Distractions or Opportunities? ~ Valerie Ronald

Today I determined to write this post for InScribe Writers Online. It is now 2 pm. So far I have spent quiet time with God, made some changes to my Instagram account, played online Scrabble, cleaned the kitchen, hemmed some pants and snuggled my cat. Now here I sit at my computer, feeling guilty because I was so distracted from writing about distractions.

 Reading this month’s previous posts, I take comfort in discovering I am not the only one who struggles with distractions. For me to accomplish any forward momentum in my writing, there are some essential requirements: purpose, inspiration, focus, time, and quiet. The first three occur in my interior world, where distractions are usually overcome by my own will. I have learned to mentally compartmentalize my writing projects, so when there is time to ruminate, I choose which one to think about. This can occur while doing routine tasks, watching television, before I go to sleep. If rumination produces something worthwhile, I jot it down to refer to later. 

The last two requirements, time and quiet, are more prone to distractions. Even though in retirement I am the master of my own time, I still need to stick to a writing schedule or large blocks of it will be frittered away in other less purposeful activities. It takes time and quiet in order to get into the Writing Zone, so once there, I try to stay for an extended period with the intent of being productive. The Zone is where most distractions occur. The Zoner does not acknowledge the passing of time. The Zoner begrudges interruptions, like a bathroom break, or a husband needing supper, or bedtime. The Zoner resents the ring of a telephone or a doorbell, would like to silence every lawnmower and barking dog in the neighbourhood, and chooses to ignore hunger pangs as long as possible.  

These are unrealistic expectations, I know, but I can always hope. That being said, I recognize that some distractions are of the Lord’s doing and need to be acknowledged and obeyed, if possible. Proverbs 16:9 reminds me, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” An interruption by someone in need is not a distraction, it is an opportunity. If my writing time is more important to me than praying for a friend with family problems, or a call from a grandchild wanting to tell me she loves me, then I have my priorities mixed up.  

Proverbs, the book of wisdom, also says to “commit to the Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans.” (16:3 NIV) That does not mean He will rubber stamp all my man-made plans (like six hours of uninterrupted writing time a day). It means when I surrender my day to Him, He will establish the plans He has for me. And that may mean some distractions He allows deliberately, so I can be His hands, feet or voice to meet someone’s need. 

Author Madeleine L’Engle wrote much of her classic children’s book, A Wrinkle In Time, while raising her young children, without the luxury of uninterrupted writing time. She tells of scribbling in a notebook on the kitchen counter, between making dinner and bouncing a baby on her hip. She learned to focus and create despite pressing needs and distractions. Not many of us can do the same. We can, however, discipline ourselves to pay attention to what is important, being attentive and engaged, whether while pursuing our call to write, or recognizing that not all distractions are meant to try us. Some are meant to use us for God’s purposes beyond our writing, especially conveying His love to others.

More of Valerie's work can be read on her blog:

https://wordpress.scriptordeus.com/ 

The First Twig ~ Valerie Ronald

                                                                           

                                                                                                                                   painting by Peter Ward ©

In a tree just outside my living room window, a pair of blue jays is nesting. I watch them flitting about the branches of the sturdy cedar for a few days. They bring twigs and bits of string, even a shoelace, to tuck into a three-branched crook of the tree until a nest takes shape. They can’t see me on the other side of the glass but I have a birds-eye view of their homemaking. Eventually they take turns sitting on their eggs and soon I hope to see baby blue jays peeping over the edge of the nest.

I marvel at how God perfectly designed my blue jay neighbors to seek out a safe, hidden place to build a nest. Although it looks rickety, their nest withstands some strong winds and rains, so they chose well. They had the urge to create a nest, and so began with a single twig. Watching them reminds me of my writing process, especially the formative stage of a new project.

That moment ˗˗ that first “twig”, is what makes my heart sing as a writer ˗˗ the instant when my imagination is caught by a what if.

What if ˗˗ someone’s life is changed when they take up residence in an old church?  

What if ˗˗ the daffodil farm where I used to walk is the setting where an old heart wound is healed?

