Are you too busy to write?

 

Life has been busy, busy, busy for the past few weeks, and I suspect you haven’t had time to write your stories.

 

But that’s not a problem.

 

Why not?

 

Because your brain and heart

are working even when you don’t have time

to sit down and get serious about

working on your memoir.

 

Christmas is a time of remembering. So many memories pop into our heads at this time of the year. If your memoir will include a vignette about Christmas, you’ll like today’s post.

 

What memories came to mind when you put decorations on your Christmas tree? Do you have ornaments that used to be your grandmother’s? Decorations you made as a child? Or that your kids made when they were little?

 

What memories came to mind when you sang Christmas songs at church, or when you watched your favorite old Christmas movie, baked a recipe from your childhood, or watched kids or grandkids perform in a Christmas pageant?

 

When you have a spare moment,

jot down a few key words and images

that will help you remember

those details later.

As George W. Carver said, "Do what you can, with what you have, and do it now."

 

For now, don’t worry about

composing a well-written vignette

for your memoir.

A few hurried notes to yourself

will be a big help later

when you compose

your detailed, polished stories.

Happy New Year!

 

 

Our memories of 2020 are going to be "muddled and confused"

 

Musings for the end of 2020, the year of the Coronavirus pandemic:

“‘Our memories of this moment are going to be muddled and confused,’ says Jennifer Talarico, a psychology professor at Lafayette College who studies how people remember their lives, and how public events affect that. ‘We're going to be left with this vague notion that's going to be hard to articulate, hard to describe, hard to capture for those folks who haven't been through it.’” (Ted Anthony) 

 

And yet, your job and mine, as memoirists, is to push through the confusion and murkiness and, instead, to articulate, describe, and capture what has happened this year.

 

We serve as “a hand pointing in the direction of the past.” (C. H. Spurgeon)

 

But here at SM 101, we do more than that. We do more than tell stories from the past.

 

Here we dig deep within those stories to discover what God has done for us—stories about His constant companionship and provision each day.

 

The beauty of memoir is looking back, examining, and discovering significance we might have missed at the time.

 

At the end of 2020, let’s reflect on the past twelve months because:

 

• We and people around the world have been tossed about, spun around, and upended by Covid-19 and its ripple effects. The pandemic this year has been unique for everyone—except for those few people still alive who also lived during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. But for most of us, a pandemic like this happens only once in a lifetime.
• As a nation, we’ve also experienced racial unrest, political turmoil, economic tragedies, and social isolation, to name only a few. (See last week’s post, Covid-19 and those “Beneath life’s crushing load.”)
• On top of that, most of us have experienced personal struggles and heartbreaks.

 

This past year has numbed us and bewildered us, and not enough time has passed for us to accurately assess everything that’s happened. Nevertheless, we need to get some of our thoughts and experiences in writing even now. We can go back and revise later.

 

Jennifer Talarico’s words (above) comfort me. They tell me I’m not the only one struggling to find words and discern what, specifically, was going on in various levels of life—my life, my extended family’s life, my fellow citizens’ lives, and of those around the world.

 

Even in a “normal” year, too often we don’t take time to recognize that, in the words of dear old Samuel, “The Lord has helped us every step of the way” (1 Samuel 7:12, NIRV).

 

Back in the 1800s, C. H. Spurgeon pondered that same verse in The King James Version: “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.”

 

He wrote:

 

“The word ‘hitherto’ seems like a hand pointing in the direction of the past. Twenty years or seventy, and yet ‘hitherto hath the Lord helped us!’”

 

Or, in today’s language, “Whether we’re twenty years old or seventy, ‘the Lord has helped us every step of the way.’”

 

Spurgeon continues,

 

“Through poverty,

through wealth,

through sickness,

through health;

at home,

abroad,

on the land,

on the sea;

in honor,

in dishonor,

in perplexity,

in joy,

in trial,

in triumph,

in prayer,

in temptation,

—‘hitherto hath the Lord helped!’”

 

If we invest time in looking over Spurgeon’s list in light of our own past twelve months, we’ll see that every day, in each event, even in the worst of times, God has always hovered in our midst, has always loved us, and has sent us encouragement and help in practical ways.

 

This is a busy time of year but for now, jot down a list, make a few notes, and promise yourself—and your family, and God—you’ll write those stories in 2021!

