Write Plan B First

Don't Give Up or Give In by Steph Beth Nickel

Do you give up certain foods or behaviours during Lent?

Typically, I don’t … for a couple of reasons:

1. The denomination I belong to doesn’t follow the liturgical calendar.
2. When I’ve given up something in the past, I’ve typically thought more about that something than I have what the Lord has done for me, which, of course, should be the reason for whatever “fast” we participate in.

This year, however, I decided to revisit Lent. It all began with some of the authors and podcasters I follow on social media. From newly published 40-day devotionals to online group studies … I wanted to take it all in. (Hmm, sounds a lot like the opposite of giving things up actually.)

My hubby and I have set aside our collaborative study of Mary DeMuth’s Outrageous Grace Every 
Day and are studying Margaret Feinberg’s Beautiful Life, a study of the book of James.

I am using Asheritah Ciuciu’s Lenten study, Uncovering the Love of Jesus, in my personal quiet time.

I also plan to participate in Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Bible Study, which is how I first became involved with Kathi’s online community—and subsequently became one of her interns.

Further, I’ve signed up to join Amy Carroll and Cheri Gregory on Facebook in the study of their book, Exhale. 

And then, of course, I may try to carve out time to study Michelle Cushatt’s book Relentless. 

Wait! Wasn’t I talking about giving things up?

Regardless of my ridiculously jam-packed reading schedule (do I really need sleep?), I have chosen to set some things aside as we approach Easter, the most incredible day of the Christian calendar in my mind.

What matters less than what I’ve decided to set aside and habits I’m seeking to pursue are the immediate changes it has brought about.

I’m not missing the things I’m fasting from. And yes, I know Lent just began. (Note: I’m writing this on February 29.) I am not only benefiting spiritually as I seek to “take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV) but also mentally, emotionally, and physically. God is so very
gracious!

I gave this post the title “Don’t Give Up or Give In.”

Let’s not give up on the following—whether we give up something for Lent or not:

1. Regular time with the Lord.
2. Studying the Scriptures. Although there are a plethora of books, blogs, and podcasts that serve as wonderful resources, there is nothing like digging into God’s Word.
3. Seizing even brief opportunities throughout the day to focus on what He has done for us.
4. Communing with Him in prayer, whether for hours in our prayer closet or moments between tasks.
5. Truly fellowshipping with other believers. This takes time and effort that many of us don’t allot for in our crazy schedules. 

How can we overcome our tendency to give in? (Granted, what tempts me to give in may not affect you at all, but we all have our areas of weakness.)

1. I love making lists. Lately, I’ve begun to prioritize my list. Crossing off a high priority task or one that has been on my list for ages is far more satisfying than crossing off several tasks that aren’t all that important. (For some of the things I consider most important, see the list above.)
2. Don’t want to give into the tendency to procrastinate? While this will sound odd coming from me, limiting the items on our To Do list will help us achieve more. Better to accomplish more than we thought we could than to always have things left on our list at the end of the day that we wish we could have accomplished. (I may put this saying on my wall. Maybe.)
3. Tempted to throw up your hands and say, “What’s the use?” Stay focused on the task at hand. Seeking to multitask, which is a fallacy, we become less productive. Too often I flit from one thing to the next to the next when it isn’t necessary.
4. Accountability is extremely helpful. There are online groups and apps that can serve to hold us accountable. But there is always the “old-fashioned” method of pairing up with someone you know personally, sharing your goal with them, and deciding how and when you will check in with one another. 
5. Be kind to yourself. Factoring in “the cheats” can be extremely helpful. Giving up dessert for Lent? Why not allow yourself one treat on the weekend? Miss your devotional time one day? How about setting a goal of reading a brief passage and praying first thing in the morning or last thing at night three times a week? If you can do more … great! If not, you will have achieved your goal. Have more left on your To Do list at the end of the day than you were able to accomplish? See Tips 1 & 2.

Whether we give up something for Lent or not, let’s focus on what Jesus accomplished on our behalf. Let’s seek Him for the strength not to give up on those things He has called us to and not to give in to overwhelm.

Enouragement & Accountability by Carol Harrison

When I think of spurring one another on, I think of encouraging each other while building in accountability to continue to use the gifts, talents and abilities God has given us.Sometimes affirmations for my writing have come from unexpected sources and once in awhile I hear from readers about what something I have written has meant to them or how it helped them. These encourage me and make me realize that God uses the words when I am faithful to put them on paper.

Yet spurring one another on goes beyond simply hearing the positive and encouraging words. Accountability helps keep me on track. Meeting with other writers, reading Inscribe blog posts and listening to the journey of others who are further along the road than I am,  helps me learn and grow as well as gives an occasional nudge to continue to work on a project, start one I have been putting off or help me get unstuck.

Recently I had a wonderful day hanging out with my oldest daughter, Lorilee, who is also a writer. She came over to my place armed with a notebook, her daytimer and ideas for me. I brought out my notebook filled with lots of ideas which needed organizing. Those random thoughts and ideas were the tip of the iceberg. Files, both paper and computer ones lacked any rhyme or reason and caused me to waste a lot of time hunting for whatever material I needed on any given day.

She helped review my ideas, offered a few tips to collect writing into more specific files for future reference and made several to do lists in my notebook. Deadlines appeared in pencil beside tasks and a dream of a larger finished writing project became more of a possibility.

