Enjoying Hot Water!

by Anusha Atukorala 

April was an interesting month. I’d recently been diagnosed with a heart condition that could be serious, so I was sent off for a battery of tests – expensive ones at that – a halter monitor for 2 weeks, a CAT scan, an MRI and more. What fun! Not! I was dismayed at the thought of being forced to spend two days with a zero caffeine intake! My energy levels were about one tenth of what I needed most days … and that was if I was fortunate. Other days, it went into minus figures! Help! I need my caffeine!

 

On the day of my MRI, I found a perfect drink to replace my morning cuppa. No! It wasn’t a herbal tea. I simply filled a mug with piping hot water and sipped it slowly, as if I was drinking heaven’s nectar! Believe it or not, I enjoyed it. I really did. It was no replacement for caffeine of course, but I loved my delicious zero calorie drink. And, you will be happy to note that I got through those two caffeine free days pretty well … snoozing comfortably through my MRI, since I was so sleepy. It was all good.

 

I recalled then that years ago, a friend had been appalled that then too, I had sipped hot water on occasion. I did it only because my friend drank numerous mugs of coffee when she visited – but my temperamental tum could only tolerate one cup of tea a day. So I sipped hot water just to keep her company. Iris (not her real name) had had a bad experience with a family member who did the same. This woman had been nasty. My dear friend was triggered every time I sipped hot water – perhaps she thought I must be then, according to the hot water theory, as evil as her sister in law? Oh oh!

 

Sometimes I am in Hot Water! Literally so, as I stand under a steaming hot shower and relax under its deluge – but … also … figuratively! Listen to James 1:2-4 on the subject. 

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” 

That kind of Hot water? Oh no!

I’ve in fact just been through a challenging season in ultra-hot water … where debilitating fatigue and debilitating pain impacted my creativity big time. I love composing worship songs, which helps get me into flow, and therefore is good for my well-being, but I haven’t had the energy to sit at the piano. 

My Season of adversity was hard. Way too hard! However … I have also learnt so much in the process and my character was immersed in a learning curve, like a tea bag in hot water leaking all that delicious caffeine out, due to the 100 degree heat. During my tough season, God’s presence and reality has become more real and glorious – a steady beacon of hope, joy and beauty – Jesus was my Lighthouse who shone bright on choppy seas.

 

Recently, I discovered the benefits of my Hot Water Season, after my pastor asked me to share my testimony at church of 50 years with Jesus. I loved sharing, but I had a little problem. A good one! I’d effortlessly filled 16 pages of what I wanted to share (and could have written so much more). However, the message had to be only 20 minutes long, so reluctantly, I pruned it down to 6 1/2 pages! (Clever me! Perhaps I am a good editor?) I found then, that my season of doing only a little writing was a time of research! I’ve journaled a great deal these eight years, so my computer is bulging with material. 

 

Perhaps all this hot water I’ve been dunked in, will lead to the birth of my next book? And the one after? And more? Hope springs eternal – I pray fervently that 2025 is my year of comeback with a return of good health. Today, in faith I praise my God who does all things well – and whose ways are perfect, knowing that good will come out of all the enemy threw my way. I thank God that He uses everything. yes, everything, for good as we trust in Jesus and seek His face.

 

The hotness of the water I sipped was perfect for my tummy, because warmth helps digestion. Water is good for me because hydration is vital for my wellbeing. Likewise – the hotness of my past season only heightened the precious love of Jesus and brought Him closer to me. The water I was dunked in, cleansed me from the inside out, to create a better me! It’s therefore been a wonderful season, really! And now my heart is bursting to share more of God. This little writer may just be ready to hatch from her cocoon, and to fly high, so she could sprinkle more of God’s beauty, truth and goodness around her!  

What about you, dear friend? How much hot water have you been seeped in, of late? Not too much, I hope? I trust your present season is bright and beautiful and that your creativity continues to fill our world. Let’s do what we can, knowing that with God, all things are possible and that He turns our mourning into dancing, our ashes into beauty and tough times into God-exalting stories that will enrich our world!

Anusha’s been on many interesting detours in life, as a lab technician, a computer programmer, a full time Mum, a full time volunteer, a charity director, a full time job chaser, until one golden day (or was it a dark moonless night?) God tapped her on her shoulder and called her to write for Him. She has never recovered from the joy it brought her. She loves to see others enjoying life with Jesus and does her mite to hurry the process in her world through her writing and through her life. 