 

Each child, grandchild, great-grandchild—niece, nephew, and “spiritual” child—needs to know your stories. They can serve as a guide to show future generations how to manage their own surprises and emergencies. When your readers see what God did for you, they’ll be more likely to trust Him in their own circumstances.

 

Each story can be a celebration of what God has done.

 

Always remember, and never forget,

what you’ve seen God do for you,

and be sure to tell your children and grandchildren!

(Deuteronomy 4:9)

 

What can your Bible’s pages help you remember?

Which verses in your Bible have you underlined or highlighted? Look over a few and ask yourself why those are special to you.

Try to remember: Why and how did they speak to your heart? During which event or era were those verses your delight? Or your instruction? Or your only hope?

God longs for us to remember the amazing things He has done (Psalm 105:5), but too often we forget.

Mike Metzger writes,

“Many churches have forgotten the premium

that the historic Judeo-Christian tradition placed on remembrance . . .

and recalling the right things.

The ‘great sin’ of the Old Testament

was forgetfulness

(at least it’s the most recurrent offense).

‘Remember’ is the most frequent command

in the Old Testament.”

(Mike Metzger, Clapham Memo, 

January 19, 2007, “Back and Forth”)

Look through your Bible and notice the Bible verses you cherished in the past, and remember those verses that changed your life, passages you held onto in dark times, verses that made you fall down in worship—and those that buoyed you in your everyday happenings.

Stories that go with those verses could provide good material for your memoir.

One day I spent half an hour looking through an old Bible, one I used from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s. Reading underlined passages sent me back to the ministries I had during those years, and to specific locales, and they reminded me of people and issues and heartbreaks and joys.

Reading them again also reminded me God was always there in the midst, working out His best, even if I didn’t know it at the time.

Below are a few of the verses highlighted in my old Bible. Perhaps in reading them, you, too, will discover story ideas of your own.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (Psalm 73:26)

Above all else, guard your heart. . . . (Proverbs 4:23)

All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you. . . . I wait for you, O Lord; you will answer, O Lord my God. (Psalm 38:9, 15)

Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind. (Psalm 25:2)

God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering. (Genesis 41:52)

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done. . . . (Genesis 50:20)

You are the light of the world. . . . Let your light shine . . . . (Matthew 5:14, 16)

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

I have seen the misery of my people. . . .  I have heard them crying. . . . I am concerned about their suffering. . . . I have come down to rescue them. (Exodus 3:7-8)

When they heard that the Lord was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshipped. (Exodus 4:31)

Now you will see what I will do. . . . Then you will know that I am the Lord your God. (Exodus 6:1-7)

The Lord kept vigil that night. . . . (Exodus 12:42)

I will sing to the Lord,

for he is highly exalted. . . .

The Lord is my strength and my song;

he has become my salvation.

He is my God, and I will praise him. 

(Exodus 15:1-2)

I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. (Exodus 19:4)

In all things God works for the good of those who love him. (Romans 8:28)

Therefore, I urge you . . . in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:1-2)

Denise Beck writes that when she takes her Bible’s crinkled pages and spends quiet time alone with God, “He meets me in a new way. He teaches me and transforms me, and those places and spaces are heavy with the stories He showed me. Stories of who He is. Stories of who I am.  Stories of who I am in Him.”

Take a few days to go through your Bible

and find passages you cherish,

verses that changed you,

verses that helped you make decisions,

passages you held onto in dark times,

verses that made you bow down in worship.

Include verses that nurtured you

through your everyday routines

and those that delighted you with joy.

Then write your stories—

stories of who He is, who you are,

and who you are in Him.

A writer’s prayer for YOU

Lord, thanks for this new year and the fresh opportunities you offer us to write our memoirs.

Remind us that you’ve given each of us life and therefore you’ve given each of us a story—a story to share with others.

Help us believe that writing our stories is not a hobby—it’s a ministry! You’ve told us to always remember what we’ve seen You do and to tell our children and grandchildren (Deuteronomy 4:9). And Jesus said, “Go back to your family and tell them all that God has done for you” (Luke 8:39).

Convince us that we should not look down on small beginnings—and that You, O God, delight to see our work begin (Zechariah 4:10). Lord, give us courage to begin.

Ignite a fire in our hearts to work as disciplined, intentional writers, committed to finishing our memoirs.

Take away our fears, Lord, and help us compose our stories with confidence, knowing you will use our efforts to point readers to You and Your love and Your goodness.

Motivate us to make time to reflect—to think back and ponder and examine—and to search for Your holy fingerprints, footprints, and heartprints. Enlighten us so we connect the dots and notice connections we overlooked in the past.