What if ˗˗ my husband’s worn leather work glove is a picture of a life filled with the Holy Spirit?

What if ˗˗ God is asking me to write my own life story, even the painful parts, so others may learn about Him?

Without that initial moment of God-given inspiration, I could not put a single word on a page. Whether I am seeking a theme for an assigned writing project or just sending out my writer’s radar for new ideas, when the moment hits, I know it. I feel an almost physical jolt of energy, or the proverbial light bulb flashing on, when God gifts me with a new writing idea. I even have a name for such a phenomenon. A shining moment.  

After decades of writing, I have developed my own writer’s eye, or way of looking at and experiencing aspects of life around me as a potential writing subject. How can I incorporate that little girl’s laugh I overhear into a playground scene? Is there a new way to describe the autumn foliage I enjoy every year? How does a prairie thunderstorm mirror turmoil in a character?

Since fresh inspiration is important to me as a writer, then I must actively look for those shining moments. I must “listen to the silence, stay open to the voice of the Spirit”, as Madeleine L’Engle wrote.1 That is my part of the process. God’s part is to touch the creative portion of my brain with new inspiration. When the two parts come together, my heart sings in anticipation of the creative process and my mind races ahead to how it will develop. 

The work of writing is dependent on the original inspiration, the first “twig” placed in the tree to create a home out of words. Then begins the laborious process of building on the original idea. I propose that God sparks me with joy when He gifts me with new inspiration so that the energy from that initial spark will carry me through the hard work to completion. He makes my heart sing with creative passion, as only He can. I like to think I make His heart sing too, when I hatch original stories to offer the world.   

“All of us who have given birth to a story know that it is ultimately mystery, closely knit to God’s own creative activities which did not stop at the beginning of the universe. God is constantly creating, in us, through us, with us, and to co-create with God is our human calling. It is the calling for all of us, His creatures, but it is perhaps more conscious with the Christian artist.” - Madeleine L’Engle, Walking on Water


1Walking On Water, Madeleine L’Engle, Harold Shaw Pub. 1980

 

  More of Valerie's work can be read on her blog.

https://wordpress.scriptordeus.com/

Just the Right Word ~ Valerie Ronald

 

There are so many of them flying around the atmosphere today ˗˗ words. They fill up our air space, bookshelves, cyberspace, even our own minds. Yet I confess, I love words. They are the vehicles for the expression of our inner heart and spirit. They reach across the lonely space between each one of us to voice our commonality, to make the connection that lights up the eyes and says, you know! ˗˗ you understand!  

The ultimate communication from God to man came in the form of a Word.

“In the beginning the Word already was. The Word was in God’s presence, and what God was, the Word was.” (John 1:1 Revised English Version) 

The apostle John was not writing about speech but rather a person, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Readers of John’s day would understand the Logos (Word), as coined by Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, “to designate the divine reason or plan which coordinates the entire universe.”1  But John took it a step further, declaring the Logos, at a particular time in history, took on flesh and became a man ˗˗ Jesus of Nazareth. The powerful statement beginning the gospel of John declares the deity and eternal majesty of Christ from the outset, so that the stories of Jesus in the next 21 chapters are read in the context of His divinity. 

This is the Word voiced without time constraints ˗˗ always speaking, always heard, uttered into the future. This Word, this perfect expression of what God is like, was spoken into the world at a specific time for a specific purpose. “So the Word became flesh; He made His home among us, and we saw His glory, such glory as befits the Father‘s only Son, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14) How the immensity expressed in the small, three-letter word God, is contained within another small, three-letter word, man, is the unknowable mystery of the incarnation.

My love of words often has me searching for just the right one to express my thoughts in writing. My desk holds a dictionary and thesaurus which give the meanings and nuances of thousands of words. Finding the perfect word for my purpose is a satisfying accomplishment.

God found just the right Word on the first Christmas. To convey His love for mankind, He knew He needed to speak into their lives in a way they could relate to and understand. So He placed His most precious Word, His own son, into the body of a helpless baby. From a human womb the Word was birthed to live among us, fully man and fully God.

