Now, this may sound strange, but looking back, it’s like God spoke to me through the character of Jo, who desperately wanted to become a writer. Only she wrote what she thought would sell, not the things she was passionate about. I did this, too, for awhile, trying to establish myself as a freelance writer. But it neither sold nor satisfied. Today, a fictitious character in Jo’s life (the professor) echoes more truth to me:

“…you should be writing something from your life, from the depths of your soul. There is more to you than this,” he said, pointing to the newspaper story, “if you have the courage to write it.”

As I read this again, I’m encouraged to keep writing what only I can write because of what God’s done in my life.

So the story continues: How God took a timid little girl out of the soul-damaging trenches, healed her, gave her life, and set her free to write and encourage others.

If I can do this, with His help, so can you.

“Write down the revelation and make it plain…” Habakkuk 2:2

“The problem is not entirely in finding the room of one’s own, the time alone, difficult and necessary as that is. The problem is more how to still the soul in the midst of its activities.” ~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Gift from the Sea

“Creativity is part of our nature; we, not the ostrich, have been given the ability to create. God breathes life into our dusty forms. His Spirit hovers over us, calling to the depths and leading us into abundant living. We are creative because we are made in God’s image.” ~ Alice Bass, The Creative Life

“I really think that cleaning up in between projects is a great way to also clean the palette; so to speak. It helps to organize your thoughts and focus on what you are doing next.” ~ Joanna Figueroa, fabric designer, featured in Where Women Create

Worked on my creative space this week. Mr. G. put together another tabletop area for me to spread my beads. Designing jewelry is such fun when I’m not writing! I also save old Mary Englebreit calendars. Framed a few of her prints from the calendars this week to hang in a collage in the corner. Her art inspires and delights me!

What does your workspace look like? Does it inspire you? It should! Found a magazine to help with that:

Studios

Enjoy!

“I lived far too much in an interior world, but I did learn that I didn’t have to be qualified according to the world’s standards in order to write my stories.”

“Creativity is a way of living life, no matter what our vocation or how we earn our living. Creativity is not limited to the arts or having some kind of important career.”

“If our lives are truly ‘hid with Christ in God,’ the astounding thing is that this hiddenness is revealed in all that we do and say and write. What we are is going to be visible in our art, no matter how secular (on the surface) the subject may be.”

“The artist cannot hold back; it is impossible, because writing, or any other discipline of art, involves participation in suffering, in the ills and the occasional stabbing joys that come from being part of the human drama.”

“In a very real sense not one of us is qualified, but it seems that God continually chooses the most unqualified to do his work, to bear his glory.”