Enable us to see Your big picture, to recognize what you were doing to bring about Your best for us—often not the easiest, but the best.

You have entrusted our stories to us. You want us to tell others so they can see how You fought our battles alongside us, You brought healing and hope—not because of who we are, but because of who You are! Not because we are so great, but because You, God, are so great.

You have called us to a sacred task so inspire us, dear Lord. Place in us a desire to learn to write well, with clarity and grace, and to persevere through the rewriting and polishing and editing and publishing and marketing. Bring good people alongside us to accomplish all that.

Help us recognize that while we’ll be full of joy when we publish our memoirs, we can and must find joy in the process of writing, of retelling our “God-and-Me” stories. Give us the ability to embrace fulfillment and purpose and satisfaction in doing what You’ve called us to do.

Lord, You can do far more than anything we can request or imagine (Ephesians 3:20) so we humbly ask: Please equip us to write the stories You’ve given us. And once they’re in print, use them to accomplish Your good purposes.

Help us remember: 

All of this is not because we’re so great, 

but because, God, You are so great!

Not because of who we are, 

but because of who You are!

May our memoirs and lives 

bring honor to You, our glorious God.

I encourage you to follow Write to Worship with Xochitl E. Dixon on Facebook. She writes lovely, deep prayers for writers.

Too busy to write? No worries.

Life is busy, busy, busy for most of us this week. We just don’t have time to write our stories.

But that’s not a problem. Really.

Why not?

Because your brain and your heart are working even when you don’t have time to sit down and get serious about working on your memoir.

Christmas is a time of remembering. So many memories pop into our heads as we set out Christmas decorations.

Our daughter invited us to help decorate their tree recently and—oh, what memories those decorations stirred up! We sorted through a big box of decorations that had belonged to her great-grandma, her grandma, and even decorations I’d made when she was an infant. As we placed each on their tree, we shared so many snippets of memories.

No doubt the same happened to you when you decorated your tree—or when you sang Christmas songs at church, or when you watched your favorite old Christmas movie, or baked a special recipe from your childhood, or watched kids or grandkids perform in a Christmas play. Such precious memories!

When you have a spare moment, jot down a few key words that will help you remember those stories later.

For now, don’t worry about 

composing a well-written vignette for your memoir. 

A few hurried notes to yourself is all you need.

Later you can use those notes 

to compose your detailed, polished stories. 

For now, enjoy yourself, your family, friends, 

and the Real Reason for This Season.

Illustration in public domain

In light of current tragedies, how can your memoir inspire hope?

In light of current tragedies and heartaches—wildfires, drought, floods, ongoing mass shootings, a dysfunctional government, farmers reeling over low prices and loss of sales because of tariffs, children separated from their parents—how can your memoir offer hope to people who so desperately need it?

At times like this, the following well-known tale takes on new relevance:

A shipwreck survivor, alone on a desert island, prayed for God to rescue him.

He built a hut and waited for God to answer.

Day after day, he prayed. But one day his hut burned to the ground.

Devastated, confused, he cried out, “Why didn’t God rescue me? Why did He let my hut burn down? Why? Why?”

The next day a ship arrived and rescued the man.

“How did you know I was here?" he asked the captain.

“We saw your smoke signal,” he answered.

Several years ago, Cavin Harper told that story on his blog at Christian Grandparenting Network. His perspective was spot-on for memoirists, whether writing for children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or a broader audience.

Cavin wrote:

“Our grandchildren need to know

that no matter what may come,

God knows how to make smoke signals

and rescue us in our troubles.

How do you communicate words of hope

to your grandchildren in the face of tragedy

and senseless violence?”

As much as we long to live happily ever after, bad stuff happens to good people. Like Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble.”

You’ve experienced your own shipwrecks and burned huts, haven’t you? Tragedies and sorrows, maybe even violence, crime, abuse. I’ve experienced my own heartaches, too, and somehow you and I survived.

Your readers long to triumph over their own shipwrecks and burned huts. What stories can you write to help them? What, specifically, was that “somehow” that led you to the other side of your tragedy?

One of my favorite Bible passages is Psalm 77 in which Asaph spoke of crying out to God. “When I cried out in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out my untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted.” You’ve been there, right?

Poor Asaph said he was too troubled even to speak. I’ve been there, too.

Maybe you recall weeks or months or years when you, like Asaph, wondered, “Will the Lord . . . never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful?”