This Word wasn’t vague or indecipherable. He spoke truth and hope into darkened hearts, healed broken bodies and spirits, cut through hypocrisy and legalism. He walked dusty roads and broke bread with His friends. The depth of His humanity is found in the shortest verse in the scriptures, “Jesus wept.” (John 11:35) We can’t know what He experienced as God, but as a man He knew sorrow and compassion, expressed with human tears. He made His home among us, the Word made intimate.

The Enemy presumed the Word was silenced when Jesus died on the cross of Calvary. But it was the ultimate shout of victory, because He rose again to offer forgiveness and new life to all who believed what He said. Now Jesus resides in hearts open to the truth of who He is, and embodies the definition of the Word love.

Madeleine L’Engle said, when the words mean even more than the writer knew they meant, then the writer has been listening. Listening to the Word is not just done with our ears, but with our heart, soul, spirit and mind. What a privilege it is as writers who believe in this Word, this ultimate expression of all God wants to say to us, to use our words to communicate Him to a broken world desperately needing to hear it spoken.


1 Keri Wyatt Kent, Deeper into the Word - New Testament (Bloomington, MN: Bethany House Pub., 2011) 224

(painting by my daughter, Kristina Jones)

When We Listen by Steph Beth Nickel

When the words mean even more than the writer knew they meant,

then the writer has been listening.

And sometimes when we listen, we are led into places we do not expect,

into adventures we do not always understand.

Madeleine L’Engle

“Rambling until I stumble across truth.” That’s how I refer to journaling.

Sometimes, we simply have to “shake loose” those “places we do not expect,” those “adventures we do not always understand.”

They live within us. Sometimes on the surface. Sometimes buried deep within.

Have your own words ever surprised you? Have they jumped off the page as if that truth, that question, that reality was just waiting to see the light of day? Have those words ever inspired a blog post? A talk? An entire book?

Before we explore further, I want to let you know I’m not talking about perfectly polished prose. I’m referring to that sentence or phrase that flows from the tip of your pen or from your fingertips without forethought.

Yes, we have to “kill our darlings.” Not everything we think is profound and inspirational is meant for anyone besides ourselves. But let’s not deny the importance of words that are just for us either. 

How can we invite these words to impact our lives? How can we travel to those places and have those adventures Madeline L’Engle referred to? How can we listen?

1. Before you sit down to write, do your best to set aside distractions. Focus singularly on the task at hand. If you haven’t already, develop a pre-writing routine that triggers the “it’s-time-to-write” mindset.
2. Practice what Julia Cameron calls “morning pages.” Just put pen to paper first thing in the morning and write three pages to rid your mind of the clutter that you’ve accumulated. No judgment and no rewrites allowed. This is the ultimate info dump. Still, you may find gold among the dross.
3. Similarly, you can freewrite regularly. Choose a writing prompt or come up with one of your own. Set a timer. And write as fast as you can. Again, it’s important to silence your inner editor. You may discover an idea you want to pursue.
4. Try your hand at a genre or form of writing that is new to you. While it may frustrate more than inspire, there is a chance that looking at things from a different perspective is just what you need.
5. Go on an “artist’s date.” (This is another of Julia Cameron’s recommendations.) Do something that inspires you. Even in these days of social distancing and lockdowns, you can take a walk, snap some pictures, peruse Pinterest for inspiring images. (When the restrictions lift, you may want to grab a coffee with a friend, wander through your local art gallery, or curl up in a corner at the library and read a book.)

How do you “listen” before, during, and after you write? Have you travelled to unexpected places because of your writing? Have you had adventures you hadn’t understood before certain words flowed from your fingertips?

Steph Beth Nickel began freelance editing over 13 years ago and is currently taking new clients. You can contact her at nurtureandinspire@gmail.com To join her Editing Tips Facebook group, answer the questions here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/418423519384351 Glad to have you join us! Steph is also a blogger, author—and a labour doula.