The goodness of God is her theme song through each season, 

as she dances in the rain with Jesus.

 

Her first book 'Enjoying the Journey' contains 75 little God stories that will bring you closer to your Creator. Her next book ‘Dancing in the Rain’ brings you hope and comfort for life’s soggy seasons and is dear to her heart. Her third book, ‘Sharing the Journey’ is a sequel to 'Enjoying the Journey'.

 

Do drop in on her two websites to say G’day! She’d love to connect with you.

Dancing in the Rain 

Light in the Darkness 

Labels and Character Arcs by Jenny Woolsey

 

From the moment we’re born and as we grow up, society pins labels on us. The first one is usually boy or girl. After this, dependent on how we look, our personality and how we act, others are tacked on. For example, pretty, cute, naughty, active, quiet, tomboy, girlie, fat, loud etc.

Labels can be positive or negative and are often expressed as words, facial expressions, body language or behaviours. When labels are negative, they will have a dramatic impact on our self-esteem and mental health.

As well as other people’s and society’s labels, we often give ourselves labels. Some positive, others negative. Examples of negative labels may be, poor writer, not good enough to be published, stupid, hopeless Christian, incompetent parent, unlovable… The list goes on.

We label ourselves about every area of our life—our perception of being a child, a parent, a worker, a writer, a Christian and anything else we do.

• How do you see yourself?
• What type of labels do you carry?

As Christians, to not be weighed down by society’s labels, we must know how God sees us. For this, we look to the Bible and find that God sees us as his beloved children, created in his image, with inherent worth—more valuable than gold. We are precious and cherished, and fearfully and wonderfully made.

Replacing Negatives with Positives

There are times in the past when I've been negatively affected by labels, but with God's help, labels don't have to define me or you. In my book Be Weirdly Wonderful: Embrace Your Differences, I share my own story and some tools to help you lead your best life. If negative labels are affecting your self-esteem and self-confidence, bringing you down and stopping you from living your best life, you might like to try this practical activity that I mention in the book.

• Write a list of your negative labels on a piece of paper or write a letter to your younger self stating the labels. (When writing the letter, tell your younger self that those labels which were said to hurt you were lies and you’re not going to accept them anymore.) If you want to, you could also write a letter to a specific person who gave you the negative labels.
• Next is to actually burn the list or letters you write. Yes, put a match or a lighter to them or place them in a bonfire and watch the flames vaporise those labels. They’re gone. (I have done this a few times now and I have found it to be very cleansing.) If burning isn’t your thing, then you could tear them up into tiny bits and send them off in the wind or float them down a creek or out in the ocean. As a Christian, you could nail them onto a wooden cross or pin/glue them on a picture of the cross. The healing is in the process of letting the labels physically go.
• Now you’re going to replace the negative labels with positive words. To do this, take out a fresh piece of paper and list all the great things about yourself. For example, strong, funny, quirky, pretty. The Bible is full of positive labels of who God sees you as. These are some examples: I am strong and courageous, I am precious, I am God’s child, I am loved. I am forgiven. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. For this activity you could also write out bible verses that speak to you.
• Then write down the things you’re good at, how the people who love you see you and what you like about yourself. If you’re having trouble, ask trusted loved ones and friends for how they see you. And remember, the fact that you’re alive means that you’re meant to be here. You are meant to impact the world in a positive way, whether big or small.
• Last, display them in some way. You could write the positive labels on post-it notes and stick them on your mirror or around the house where you’ll constantly see them. If you like art and craft, you could draw, scrapbook, collage, decorate the page or make your new labels into a painting. You could even make a bookmark, a fridge magnet or a picture to go in a frame. This step is crucial for two reasons. One, it celebrates how wonderful you are and two, you’ll see the positive labels day after day. When you see them regularly, over time they will take root in your mind and you’re more likely to believe them.

Character Arcs and the Hero's Journey

When we give our life to Jesus, we become a new creation and the old passes away (2 Corinthians 5:17). With the help of the Holy Spirit we begin to develop the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5)—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These are all positive labels.

As time goes by, and we learn what behaviours we’re exhibiting that don’t please God, we make a concerted effort to cease these. In most Christians, particularly those who have become Christians as adults, there is a character arc—a transformation.

When we write, we want our protagonist (main character) to have a character arc too. (Our other characters can also have character arcs.)

