In this post, we hope to provide some words of encouragement for writers. Writing can sometimes feel like a lonely endeavor. Being part of a writing community like Christian Book Academy can go a long way in alleviating some of this loneliness but we’ll still have to face down our writing demons. Encouragement for writers is something we want to constantly share as you continue on your writing journey.
Encouragement for Writers
A “lion” and a Lion
There are lots of writers in the world but the Kingdom writer is one who desires to leave an eternal mark with the words they write. Because of this, we will have a target on our backs. There’s a spiritual enemy who wants to paralyze us and prevent our writing from reaching its full potential.
“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” – 1 Peter 5:8 (NLT)
This ‘great enemy’ looks to devour Kingdom writers and derail them from making an eternal impact. There are people around the world who need the words God inspires through your writing and the devil knows it.
But here’s some encouragement for writers,
“But one of the twenty-four elders said to me, “Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne has won the victory…” – Revelation 5:5a (NLT)
This isn’t just another toothless, roaring lion. This is THE Lion, otherwise known as Jesus! As Kingdom writers who seek to glorify Jesus, we have the opportunity to write from a position of victory.
By the way, those words in Revelation were given to a fellow Kingdom writer named John who just happened to write 20% of the New Testament that you and I have in our hands today.
Resistance Will Come
Author Donald Miller says that he faces resistance almost every time he sits down to write. When he came to recognize this insidious temptation to do anything but write, in his own words, he started “calling BS on resistance.”
In other words, he wasn’t going to allow this feeling of resistance to win the writing battle. He simply acknowledges the very real feeling and then moves forward with his writing session.
This realization for a prolific writer like Miller is encouragement for writers like you and I.
When we humbly call BS on resistance, we aren’t denying it’s there. Instead, we can say, “I see you and understand that you’d like me to do something else, but that’s not going to happen. I choose to put my butt in this chair and write words that glorify God.”
We can actually turn the tables on the enemy who resists our writing goals,
“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” – James 4:7 (NLT)
Resist the resistance! Those are words of encouragement for writers. God has too much to do through you and I.
Progress is Success
Our friend and author Andrew Arndt recently tweeted these words of encouragement for writers,
“Sometimes writing is writing. Sometimes writing is editing. Sometimes writing is reading. Sometimes writing is just sitting and thinking. That’s a way of saying: Don’t judge a writing session by how much writing you did. It’s all useful. And none of it is wasted. Just keep at it.”
Isn’t that liberating?
Forward progress in our writing journey is going to look different from day to day. The person who hikes the Appalachian Trail (roughly 2,190 miles) may go thirty miles one day while going ten miles the next day. Either way, they’ve made progress.
In the same way, like Andrew said in his tweet, we can’t simply judge a writing session by how many words we wrote. Each session will have its own unique flavor.
I love these words that Paul wrote to his young protégé Timothy,
“Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.” – 1 Timothy 4:13-15 (NIV, emphasis mine)
If writing is a primary gift you and I have been given, we also need to “be diligent in these matters and give ourselves wholly to them.” We give ourselves to writing, editing, reading, sitting and thinking. May I also add praying? It’s all progress in the pursuit of Kingdom writing.
Please feel free to share your words of encouragement for writers in the comments below! We can never have too much encouragement for writers.
Resources for Encouraging Writers
- Furthermore, you can get more encouragement on Christian Book Academy. It’s an online membership where you can ask questions, get feedback, and receive prayer so that you can overcome the resistance and spiritual battles you face as a writer. We invite you to join our community of Kingdom writers here.
- Hitz Blitz Private Podcast: Wisdom for Writers is where you can get coaching from Shelley’s experience in writing books. You can subscribe for free here.
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