Ecclesiastes 3 reminded me this morning that
there is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven
a time to write and a time to edit
a time to rewrite and a time to wait
a time to study and a time to stop
a time to be patient and a time to be published
there are new beginnings and surprise endings
what does the writer gain from this toil?
i have seen the burden that God lays on those to share a message of hope
God has made everything beautiful in his time
he has also set eternity in our hearts yet we cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end
i know there is nothing better for us than to be happy and do good
to write well while we live
so that we may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all our toil
this is the gift from God
i know that everything God does will endure forever
nothing can be added to it or taken from it
God does this so that we will revere him
whatever is has already been and what will be has been before and God will call the past into account
yes
there is a time to weep and a time to laugh
a time to mourn and a time to dance
a time to scatter and a time to gather
a time to search
a time to give up
a time to keep and
a time to “kill the little darlings”
i read the new ending of my novel to my husband the other night and cried
they were good tears
i was happy and wanted to read the entire manuscript to him because i felt the flow
finally
those were the hardest words
to hear
“i was expecting it to flow better”
i was rejected
i’m dramatic
the manuscript was but for a former dancer
those words stung me to my dancer core
and they were the best gift i could have received
from first draft to final i can see now what i could not see at the beginning
there was terrain i needed to travel
the deeper roads leading where i resisted going and needed a push in order to recognize things i didn’t yet know but had to learn
from the outside it might have looked as if my life were diminishing while inside
over time
i can see the seeds of new life that were being sown
it’s here in this place
where i’m writing and satisfied that i find i have the most to offer
neither my contentment nor my worth depend on my achievements
after a lifetime spent where it did that is freeing
i imagine one day laying eyes on all the stories
prose and poetry never published but were written with eternity in mind
what a day that will be!
i’m so glad we’re in this together
___________
Photo: with gratitude to Jelezniac Bianca and Unsplash
Indeed
I can really appreciate what you have stated, Deb. I’m stuck on “Framework Series – Through the Maze of Evangelical Christianity – Healings and Miracles – Part Two” and I am not moving forward until it is right. It has to be more than words. Sometimes it flows and sometimes it just stops and that is where the waiting comes in, because it is more than just words. You go girl! Blessings!
You too, Bruce. The waiting times are so tough but when we can draw so close and let everything fall away that we no longer need. And clean out some closets or spice shelves. (Why in the world do I have two and three jars of so many spices!!!) Heavens! (As my mom used to say)😄❤️🌻 Keep going, Bruce. Your words are eternal.
Thanks for reading Mark. ✍️🙏🦋
This is beautiful, Deb. It takes me back to my first novel and getting some feedback I did not want! I had to put it away until I was in a better frame of mind, and like you, I rewrote the ending. Now that I think of it, that happened with all three of them at one point or another. My latest book has been on the back burner for years now. Maybe it’s “a time to get it out, a time to dust it off …” 😏😉
Let us know when your book is out! (Congratulations! 🥂)
Dust it off, Annie!!! God knows what He’s doing. I can’t wait to add your 4th to my bookshelf!
❤️❤️❤️❤️
Hi, lady!
You known,
Everything belongs to the Almighty!
Evil serves Good.
But only Good, His KING and LORD, His people will inherit the Kingdom.
It is my hope to be among them in that sea of souls!
“The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.
The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.
And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commands: for this is the whole duty of man.
For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. ”
Ecclesiastes 12:10-14
Congratulations, Deb, on your work, exercise of faith, and delivery!!
👏👏👏
Amen, Carlos. So timely. Thank you. 🙏✍️💛
be honest! ever
Carlos, I just found this message from over a month ago that I thought I’d responded to. I’ve been finding a few glitches with that lately. So sorry. Thank you always for your kind words and wonderful support. Now I get to say Merry Christmas to you too!!!🙋🏻🎄❤️
Thank you, lady!