The character arc is a measure of how a character changes over time. It can be internal or external leading to personal growth or decline.

Why do we need character arcs in our stories?

In a story, readers want to see a character fail or succeed. They want to see characters face consequences for bad deeds, or rewards for doing the right thing. And they want to see conflict —it is conflict that keeps the story growing in tension until the climax is reached.


There are different types of character arcs but the primary types are:

1) Transformational arc—character arcs that follow drastic and significant changes

2) Positive Change arc—characters evolve positively, overcoming flaws and changes

3) Negative Change arc—characters undergo a negative transformation succumbing to flaws or destructive paths

4) Flat arc—characters remain relatively unchanged, imparting stability or providing a contrast to dynamic counterparts.

Within the transformational character arc we could place the most known story structure and character arc, called the Hero’s Journey, created by Joseph Campbell.

The Hero’s Journey unfolds in 12 distinct steps, commencing with the protagonist’s ordinary world, a call to adventure, and the crossing of a threshold into the unknown. Challenges, mentors, and ordeals follow, leading to a transformative crisis. The triumphant return from this brings newfound wisdom which they bring back into their ordinary world. This story structure is seen in myths and movies such as Star Wars.

Think about a story you know well. What type of labels or traits does the protagonist have in the beginning? Then, what type of labels or traits do they exhibit at the end? Do they go from devious to honest? Do they go from murderer to saint? Are there characters in the story that have negative change or flat arcs?

Now, think about your latest piece of writing.

• What labels have you given your protagonist?

• What is their character arc? (Which of the 4 primary types is it?)

• Is there a transformation?

• How could you improve the character arc?

• Are you able to add more obstacles or incidents to make the transformation more epic?

• Are you able to give more labels or traits to the antagonist or other characters to make them more interesting?

• And finally, does your story structure help or hinder the character arc? How could you make it better?

In conclusion, labels and character arcs go hand-in-hand. Every person on Earth carries around many invisible post-it labels pinned to them. Some positive, some negative. The negative labels can affect our self-esteem and self-confidence. As Christians, we need to always remember that no matter what the world has told us, we are loved, worthy and valuable.

And finally, when we’re writing a story, always give thought to the characters’ traits and their character arcs. Our writing will be so much better when we do.

God bless.

Author Bio

Jenny Woolsey, M.Ed. (Hons), is a Christian author, speaker, potter and carer. She was born with a facial difference and lives with low vision. Jenny is an Amazon best-seller and has published eight middle grade/YA novels and a personal development book, Be Weirdly Wonderful! Embrace your Differences. Her short stories are published in 23 anthologies. Jenny volunteers in the community and mentors at the Queensland Writers Centre.

https://jennywoolsey.com

Photo Credits

Featured photo by Anna Saveleva on Unsplash; Hero's Journey diagram from Imagine Forest; book cover and author pic supplied by the author.

SUSTAINING YOUR CREATIVITY

 

STRATEGIC RESET

(REST)

Have you sometimes felt like your writing is simply just flowing out of you and then suddenly there is a blockage? Or worse: perhaps your mind has been overflowing with ideas; you have been brimming with enthusiasm and confidence, you have been on a roll, writing consistently every day, passionately intent with your craft, until one day, you don’t want to do anything even remotely creative? You can’t even lift your pen, or stylus, or turn on your computer or sit at the typewriter. Loss of your creative energy might be accompanied by anxiety, or a feeling of being overwhelmed, you may be physically and emotionally fatigued, this all might be indicative of creative or personal burnout.

Over the years in my role as a Chaplain and supporting workers in a variety of industries I have witnessed people who have been incredibly talented, gifted, and passionate in their service simply stop.

 Burnt out. 

This has been particularly so for people who have been serving in humanitarian, caring, ministry, compassionate helping roles (such as the demand on Missionaries serving in intense cross-cultural contexts) who sometimes have expectations that may be more than a person can reasonably deliver without personal consequences. For some this sadly resulted in them not being able to sustain their sense of call for the long haul. 

In supporting them and helping them recover I have learnt some valuable skills to help support longevity of service that may be helpful to sustain your creativity for the long term.

