Wednesday, May 02, 2012


When Inadequacy Steals the Story

Have you ever rid yourself of a mess so completely, you had no chance of getting it back again?

My guest author this week, Sherri Whitson, threw an early manuscript into the fireplace when she thought it belonged in the ashes, and no where else.

I know how she feels. There are days when my efforts impress me very little, and if they could be gathered up as a wad of papers, perhaps I too, would be tempted to cast them in the fire.

It's easy to look at our inadequacies as the complete picture. As if they alone define us.

But that's not good enough for God. He's not in the business of leaving us in our unfinished, and spoiled state. He longs to refine us for His purposes and for us to enjoy fellowship with Him.

I'm so glad Sherri didn't leave her writing journey at the hearth. She didn't let rejection have the final say, and pursued her craft by doing a writing course and discovering what she needed for the task ahead.

She learned the importance of admitting her inadequacies and searching for ways to overcome them. Easy to say, much harder to do in real life. But she did, and she's now sharing manuscripts with an audience instead of the fireplace.

Do you have something you've cast in the fire God may want rescuing? Is inadequacy smouldering in the ashes, stealing your story?

Let God have His way. Look for what He prods your heart to do next. And turn those ashes to beauty.