Isaiah 48:10
See, I have refined you, though not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.
For the past few days I have been dancing around my latest WIP (Work In Progress) and despite my effort and intentions to get the creative juices flowing, that side of me hides in another dimension. Maybe a trip to Narnia would help.
If I really think about it, the reasons could be as simple as the stresses of life. My husband and I are currently working through the process to get our permanent residency in Canda, COVID has made our Summer plans fall through, and our dear car has decided to show its age, to mention a few. Life feels a bit like we are being refined by fire. At time the fire feels too hot, at times the fires is only an ember burning underneath the weight of our worries. It's at those times that we need the fire of affliction to be replaced with the fire of our faith. I have heard many writers say that writer's block is a mindset that it can be overcome by simply taking the first step: sit down and write something. It's not always that easy, but sometimes all it takes is something that speaks to the heart of you, something that thaws the coldness of your worries and reignites the fire of your faith. In the short two years I have been an author, I have often found that my faith is closely linked to my ability to write. When my heart is open and soft, the words flow like water over my keyboard, but when I am inundated by the flood of worry, I stutter and start and battle to put anything down on paper.
For me, writer's block is often a check in with how my relationship with God is going and how my faith it holding up. If my faith is strong, affliction is a challenge, but when it is not, then my problems overcome my emotional and mental peace and destroy my ability to write. This may not be the case for everyone, but I know it's true in my own life.
These are the times I put down the pencil, walk away from the computer and pick up the only book that can calm the storm. I open those old, hallowed pages and find my peace once again. Because the only one who can calm the storm is the one who is over all and in all and alway with me, Jesus my saviour.
What storm do you find yourself in today? Do you perhaps need a check in too?