There is a tension between our living and doing and service and sacrifice and our living in a state of rest and flourishing and sustained efficacy. This is highlighted when we consider scriptures such as Paul’s call to the Romans to be “living sacrifices” (Romans 12) and in 2 Timothy 2 to when he entreats Timothy to join him in suffering as a soldier, to compete diligently like an athlete, and to work hard like a farmer. Paul seems to be reinforcing the words of Jesus about “Dying to self” (John 12:23-25).

And yet in balance to this Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30 :

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

The message version puts it this way:

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

We are finite beings, so we need to place limits on how we expend our time and energies. Even Jesus, had time to reset; he walked away from the crowds that were thronging to him to be healed in order to spend time with his Father and be refreshed, revitalized, and recharged (Luke 5:15–16).

The point is that sometimes we overextend ourselves in battles that may not be ours. We might struggle through difficult writing projects that may not be our fight to bear. We may be running ahead of or writing beyond our training and ability. We may be trying to farm and write in fields outside of seasons that would bring flourishing for ourselves and those we minister with and for.

Writers are sometimes like athletes. Sometimes we are sprint runners, like when an article we are writing has a deadline. Sometimes we are marathon runners, like when we are working on deep-dive long term stories. In both athletic disciplines runners rest after a big event.   

In military contexts it is a recognised necessity that soldiers require a regular “reset" to prepare for future battles. They restore their readiness to serve through multi-faceted processes that include repairing and replacing equipment, retraining, and most crucially addressing their well-being as soldiers and care for their families. These processes ensure that military units can perform their duties effectively in their next active service. We would do well to consider some of the wisdom in resetting ourselves too.

To sustain our creativity for the long-haul we need to learn the art of the reset. We simply need to apply some mercy for ourselves. When we are hitting those creative blockages, losing our flow, getting frustrated, flustered and fearful of no productivity ‘resetting’ is essential. We need to allow ourselves to stop, rest and be refreshed in preparation for redeployment at our peak performance.

As writers, it is impossible to make art every single day. Sometimes you have moments of “I can’t do this anymore”. Don’t force yourself to be creative when you aren’t in the right headspace or heart space. Remember, you get tired, disinterested, and burnout for a reason — you need rest.  

What are you doing to reset yourself? 

Make a list of what it would mean for you to authentically take a rest and revive.  

Here are some ideas to  help you get started resetting yourself: 

Take some well-earned naps, get into some light exercise, make time for some quiet prayer, do something else that you love that you have been putting off, cook a hearty meal and enjoy it without rushing, spend some quality time with family and friends, take a vacation, take a walk in nature, or do whatever helps you feel at peace.

Take time to talk to someone you trust who will help you to reset yourself by helping you stay true to your reset plans and journeying with you in gentle accountability and encouragement.   

Ultimately, we need a constant reminder to come back to our essentials in Jesus: a rest for our souls, burdens that won’t break us, and learning His rhythms of Grace (Matthew 11:28-30).   

We want you here for the long run.

 I think Jesus does too.

Shalom.

How to Support an Author Without Paying a Cent

 

Some Christian authors in Australia are selling tons of books and are able to write full-time for a living. BUT NEWSFLASH! Most of us aren't. In fact, a lot of Christian authors in Australia only sell a few hundred copies of their book or less. 

If you're traditionally published, you would typically get about 10% of the royalties, though contracts do of course vary. So if your book retails for $20, you might get $2 per book. You don't have to be a maths genius to work out that you need to sell a lot to make much. 

And in case you think the publisher is 'sitting pretty' on all the profits, they are only getting a small percentage as well because they're the ones who've paid for all of the editing, cover design, layout, distribution and so on. They have to sell a lot of copies to recoup their costs before they even start earning anything on your book. 

If you've indie-published, you get to keep the profits. YAY! But you may have spent thousands to produce the book in the first place, so you also have to sell a lot to get back the money you've invested. 

This might sound grim, but it's not all about money. Presumably, you've written your book because you feel God has given you a message that He wants you to share. However, that's difficult if it's not actually getting into the hands of readers.

The most obvious thing you can do to support an author is to buy their book. However, there is a cost-of-living crisis in Australia at the moment and a lot of people simply can't afford to buy extras such as books. But never fear! There are a number of ways you can support an author and help raise the profile of their books without spending a cent.

Order Books For Your Library

As part of the Australian Lending Right Schemes, eligible authors can receive some compensation when their books are being borrowed from libraries. However, their book has to make it into the library first, and that's where you come in. Libraries have budgets for new books and they are looking for suggestions, so why not request some? 

