Hello.
My name is Sarah.
I am a writer.
I'm writing a book.
That's hard for me to say all together. But I am throwing it out there, at the encouragement of a couple of wonderful, godly men.
This week I had the honor of having a lunch meeting (with about 20 other people -- all ACU students) with Michael Blanton, agent for Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith, and Steve Green, agent for Max Lucado and Phil Gulley. They both spoke a little about their respective industries, the paths they took to get where they currently are, then opened up the room to questions.
Let me say, above all, as they spoke, their faith was tangible and unmistakable. They know, through years of trying and succeeding, and plenty of years of trying and failing, that they and their business are wholly God's and He will fulfill His plans in their business.
I'll be honest -- I walked away from there initially discouraged. Mainly because what I heard (especially in response to my specific question) was what I've heard a million times before -- it's hard to break in, writers are a dime a dozen, yada, yada. But I also knew that I heard some golden wisdom from those two gentlemen.
One that was my favorite was from Michael Blanton: "God doesn't give us dreams to tease us. He will either fulfill that dream in us, or change the dream." Michael told the story of leaving ACU in 1973, determined that he was going to work just long enough to raise the capital to open a Christian ski resort in Colorado. When he was offered a job in Nashville, he initially refused since it was in the wrong direction from Colorado, and wasn't a job he really wanted. But Michael came to love what he was doing, how one thing led to another, and now, he says, his family is able to vacation in Colorado as much as he wants, but Michael is able to know that he has affected people's lives by his work.
They also talked a LOT about the fear of failure holding us back. Evidently Max Lucado has a book coming out the end of this year entitled, "Fearless". (Jana -- he totally stole your idea!) They mentioned that the fear of failure -- which is really just the fear of embarassment of not doing what you want/ hope to do -- keeps so many people from fulfilling their dreams.
My dream is to write a book. Maybe lots of books. And speak to groups. I LOVE to speak to groups. And I HATE telling you all of that. Because Satan whispers to me, "Writers are a dime a dozen. You'll never make it. Do you have any idea how many writers are out there? What do YOU have to say that makes a hill of beans of difference?"
And, truthfully, I can talk myself out of trying to do any of my dreams before I ever write the first word. But those men encouraged me to grab my dream, submit it to God, and work to make it happen. I was a LITTLE encouraged to hear that I am doing some things right: "You may want to think about starting a blog." (ya think?) "See if anybody shows up!" "Find out if people respond to your writing." "Sign up at Twitter." (check...)
So, I'm doing all I know to do. And it is all in His hands. And that's the absolute best place for my dreams to be.
"The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever— do not abandon the works of your hands." Psalm 138:8
