The Five Ps of Writing With Purpose

by | Nov 22, 2009 | Fiction Book Reviews | 4 comments

Prayer & Praise

As Christians and authors, God has placed a special calling on our lives. But more than writing stories that glorify him, He’s changed our hearts so we have an eternal hope. We were not left in our sins to suffer the consequences of the Fall for eternity, our hearts have been transformed by His grace – so – we can praise Him.

1 Peter 1:3-4

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you…”

Now, knowing that God is our Father, and Jesus has rescued us for a present comfort and future glory, we can get our minds in the right place by reminding ourselves that we are loved, and that He directs the course of our lives.

Prayer is faith in action. We realize we don’t have all the answers and we turn to the One who does. Our act of praying, shows our recognition of our own humanity and acceptance of his Divinity.

Before writing, after writing, and anywhere in between, prayer & praise keeps our purpose in perspective and the eternal significance of our place in God’s plan.

 When things go right or wrong in our writing life (or any part of our lives), Prayer & Praise helps move us into #2 

Positive Perspective

In the writing world, publication make take months or years to happen. All your hard work and long hours may never be realized – and so we can feel discouraged, but when all these things start to bring us down, we have to remember our purpose.

 We were made for God’s glory. 

To keep a positive perspective, Philippians 4: 8-9 gives us thought submission guidelines

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”

This doesn’t mean we ignore our hurts and disappointments, but we take the proper perspective in the middle of those disappointments. God is in control, he’s given us a calling, and He’ll provide the talents and energy to fulfill the call.

When thoughts that do not meet the above guidelines try to sneak into our mind, it’s important to give them an immediate rejection, and turn to the truth of God’s word. God has a plan for us – and he will complete the plan.

So we move into the next P

Perseverance

 My Granny has a saying – “When life gets tough, pray…and do the next thing.” Which means we never give up, we forge ahead along this path on which God has set us. Each rejection, each critique, help us to refine our skill and continue to reevaluate how we can best glorify God.

Is this easy? Nope – but the process changes us to refine our skills and our perspectives.

Hebrews 10:35-37

“So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while,
   “He who is coming will come and will not delay.
    But my righteous one will live by faith.  

 Along with the perseverance comes 

Patience 

We wait for the time when our ‘call’ comes. Of course, we’ve already received the call to be writers, but it might be a long journey to the CALL for publication. Patience may not be easy, but if we mix the first 3 with the last one, patience isn’t as inconceivable. It’s part of the process of writing and is a requirement for publication…and living 🙂

Colossians 1: 10-12

And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.”

Finally and one of the best of the five, are…

PALS

Romans 1: 11-12

“I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.”

God sends encouragers our way, people who help us to persevere, who wait with us through the tough times, who pray and praise with us and give us the positive perspective we need, when we’re only seeing the glass as half-empty. Our Pals can be fellow writers, family, friends, or even a judge from a contest – but they’re out there, and they are all part of God’s big design to keep us on the write path.

 God is good, faithful, and ever so gracious to give us the tools – and the people- we need to finish the story He’s written for our lives. From page one, He’s planned the chapters, and though conflict is rife, He’ll see us to our happy ending.

4 Comments

  1. Audra

    Great reminder to keep life in perspective, Pepper! Your words quiet the soul : )

    Reply
    • pepperbasham

      Oh Audra, how sweet of you to visit. This has been a ministry to me – just posting it 🙂
      I’m going into a little more detail with each one on my blog and breaking it up over a few days, but God’s word is usually a calming balm, isn’t it?

      Pepper
      http://pepperbasham.blogspot.com

      Reply
  2. Rocky Kuznik

    I just came across your biblical interpretation and it’s application when comes to writing. The verses seem to lend strength and support,even to a secular writer as myself. I understand God’s grace but as a human I lose it’s meaning most of the time. Thanx for your words of encouragement Rocky Kuznik “The Never Pals”

    Reply
    • pepperbasham

      Rocky,
      I’m so glad you could find encouragement here. As writers, as fallible humans, we all need encouragement, don’t we? May the Lord bless your writing.

      Pepper

      Reply

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