Check with your library first, as they would have a system in place for doing that. For example, my local library has an online form you can fill out for requests and they allow you to have three requests in at a time. They won't always purchase a book you request because it has to meet certain criteria and be something they think other readers would also like. Sometimes, they will get an inter-library loan for you instead of purchasing the book. However, you never know until you ask. I've successfully requested dozens of books for my local library over the years. Why not give it a try?

Once the book is in the library, other readers can discover it and read it. If they like it, they might request more books from that author or purchase books from that author. Win-win!

And if you've finished reading a book you own, think about donating it to your church library or a local neighbourhood library or street library. You never know who might be touched by it.

Write a Review

Consider writing reviews of the books you read and put them on sites such as Goodreads, Koorong, and Amazon. Reviews can help to increase the visibility of books on those sites so that readers can find books they might like. Remember these types of reviews are for readers. You don't need special qualifications. Just say what you liked or didn't like about the book. A review can be any length, but you can do a really good one in just four sentences:

• First sentence - What is the genre or what is the book about?
• Second sentence - What specifically did you like?
• Third sentence - Was there anything you didn't like or that didn't grab you?
• Fourth sentence - Something positive to end on, such as your overall impression or your suggestion regarding the type of person who might like this book.

Did you know that if you put a review on the Koorong site, you get points towards their reward scheme? So for every dollar you spend and every review you submit, you accumulate points towards a voucher. I think it's only available for Australian citizens, so check the details. Also, check the guidelines for the particular sites you use. Amazon has quite a strict set of guidelines and you have to have spent a certain amount in the last year to be eligible to review an item. Goodreads is often a good place to start as it's very reader friendly. 

If you want to write a review for every book you've ever read, then go for it. However, most of us have limits to our time and energy. Think of the books you've read recently, and maybe start by writing a review for someone who doesn't have many other reviews or ratings on the site. The author who already has 2000 reviews really doesn't need you to write another one for them. The person who only has two reviews could really use your help. Unless of course you hate their book and your poor rating will negatively impact their overall ranking. This can create a conundrum. There may be something about the book that you want to warn others about. However, if it's just not your cup of tea, maybe think about whether you really need to put that review up. There's nothing wrong with constructive criticism. In fact, it can even give more credence to your review. However, don't nitpick either.

It goes without saying that your review should be your own honest opinions. I've made a decision not to put up a negative review for authors I know personally. If I can't honestly give their book at least four stars, I don't review it at all. But everyone has to make their own decision about this. Don't give a five-star review if you didn't like the book, or worse if you haven't even read it. If you think people wouldn't do that, I saw a five-star review once in which the reviewer said something like, 'I haven't read this book yet, but I know I'll love it.' Please don't do that.

For any of the sites, you would need to include a disclaimer if you have received a book for free. For example, 'I received an advanced reader copy from the publisher for the purposes of review, but these opinions are my own'. Sites like Amazon don't allow you to review a book if you've had anything to do with its production (e.g., publisher or editor), but check specific guidelines.

I hope I haven't made this sound too complicated. The main thing to know is that reviews help, especially if the author doesn't have many of them. Your review doesn't need to be long, but be specific and honest, and maybe pick up some bonus points from Koorong in the process.

Engage with Social Media

We live in the age of social media--Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), Threads, Goodreads, TikTok, YouTube and no doubt many more that people my age have never heard of. I don't claim to be an expert on social media, but I do know there are these mysterious things called algorithms that determine who sees your posts. You might have 500 friends on Facebook, but your post will only appear towards the top of the newsfeed for some of them. If you have an author business page, it can be even worse, especially if you post an external link to a blog post, event or newsletter; or if you use any key words like 'giveaway', 'sale', 'competition', 'book launch', and so on. 

The algorithms seem to have tightened up over the last few years. I understand that social media platforms are not charities and that it costs them money to keep them going. But it can be tough if you're a struggling author and just want to let people know that you have a new blog post out.

I don't pretend to understand how all of these algorithms work, but one thing all of these platforms want is engagement. Once people start liking your posts, commenting on them or sharing them, then more people will end up seeing them. So you can help an author by doing all of those things. Not only does it increase the likelihood of their post being seen, but it's also encouraging. I'm sure many of us can think of times when we've put a lot of effort into a blog post, but no one comments. Those little bits of encouragement can help us to keep going when the going gets tough. 

