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Changing a Life Life as a writer is full of wonder. Meaning, questions. You wonder, “Is anyone going to read this? And will it matter? Will it be helpful, even?” You labor in solitude, shoulders aching from too much time on the computer. You put words on a page, re-working them, crafting them, trying to bring them to life, like blowing on coals to coax a flame. Eventually, you hit send, and pray as your precious words flash through cyberspace. Sometimes they’re immediately posted on a blog or webpage, other times they land an editor’s in-box, and from there, eventually will find their way onto a printed page, whether magazine or book. And you wrestle with insecurity and uncertainty, wondering if the words will make a difference, will live, not just on the page but in someone’s heart. Life as a writer is full of wonder. Meaning, gratitude. You get to write for a living, meager as that living may be. You get to interview people, put their stories into articles. You get to think, and put your own stories down. You get to tell the truth as you see it, you get to experience the satisfaction of crafting a sentence well—which to some of us, is no small thing. When I got my first job as a reporter at Press Publications, a small, family-owned group of newspapers in the Chicago suburbs, in 1985, I was amazed. I got to write for a living. I would not have admitted this to my boss, but I would have done the job for free. I think I started at less than $200 a week, so actually, I was practically doing the job for free. I worked long hours, but I loved it. Life as a writer is full of wonder. Meaning, incredulity. Probably a dozen times in the past few months, people have told me (in person at the MOPS convention, or via e-mail) “Your book changed my life.” They’re referring to my 2005 book, Breathe: Creating Space for God in a Hectic Life. I’m just amazed, full of wonder that my words would have that kind of impact. I don’t know that I set out with a goal that lofty. I wanted to write well—that’s true of everything I write. And as I said earlier, I hope people will read my books and not just go, “huh. That was interesting,” but walk away indifferent. So in a way, I guess I do try to write things that will facilitate change, growth. That will open people’s hearts so that God can change them. But I still shake my head in wonder when I read e-mails like this one, which I received this week from Darcy in Connecticut: “Keri, my husband and I read your book "Breathe: Creating Space for God in a Hectic Life" early this summer while enjoying "down time" with our five-year-old son and two-year-old daughter. We are changed because of it and have entered the first of our numerous school years with NOTHING on the calendar, except for MOPS 2x month. We believe we are creating space for God to tap us on the shoulder and tell us where to spend our time and energy. We will add activities slowly and prayerfully, but have been so impressed by your words, that we have changed our lifestyle. Thank you for being so bold!” It’s gratifying to hear that my book has had an impact, and even more gratifying that they “get it”—that the purpose of clearing your schedule is not just so you can do nothing, but so that you're available to hear God's call and have the time and energy to respond to it. To make concrete changes that say no to a hectic life, so that you can say yes to God, who is ultimately the only one who really changes our lives. Darcy went on to tell me that she and her husband “are feeling led to share your vision, at least a portion of it, with our church family.” Their church is considering starting a small groups ministry, where groups would meet for dinner and fellowship one night per week. Darcy and her husband are praying about whether they will help lead this ministry, asking if that is perhaps what God might be “tapping them on the shoulder” about. “If God moves us in that direction, we were wondering how you would feel about us calling the ministry ‘Breathe’ or maybe ‘Mid-Week Breather’,” she wrote. I wrote back to Darcy that I’d be delighted if they called their new small group ministry “Breathe” and suggested that if they want to use the book as a curriculum, they could access the free downloadable study guide by going to this page on the MOPS website: http://shop.gospelcom.net/isroot/MOPShop/SiteImages/prod/breathe_questions.pdf Friends, I’m not sharing these things to brag, but to ask you—are you giving your life to a calling that fills you with wonder? Do you realize that whatever you do has the potential to change the lives of others: how you parent, how you do your job, how you act towards others that you volunteer alongside of? And, are you open to changing your life? Or, more accurately, letting God change your life?
Since we’re talking about the power of writing, I thought I’d review a book that changed my life. I could name so many: Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, The Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen, Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard, countless others. But since we’re looking not only at life changing books but listening to God’s calling to let your life impact others, the book I’m recommending this month is another on my “life-changing” list, Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer. This small but powerful book’s subtitle, “Listening for the Voice of Vocation” gives you a hint at its content, but the book goes deeper than simply guiding the reader in career choices. Palmer candidly shares his own struggles to hear God’s voice and find his purpose. He writes about his journey through depression, and the lessons he learned in that valley. “Before you tell your life what you intend to do with it, listen for what it intends to do with you,” he writes. Later, he notes: “Vocation does not come from willfulness. It comes from listening. I must listen to my life and try to understand what it is truly about—quite apart from what I would like it to be about—or my life will never represent anything real in the world, no matter how earnest my intentions.” I’ve written in this newsletter and elsewhere about calling—doing with your life what God has called you to do, the importance of discovering that. If you’ve wrestled with that idea, this book will be extremely helpful. This book influenced my thinking about my spiritual life, my career, even the books I wrote, especially my 2006 book Listen: Finding God in the Story of Your Life. You can purchase this book for $14.40 by clicking here.
Dianne, a reader of my books and blogs, posted this on the Boomer Babes Rock blog, and I wanted to share it with you. A Prayer in ‘The Middle Years’ of Opportunity
Lord, help me now to
unclutter my life, from A Celtic Daily Prayer available for $23.96 (Retail $29.99) by clicking here.
What books have changed your life? What people have changed your life? If someone’s teaching, mentoring, writing or example has made a difference in your life, let them know. And then, think about how you could pass that along by making a difference in someone else’s life. If you’re looking for a great way to change your life and someone else’s at the same time, consider sponsoring a child through World Vision. You can help a child trapped in poverty to receive food, education, medicine, and the love of Jesus. Click here to visit World Vision’s website to sponsor a child. www.worldvision.org Speaking
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October 8, 2007
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"Breathe" In Breathe: Creating Space for God in a Hectic Life, Keri looks at how the hurried pace of our lives affects us spiritually.
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