You remember that desperation, don’t you?

Next comes the part I like best. Asaph says, “This is my anguish; But I will remember . . .” (v. 10, NKJV). “I will remember the works of the Lord.” He determined to remember.

The NIV Study Bible footnote points out that this was Asaph’s “Faith’s decision to look beyond the present troubles—and God’s bewildering inactivity—to draw help anew from God’s saving acts of old.”

That’s it! We hold on for dear life by remembering what God did in the past.

And, like Asaph, we make a deliberate decision to trust God’s faithfulness based on His previous faithfulness to us. We make a deliberate decision to believe that even if God seems mysteriously absent, He is working on our behalf.

Think back to a trying situation. Perhaps God seemed absent, but later you discovered He’d been busy arranging a way for you to survive. And you went on with your life, and it was good.

Asaph, in the next chapter of Psalms, writes:

“We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done . . . which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they, in turn, would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God. . .” (Psalm 78:4-7).

Isn’t that what our memoirs are all about?

Remember Cavin’s words:

“Our grandchildren need to know

that no matter what may come,

God knows how to make smoke signals

and rescue us in our troubles.

How do you communicate words of hope

to your grandchildren in the face of tragedy

and senseless violence?”

Write your stories!

Tuesday Tidbit: What did you discover along your hallways and highways?

Look back over your life.

Make time to remember. (You won’t want to miss The sacred importance of remembering.)

“We are meant to look back to what God has done in the past,” writes Beth Moore, “so our faith is set aflame for what He can do in our future.”

Your memoir is a gift not only to readers,

but especially to yourself: 

In writing, you can look back,

connect the dots,

follow the bread crumbs,

and realize

—maybe as never before—

that God has pointed you down hallowed hallways and highways,

sending you to destinations He planned especially for you—

good places,

even if they didn’t look good at the time.

Perhaps you’ll find yourself in Henri Nouwen’s words: “In every critical event, there is an opportunity for God to act creatively and reveal a deeper truth than what we see on the surface of things. God can also turn around critical incidents and seemingly hopeless situations in our lives and reveal light in darkness.” (Discernment)

Invest in yourself—in your spiritual life, your relationship with God—by remembering what you’ve seen Him do. Rediscover what you’ve forgotten. Find significance in what you overlooked in the past.

Look again at Henri Nouwen’s words and ask yourself:

• When did I look beneath the surface of life’s issues?
• When I dug deep, what significant new truths did I discover?
• In critical, seemingly hopeless moments, what light did God shine in my darkness?
• And, in what specific ways did they fire up my faith for what God could do in my future? Take it to the next step: What, specifically, did He do in my future?

Write those stories!

Doing so could change your life now and for the future.

There you have it, your Tuesday Tidbit.

Tuesday Tidbit: Celebrate God’s grace upon grace

Make time to remember:  

• God’s blessings, one after another,
• His favor,
• His grace on your behalf,
• His mercy,
• and gifts,
• heaped upon you—all because of the abundance of God’s grace.

And when you have remembered, write them into your memoir. Create a memoir that's a celebration of God!

On giving thanks: A remedy if you find yourself among the nine

If you find yourself among “the nine,” you can become “the one” by writing your memoir.

Confused? Read on.

On his way to Jerusalem, Jesus crossed paths with ten lepers—despised, cut off from society and loved ones, lonely, suffering, and desperate for healing.

They cried to him, “Have mercy on us!”

And he did. He healed them.

Then they all took off—we can imagine their joy!—but one man turned around, fell on his knees, and said thank you.

No doubt the man’s gratitude touched Jesus’ heart, but he couldn’t help but wonder, aloud, “Ten men were healed. Where are the nine others? Where is their thanks?”

Jesus seemed hurt, disappointed, maybe even stunned by their ingratitude.

Ouch!

How many times have you and I failed to thank God for what He has done for us? So often, when we get through something difficult or scary, we simply wheeze, “Whew!” and get on with life. Where’s our gratitude?

Could it be that we crush God’s heart when we fail to thank Him? That He’s disappointed at our ingratitude? Maybe even stunned?

Don’t be “one of the nine.” Be “the one” who deliberately says thanks.

How?

By writing your memoir. Write it as a book full of falling on your knees in gratitude.