Sign Up for Author Newletters

As the algorithms on social media have gotten tighter, author newsletters have become more important. For many authors, it's the main way they can let their readers know about their books, upcoming events, giveaways and so on.

This is a tricky one, because most of us get more emails than we can handle and we don't want more 'spam' to add to the mix. I must admit that I've sometimes subscribed to a newsletter and later unsubscribed because it was coming too frequently or it didn't contain anything of real interest to me. However, if authors give their readers something of value rather than just always urging them to 'buy my book', readers will want to subscribe and read their news. 

Try signing up for some newsletters of authors you like. If they pose a question to readers, spend a minute to respond. If you like something they said, tell them. If they've got a link to their latest blog, read it and leave a comment on the blog site. Some of these things only take a minute or two, but they can mean a lot to an author.

Pray

Sometimes authors will put prayer requests on social media or in their newsletters, and we can join them in their prayers. However, we could also get into the habit of praying more for each other. (I'm writing this to myself too, as I often forget to pray for fellow authors.) We can pray for the books or other manuscripts they're currently writing, we can pray for upcoming events, we can pray about personal issues that are affecting their ability to write, and we can engage in spiritual warfare on their behalf. The enemy is not going to be pleased if any of us are writing Christian books that can impact others, so we can expect attack. However, praise God that He is stronger and His Word will prevail. I felt like I was under attack in the days leading up to my latest book launch, and it meant a lot to know that the members of my home group were praying for me. Everything went smoothly, thanks to God. Let's not neglect the importance of praying for each other.

Caveats

Are you feeling overwhelmed by all of these ideas? The good news is that you don't have to do them all. In fact, that would be impossible. We all have things that we need to do each day and social media can be a big time waster. However, it also has its advantages. It doesn't take long to 'like' someone's social media post, write a comment on their blog post, or answer a question they've asked in their newsletter.

There's also the 'do unto others' principle. If you're an author and you want people to write reviews of your books, comment on your posts or sign up for your newsletter, you need to be willing to do the same for others. I've written a previous post on that topic and you can read it here. We're all part of the Christian writing community and we operate best when the whole body is functioning well and supporting each other.

So what about you? Are there any of these things you could do right now? Are there a couple of these things you could do sometime this week? If we're intentional, we're more likely to do it, so let's support each other as part of God's team.

Have you already tried some of these things or do you have other suggestions? I'd love to hear your responses.

Author Bio

Nola Lorraine loves weaving words of courage and hope. Her inspirational historical novel 'Scattered' was shortlisted for the 2021 CALEB Awards. Her second book 'Comfort Zone: A 40-Day Devotional on the Father of All Comfort' was published by Armour Books in March 2025. She would love to connect with you through social media and her newsletter. For more information, see her website at www.nolalorraine.com.au

Photo Credits

Featured photo was taken at the launch of the anthology 'Symphony of Grace' edited by Anne Hamilton and Ruth Bonetti. The photo shows 17 of the 22 authors. Nola Lorraine author photo by Wayne Logan at Encouraging Photos. All other photos from Pixabay. Library by naobim, woman typing by jane13b, social media by AzamKamalov, newletter by LadyBB, and prayer by doungtepro.

Power of Committment by Jo Wanmer

It's a long time ago. Fifty-four years today. Yet I still remember. More the emotions than the event, for it was an emotional day.

No longer a Miss. Now a Mrs. I was young though I thought I was old and mature. So young my understanding of marriage was simple. I would have a husband to help me live my life and our lives would be like Mum and Dad’s. He expected his life to be like his parents with me adding adventure. He was an introverted introvert. I was a loud extrovert. What were we thinking? Did we even think?

Within a few days several things became obvious. He was and still is an owl. Meanwhile my eyes opened before the sun, my body wanting to rush to the beach to watch the sunrise. He countered my idea with an offer of sunset.

He loved rest and reading. I craved action and adventure. Yes, we were and still are exact opposites. On day two he reached the conclusion that we’d made a mistake.  When he tentatively expressed that opinion, I turned on him, furious. ‘Don’t you ever say that again!’

You see in that era, marriage was forever. I guess fifty-four years later we can say we are well on the way to achieving that goal.

 Do I wish I’d done it differently? Yes. In lots of areas but to make mistakes isn’t a reason to quit. Do I wish we’d given up? Not for a moment.

