What does a writer do when he doesn't feel like writing? He writes, of course. I can't recall the number of times I have set out to put words together in some informative or otherwise meaningful manner--whether for school or for leisure--yet have found myself without words, concepts, nor desire to write. It is a common condition known as "writer's block."
It seems that the writer's worst enemy is a blank page. Unless the writer comes to the page with a distinct idea in mind, there is every chance that no idea will be forth coming. And so I find myself sitting in front of the computer for minutes on end trying to think of something...anything to write.
They say that the best solution for writer's block is to simply put words on the page. It doesn't have to be the beginning. It doesn't have to even be words that will be included in the final draft. The key is to break the illusion of the blank page and to prime the creative pump with some form of cognitive juices. for this reason I have written numerous papers starting from the middle. I even had an early phase in my blogging where I began several of my posts with absolutely ridiculous and unrelated stories. I enjoyed the nonsense so much that they usually survived the final edit.
The key to moving forward in writing when nothing comes readily to mind is to simply write. Throw words out. Do something!
I find the same can be true of life. Many of us find ourselves in situations where we think we should be doing something, and we want to do something, but we don't know what we are supposed to do? How many people actually know what they want to do as soon as they graduate high school. Some even make it through college and still have no clue what comes next. People have lost their jobs only to lose their sense of direction in life. Other situations might not be as dire, yet are still directionaly frustrating. What church should I attend? How should I help others in my community? What does God want me to do right now?!
James tells us that he who knows what to do and doesn't do it, to him it is sin. But what are we supposed to do when we don't know what to do? I don't know. Those are the moments in life where all I can say is the following.
How is my relationship with God? Am I seeking him? Am I following him? Am I spending time in prayer with him and in his word? Do I find myself turning to him or to myself in the situations of my day? What fruit is my life producing? Do I live as though my life comes from him? I'm not looking for perfection in my life, but I am looking for evidence of connection to his life.
If I'm not connected, that is the first thing I need to address. I then know what I need to be doing. If I am connected, I look at the opportunities God has placed around me. Most of us want to know what to do with the big picture of our lives, but much of the time the important things happen in the little pictures of our lives. God has a lot to tell us in his word about how we are to live with and care for our family, our neighbors, our friends, and even our enemies. When I look at the relationships--good or bad--that God has surrounded me with, I can know what I am supposed to be doing. Life is full of opportunities and choices. Some of them are not as grey as we would like to think.
After considering those things I then ponder this: If my delight is in the Lord, what desires has he placed on my heart that match his heart? I can remember thinking as a kid that I could never say that I was never going to become a missionary, because then God would make me a missionary. As if God's great desire was to make us miserable and watch us squirm as we reluctantly, but submissively obey him. I guess the last laugh is on me because instead I kept saying that I would never become a teacher.
Over the years, however, I have come to realize that God can and does actually put desires in us that he wants us to go for. I was stuck for so long on the idea of NOT doing what I wanted to do because that would be selfish. Come to find out some of those wants are built into us by God. So what do I want to do? And does it line up with what God says he is about?
Beyond that, there are so many decisions in life that are not "yes" or "no," but are "yes" and "yes." When Robert Frost told us that the road he took made all the difference he didn't say he took the better road. He said it was less traveled, though it really looked about the same. He said he took one and it made a difference. Every choice will bring you to a different destination, but that doesn't make it better or worse. Yes, there are some roads God does not want us to take, and some that he most definitely does. But there are plenty of times when we come to a fork in the road and God just wants us to take it. Do something! If you are connected to him and following his word and his voice, he can use any combination of decisions that you make to accomplish great things. But if you're just standing still, staring at a blank piece of paper, and waiting for some divine revelation to dictate what you should have for breakfast to start your day, you won't get anywhere.
The best part comes when we live our lives connected to God and just doing things as they come, and then it happens. God finally gives us a clear direction. It doesn't minimize the importance of the work we do and the way we live every other day, but it is rather exciting. Don't wait for that moment though. Live today. Put some words on the page.
See? Look at all those words I just wrote. Just do something!
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