After a lunch break ad socializing gave us a chance to switch gears. Then we focused on her ideas, added manageable steps and deadlines and wrote them on her calendar. She laughed at how organized she tried to appear when it isn't her strength. We encouraged each other to not get bogged down in the plethora of ideas like the ones which flooded into my mind nor wonder if you had enough projects dreamed of like she struggled with.

We marked our calendars for a repeat performance in a month's time to build in that accountability. In this way we could spur each other on to continue reaching for and achieving our goals.

Having opportunities to walk together on this writing journey helps me live out my faith. It reminds me of the 'One Anothers' in the New Testament - those commands of how to treat each other if we are following Jesus.

One passage is Colossians 3: 12- 17 (NIV)

"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, since as members on one body you were called to peace and be thankful. Let the word of God dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts onto God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks to god the Father through him."

I know I have much to learn as I work on my writing. I am grateful for those who have encouraged and shared their knowledge and journey with me. I pray that I can also encourage others and help spur them on with love and compassion as we walk this journey of life together.

I look forward to our next mother/ daughter day of encouragement and accountability and am excited to see where her writing journey will take her.

As a speaker, published author and storyteller, Carol Harrison is passionate about mentoring people of all ages and abilities to help them find their voice and reach their fullest potential. She shares from her heart, telling stories from real life experiences and God’s Word to encourage people and help them find a glimmer of hope no matter what the circumstances. She believes we need to continuously grow in our walk with God and lives out her storytelling passion by speaking at women’s events and retreats, Bible Camps as well as school assemblies and church events. Carol is a wife, mother of four adult children and grandmother to twelve. She makes her home is Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Moving Past Failure by Susan Barclay

This month’s Inscribe writing prompt asks the following:

• Do you struggle with unfinished projects?
• How do you stay on task until your project is completed?
•  As you think of this topic, how is God prompting you to finish the unfinished?

This is about how old I was when I started (ugh).

Do I struggle? Ha! Journey with me over the last number of years I’ve been a contributor to Inscribe Writers Online and you will see that I’ve been talking about this for over FIVE years!! In fact, I mention it over TEN times in my posts over that period. Here's a sampling:

Jan 30, 2012 “As for the novel, I'm in the home stretch, and started it about eight years ago, so it's definitely time to wrap it up.”

November 30, 2013 “I've recently pulled out my unfinished novel and begun to write the pivotal, climactic scene.”  “As I push toward completion of my novel's first draft…” 
 
May 30, 2014 “my focus this year has been on the novel I started ten years ago… While I had hoped to complete the novel by the end of June, it looks like I'll have to extend my deadline to the end of the year.”

October 30, 2014 “I was hoping that this would be the year I'd finish it so I could move on to the next stage of getting it ready for publication, but a couple of major things have happened to make that improbable.”Sept 30, 2016 “As far as my writing goals go, I’m still hoping to finish my novel this year.”

Yes, I am still "working" on it.

Now for link two in the chain of questions: how do you stay on task? 

Clearly I don’t!

Totally a fight to do the right thing.

In September 2011, I talked about "bum glue" – “you must apply the seat of your pants to the seat of your chair… If you want to succeed in the call that God has placed on your heart, you must make the commitment to apply yourself daily to the task He's placed before you.” Good advice, if you follow it.

In January 2014 I wrote: “I knew where things were going to end up; I just didn't know how I was going to get there. So I wrapped [the novel] in blankets and focused on other projects, including picture books, short stories and personal experience pieces. From time to time I'd hit on an idea, pull back the covers...try out some thoughts, and put it to bed again.”

In May of that year I confessed: “I don’t work from a detailed outline and tend to go with the flow, an approach that has both its challenges and its joys.”

But enough! How is God now prompting me to finish the unfinished?

I’ve been reading David A.R. White’s book Between Heaven and Hollywood: Chasing Your God-Given Dream. In it, he devotes an entire section as to why some never succeed. In short: they give up when it is harder than they thought it would be; they are indecisive, lack confidence, or are unwilling to adapt; or, they are experiencing spiritual warfare. White (of God's Not Dead 2 fame) points out that hard times reveal who you are, and can also serve to improve or train you.

What do these thoughts from the book have to do with me finishing the unfinished? For starters, they prompt me to identify what may be holding me back: 

• Writing a novel is hard work. I'm not sure it's harder than I thought it would be, but it's certainly taking longer than I thought it would;
• I've shown a lack of decisiveness in my ability to clear out the physical clutter that gets in the way of creative juices; 
• I've shown a lack of decisiveness in my ability to commit to a structured writing schedule;
• I've failed to protect my writing time by taking phone calls and getting side-tracked by frivolous online activities.

If I take care of the latter three points, the first may take care of itself! These are changeable things - not easily perhaps as they mean breaking bad habits, initiating good ones, and working to prevent interruptions - but it can be done. 

Today I choose to move past failure, the failure to complete. I determine to put my writing time into my weekly calendar and to protect that time. I determine to clear away book and paper clutter. Now to find accountability partners to make sure I do this and stay on track. If you are in need of a partner to help you in similar ways, please contact me through the Inscribe Facebook group and let's move past failure together!
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Please visit Susan at www.susan-barclay.blogspot.ca