 A partnership of opposites develops character, if we allow it, if  we are committed, and we were. Before God, we had promised each other. And so, adjustments began. Compromises, often painful, were necessary. Through them we developed an understanding of each other. And an understanding of ourselves.

He became less introverted. I quietened and learned to listen. In time we realised, we complemented each other. We learned to respect each other's differences. He stopped many of my hair-brained ideas. I pushed him to new adventures. He kept me steady. I stopped him always doing everything the same. After about twenty years we really started to appreciate each other. Now the privilege of a life-long partner is a deep richness that few experience.

I began writing because he gives me space and encourages me. He excels as a coach because I believe in him, even in the early days when there was very little income. And our lives are full of joint memories, some very good, some very bad and many very ordinary. But we share every memory.

Today we mark our fifty-fourth anniversary. We will celebrate in a low-key manner. That’s our way. And we will thank our Lord for His faithfulness, His leading, His presence and the amazing miracle of a long life together.

What does this have to do with writing? 

Commitment. 

About fifteen years ago my husband pushed me into making a dream chart. A series of pictures that represented my goals. One of those pictures had a mock-up of a shelf of books with my name as the author. It was crazy. My only writing at the time was recording feelings in a journal and two sixteeen page booklets written for my grandchildren. 

The visual setting of a goal fired something in me. Ten books became the aim.

The commitment I embarked upon with ‘Writing’ was not an easy journey. Sometimes years flew past when I didn’t communicate with ‘Writing’ even though my first book, Though the Bud be Bruised, was published. You see, we often disagreed. ‘Writing’ can be very legalistic, inflexible, demanding. I just want to tell a story, uninterested in grammar, structure, or position of the comma. Under the seemingly never-ending demands of correct/good writing, I would often quit.

But my commitment would stir me up again and I’d write a short story or blog or even a book. ‘Writing’ and I would then have another disagreement. Discouraged I’d close the creative stream again.

The problem is always the same. I want to just bang out a story. ‘Writing’ always pushes and pulls to fix errors, to enhance characters, to improve the story with better structure.

With a lot of help from a committed friend, fellow wordsmiths, and influence of Holy Spirit I began to appreciate the finer points of ‘Writing’.  My words need to be clear and follow good writing principles to enable my reader to become immersed in the story.

We respect each other now. Without my creative input helped by Holy Spirit
no manuscript would emerge. Without my partner, ‘Writing,’ the words would be too clumsy to read. Without a dream, a commitment, we wouldn’t have formed this relationship and there would be no books. I’m thankful for both ‘Writing’ and that initial push, because I love what we are producing together.

What about you? How has a dream, a commitment, or covenant empowered you?

Jo Wanmer's passion is Jesus and family. Her writing has emerged from her experiences in these areas. The bookshelf above holds books where her stories have been published. We are still pushing to have 'Jo Wanmer' on ten spines. There are three other mini books and El Roi will be published later this year. Two more in the editing phase, but she's itching to sit down with Holy Spirit and create another adventure. Her latest book El Shaddai is getting great responses from readers. It's a book about the character, El Shaddai, and He is unexpected and amazing. If you'd like to read it you can contact her throughFaceBook and get a copy in your hands. 

Think big: promotion and connection

by Claire Belberg

I love writing – poetry, short stories, devotionals, essays, articles. What I don’t enjoy is having to market my own work and myself as an author.

My first novel was published in 2017. I had read a lot of advice about getting my work known but I could not see myself spending that much time doing promotional work (and learning how to use all the platforms). The very thought sickened me. ‘Why can’t I just do what I’m good at and have someone who’s good at marketing do that for me?’ I moaned. God heard my groans and we came to an agreement – He would open the doors and I would walk through.

With each book, I find that the overwhelming has become a little easier, a bit less gut-twisting for me. With my latest book, Unravelling: loving my parents through dementia, marketing has been more natural because the focus of this nonfiction book is something relevant to a lot of people. It’s easier to talk about a story based on my own life because there’s a natural flow from experience to book.

Part of my stress has been using the number of book sales as a marker of success. Try as I might, I can’t seem to get much attention for my work. Several times over the years I have considered aiming lower – an article here or there, just publishing for the family, etc. Each time, God made it clear that His plans were bigger than I was seeing. Recently I have recognised that my measure of success is faulty. ‘Bigger’ doesn’t have to mean more outlets, more sales, more speaking opportunities. With my current book, it means meeting people where they’re at, one person at a time. Most of my book sales are because I spoke personally to someone, sharing our common experience. 

