Writing this Ministry Reflection series has been difficult. When I started, I had over 30 stories that I intended to publish. Despite this goal, I believe that some stories are not meant to be shared…For now. In previous times, I did not feel this noble. No, for years I was bitter about many of my church experiences. I did not see God working through them, so I just wanted to play the victim, and felt that when I trash these churches, I am justified. By God’s grace, He never let me write those stories while I was still bitter. Rather, it is only now that I have been able to write any story with two goals in mind:
- Write only stories that are humorous
- Write only stories that reflect an element of hope and redemption. Remember “God redeems.”
As a result of these goals, some stories I will not share now. Either they are not amusing enough, or they do not display any redemptive qualities…yet.
The word “yet” is intentional because I believe in Christ’s ability to redeem. Afterall, the capstone event of His ministry was reconciling the world to Himself by dying on the Cross for our wins. So, an expectation of reconciliation and redemption is fair. Even then, some of these future stories are better suited for a book, which I will write over time, little-by-little. Again, this topic is hard to write on. Not only do I prayerfully take care to represent the events accurately, protect the people involved, but it is emotionally tough to return to these past events.
Humor is important too, so as I write future stories on this site or on in the book I want to include more amusement. In my view, including humor communicates a reconciliation of the past than bitterness. With my goal of two stories per week, including humor makes the turn around difficult to write many stories. Often humor is missed in writing, so for me to write these kinds of stories, I need time. Also, there is another reason why I am finishing this series…for now.
Since the Lord has replaced my bitterness with a better appreciation for Him, I want my writing to focus on something other than the past: the future. The future is where I seek to write now because writing is my chosen art form to express my heart. A heart that the Lord is always shaping and molding. It is hard to share these new ideas when I am constantly looking to the past.
Also, while writing the “Ministry Reflection” series I have been writing other pieces. They are reflective, but many entries have been thoughtful on what God is doing in my heart today. This new material, therefore, is more creative and uses different types of literature. They are writings that show encouragements I have received from the Lord as I read scripture, admire His creation, receive healing, grow closer to my wife, and continue to see Him work in improbable situations. They are entries I am eager to share because I pray they are an encouragement for those in need of rest…an “Autumn Rest.”
Before I share these new posts with you, I will be taking a few weeks off to take time to creatively write and hope to have even more hopeful thoughts to share. Until then, enjoy one amusing more post on Thursday.
As always, thank you for taking your time to read, and I can’t wait to share with you what comes next.
