness. "See, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give to every man the outcome of his works."

And thanks to trailing-edge technology and the gracious gifts of friends, I have the tools to study the scriptures. Dan, my brother in Christ, gave me a CD-ROM with the QuickVerse program on it. With that, I can find any word or phrase in the King James Version.

But the program won't work on computers with 32-bit or 64-bit processors. That's why I'm so glad the Radway library gave me their cast-off desktop PC with Windows XP on it. Better still, it can run older programs which new computers won't. I can carry on for years with this wonderful software.

Best of all, I can copy and paste verses from both the King James and Bible in Basic English versions, thanks to another old program called Bible Seeker. I downloaded it for free, a price I quite enjoy paying.

Endurance: The Christian Writer's Burden - Bruce Atchison

Writing and Christianity have one thing in common. Both require endurance. Both are also difficult but not impossible to achieve.

As we've all found out, brilliant prose and poetry don't just happen. They both require a good command of the English language and a firm grasp of grammar.

In Christianity, we are exhorted to, as the Apostle Paul put it in 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV), "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

King Solomon also acknowledged the labour involved in writing. He warned in Ecclesiastes 12:12 KJV), "And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh."

And just as we suffer rejections from magazines and traditional book publishers, we also suffer setbacks for our faith. As James 5:11 ((KJV) explains, "Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, (filled with pity) and of tender mercy."

We also know that God and editors don't reject  us when both correct or critique our work. Hebrews 12:7 (KJV) reminds us that, "If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?"

It sure does seem though that editors have a grudge against us. Even so, we persist in shopping around our work. The same applies to evangelism. We persist in telling people about salvation, even when they become angry with us. As Jesus noted in Mark 13:13 (KJV), "And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." The same applies to women.

I'm sure we've all felt at one time or another like tearing a verbal strip out of an apparently clueless editor. But we must keep in mind what James 1:19 (KJV) admonishes us. "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:" This likewise applies to women.

When our work is done, both for the Lord and on our projects, we feel that delightful rush of accomplishment. As Ecclesiastes 7:8 (KJV) notes, "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit." May it always be so with you.