Friday, August 06, 2004

Writing for Love, Not Money

People ask why I write blogs.....looking for a book deal, a print column, a following, a high-traffic website?

Sure, those would be nice and quite helpful to my family, but not necessary. I write because I want to. I love it. It's satisfying...it opens my heart, mind and soul, like music, poetry or painting do for others. If I never make a dime from it, no problem. (Maybe better, actually. When someone pays you, they expect something. Pressure and deadlines and all that stuff. Turns into a nerve-nibbling business before you know it.)

I'm reading a book by Dr. James Hillman, "The Soul's Code - In Search of Character and Calling" in which he states that each of us is born with a unique, formed soul, and that part of our soul is our calling.....our gifts that, when we fully use them, cause us to feel satisfied and at peace with the world. For me, that is, and always has been, the act of writing.

Hillman, a psychologist and Yale University lecturer, must not be a Christian. The Bible has been clear for thousands of years on this point.

"There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but
the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all
men. Now to each one, the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."
----- I Corinthians 12 : 4 - 7

When we use our God-given gift according to His plan, we feel at peace with Him. It's an amazing blessing to know what that means.

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