God and I still work by our original arrangement – that He will provide opportunities and I will take up each one. I get to do some cool things, and I’m becoming more confident to try new approaches. My most recent example was being invited to run a poetry workshop at a dementia retreat, encouraging carers to express their strong feelings without hurting anyone. I love the fact that when I tell my story to a group, there is always someone who wants to share theirs too, having identified with mine. That person-to-person connection makes the book richer for them, and does a deeper work of ‘companionship for the journey’ (the book’s goal) than merely buying it online. Don’t get me wrong – all those other sales methods are great when they get someone’s attention – but the personal touch feels truer to who I am, and brings a sense of connection to me and the buyer.

I’m still hopeful of more sales because my little book is able to touch hurting people who often feel alone in their dementia care role. But if person-to-person remains the primary promotional method, that’s okay by me.

(Image credit: AI generated by Imagineers Studio via Canva)

Claire Bell writes poetry, short stories, creative nonfiction and novels for mainstream audiences under the pen name of Claire Belberg. She is based in the Adelaide hills where she lives with her husband. She loves birds and is grateful to have access to large green spaces which refresh her sense of wonder. Her latest book is Unravelling: loving my parents through dementia, a memoir in poetry of recent challenging years, written as a companion for others on a similar journey. You can contact her on bellwriting@gmail.com, visit her Facebook author page (Claire Belberg author) and her unintentionally sporadic blog, The Character Forge (clairebelberg.wordpress.com).

Using Our Writing to Share God's Comfort

 

Many years ago, I did an 'Introduction to Biblical Counselling' course with Youth With a Mission (YWAM). The key verses for the course were 2 Corinthians 1:3–4. 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. (NIV)

Notice how it says that God comforts us in all our troubles, but it doesn't stop there. We're then meant to take the comfort we've received and pass it on to others so that they too can know the Father of All Comfort. 

In that counselling course, we spent the first five weeks working on some of our own issues and receiving ministry. The next seven weeks were spent learning some basic counselling skills. 

Then we went on a two-month outreach to New Zealand, where we had the opportunity to apply what we'd learned.

We ran workshops at various churches, YWAM bases and a Christian healing centre; and participants also had the opportunity to make counselling appointments with team members. 

Even though we were still working through some issues ourselves, it was wonderful to be able to share with others what God had been doing in our lives.

There are many ways of passing God's blessings on to others. It could be through counselling, teaching, prayer ministry, hospitality, mercy ministries and a variety of other ways depending on the gifts and talents God has given us. However, writers are in a unique position to offer something of value.

It's probably safe to say that if you're reading this post, you've been through some difficult circumstances or challenges at some point in your life. 

Some people may have gone through major life upheavals, even tragedies. For others, it might be the day-to-day challenges that pop up along the way. 

But no matter what you've experienced, there will be people who need to hear how God has helped you along the way. 

Does that mean you have to have completely overcome all of your obstacles and have it all together before you can help anyone else? I think you can predict that my answer will be 'No'. We're all on a journey that isn't finished this side of heaven. If God has provided you with some comfort and encouragement, then you can share that with others, even if you're just a little bit ahead of them on the road.

And sharing God's message of comfort and encouragement isn't just something relegated to true stories, memoir, devotionals or teaching materials. If you write novels or short fiction, you can have one or more of your characters working through different issues and learning to trust God in the hard times as well as the good. If you write poetry, you can prompt people to think of questions and perspectives they may not have thought of before. While some of us might write specifically for the Christian market, some of these ideas can be addressed in any form of writing that is based on a Christian worldview. 

In a world where many are losing hope, we have a message of hope to share. Let's take the comfort we've received from God, and turn it into words and actions that will help heal a hurting world.

Author Bio

Nola Lorraine loves weaving words of courage and hope. Her new book 'Comfort Zone' is a 40-day devotional on the Father of All Comfort. It is published by Armour Books and is currently available on Koorong and Amazon. She would love to connect with you through her author website at www.nolalorraine.com.au 

Photo Credits

Featured photo by Ben White on Unsplash, Rock climbing by Cocoparisienne on Pixabay,  Author photo by Wayne Logan from Encouraging Photos, other photos from the author's collection.