Keeping On

September 26, 2022

Writers have different paces. I remember reading an interview with writer Stephen King a few years back, in which he said he starts writing mid-morning and doesn’t consider his day done until he’s completed fifteen hundred words.

When I was a full-time pastor I averaged writing less than four hours per month. I completed a forty-thousand-word book in a year. I think I’ll be able to publish more than that now.

Surprisingly, retirement is not a sudden flood of free time! I suddenly have time to work on all those little chores I put off before. There are countless things to do inside and outside the home that I ignored or put off while I was pastoring. They’ve rushed to the forefront now. I cannot avoid them.

I write when I can, and presently I have no set writing schedule (except my half hour on Saturday mornings at Morning by Morning Coffee). Can I still expect to produce any books?

When I’m not seated in front of the computer, God continues to drop hints of what is next in the novel I’m writing. God is faithful to smooth my path. While I’m reading my Bible, or taking my walk for exercise, or sometimes in the middle of the night, plot lines fall into place or character interactions become untangled. I’m sure that’s how my paltry time at writing while pastoring was still enough to produce a yearly novel. When I sit down to write, the words come relatively easily.

God called me to write. He didn’t promise acclaim or financial gain. My part is to be faithful.

We already know God will be faithful to us!

“He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.” Philippians 1:6.