Know-Love-Obey God

High Calling Blogs Book Club:
The Right to Write:
An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life,
by Julia Cameron
On May 17, visit High Calling Blogs where Laura Boggess leads our discussion (and links to other posts).

**********

I remember watching Laura hold her months-old firstborn son, Teva. She sat still, eyes fixed on his sleeping face, and then reached for the scratch paper and crayon that were on the table. Before my very eyes, in blue crayon, she formed lines and curves. Her motions were informal, quick but not hasty, relaxed, simple. She sketched. Laura put down the crayon, and on the page was a baby’s face. Not just any baby. It was Teva.

In this week’s Book Club chapters, Cameron encourages us to “sketch” as we write, unafraid, without self-consciousness, without any particular goal or direction, necessarily. This is not possible if I retain a fear of creativity. This “sketching” kind of writing requires me to shed any fear of bad writing, of first drafts, of others’ opinions. It requires me to take a first step so that I can take the second, and third.

I get excited about this kind of attitude, not just for writing but for other areas of my life. Sketching! It means getting out the sketch pad and pencil but leaving the eraser in the desk drawer, for I do not plan to frame this or enter it in the County Fair. I just plan to enjoy the process itself, to see what comes of it. Not too long ago, I wanted to know all the details, all the facts, the address at the end, and the total distance to the tenth of a mile. But God has been showing me that, to know and obey Him, I don’t need to know where I’m going, as long as I know the Way.

So, I like Cameron’s “sketching” idea for writing. It reminds me of my own life lessons in the past year or two, and it sparks a growing excitement to walk in trust, holding His hand.

Plus, I’m not afraid to put down the next chapter (whatever that will be).

**********
Photo: Derek Sharman sketching.