Your memoir can include all kinds of interesting, entertaining, humorous, and even wild and crazy stories about everyday stuff—

childhood escapades,

dating,

friendship,

family times,

schooling,

athletics,

adventures,

travel,

falling in love,

raising kids,

homemaking,

careers,

finances,

hobbies,

ministries,

practical jokes,

health (or poor health),

setbacks,

surprises,

death of loved ones,

answered prayers,

—and in all those stories, you can include gratitude and thanksgiving to God.

So, gather your memories and write your stories!

Writing your memoir: Looking for God’s breadcrumb trail

You’ve experienced this: The unexpected happened, something negative or challenging or disappointing. Or maybe it was downright tragic—heartbreaking, life-changing.

One time—only one time, I’m sad to say—when something devastating happened, almost immediately Romans 8:28 came to mind: “And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into His plans” (Living Bible).

I told myself that ultimately I’d recognize the good He’d bring from the tragedy. I told myself to watch God work. I couldn’t imagine what those blessings might be—those lessons, insights, and opportunities to mature, gain wisdom, and grow in faith—but  I waited and watched. And sure enough, He did bring beauty from ashes.

I wish that every time hardship blindsided me, I’d have watched for the goodness He worked, but I admit I rarely have.

Maybe you’ve had the same experience.

Not all is lost at such times, though, if we think back and search for those good things God brought. They’re just waiting for us to recognize them.

But too often I’ve forgotten to go back and look for the gems He unearthed from my dirt. I feel bad about that.

Mike Metzger’s quote has come to mind frequently in the years since I ran across it:

“Many churches have forgotten the premium

that the historic Judeo-Christian tradition placed on

remembrance…and recalling the right things.

The ‘great sin’ of the Old Testament was forgetfulness

(at least it is the most recurrent offense).

‘Remember’ is the most frequent command

in the Old Testament.” 

(Clapham Memo, January 19, 2007,

“Back and Forth,” by Mike Metzger; emphasis mine)

Because of Mike’s quote, in recent years I’ve made an effort to remember what God has done for me and my family. Doing so requires me to set aside time to search my memories.

By definition, writing a memoir requires us to go back, to uncover—to excavate, unearth, dig, till the soil and sift through it—looking for diamonds and emeralds.

In Psalm 86:17, David prays, “Give me a sign of your goodness.” That’s what we’re looking for: Signs of God’s goodness.

“Tokens for good,” Amy Carmichael calls those signs, based on an old translation of the Bible. 

“Look out for them and you shall find them,” Amy continues. “Some will be little private tokens, something just between you and your Lord. Some will be things that you can share with others for their cheer. The great thing is not to miss them in the press of life, for often, very often, by these tokens for good our Lord helps us and comforts us.” (Edges of His Ways, July 12 selection)

So we memoirists find those treasures, those signs of goodness, and we piece them together, like stringing jewels to make a necklace. And while we do so, we examine them, we ponder and reflect on them.

In the process, we might need to stand to the side and take a different look: We need to do a “Doggie Head Tilt,” another Mike Metzger quote. He says, “If your head never tilts, your mind never changes.”

So, we tilt our heads and look at that difficulty from another angle. We rethink what happened, we reevaluate, and maybe arrive at a different conclusion than we had come to before.

We ask ourselves, What was God doing? What lessons was He teaching me? What new insights do I now have? How has my life changed as a result? What message did He give me to share with others?

Perhaps you’ve discovered this: When we start composing a memoir, we have no idea where our memories and ponderings and writings will take us. 

The process of writing opens our eyes and changes our hearts. It helps us discover a bigger, higher, deeper, broader story.

“The written word preserves

what otherwise might be lost

among the impressions that inundate our lives.

Thoughts, insights, and perceptions

constantly threaten to leave us

before we have the opportunity to grasp their meaning.

Writing can … give us something palpable upon which to reflect.

Reflection slows matters down.

It analyzes what was previously unexamined,

and opens doors to different interpretations

of what was there all along.

Writing, by encouraging reflection, intensifies life.”

(Editors Ben Jacobs and Helena Hjalmarsson, The Quotable Book Lover)

Our job as memoirists

is to set aside time, as long as it takes,

to follow the breadcrumb trail

God has left for us to help us find our way.

We pick up those “tokens of good”

and cherish them,

and then we do what Amy Carmichael said

in her old-fashioned way:

we “share them with others for their cheer.”

In that way,

penning a memoir can be a sacred journey,

even an act of worship.

Discover the blessings God has handed you

in the midst of your hard times,

and then write your memoir,

knowing others need the “cheer” you have to offer.