A New Chapter: Welcome to My World of Words and Wonder, How my Christian faith drives me
I wouldn’t say that I’ve ever considered myself to be a writer. I’m certainly a creative person who once dreamed of being an artist. In all honesty, I’ve never been brave enough to allow the creative side of myself to guide me in my life choices. As a young woman, I had two simple but expansive life goals: to create a stable life for myself and to achieve sustainable financial independence. With that focus and my God-given determination, the least desirable path was that of becoming what would be the cliché “starving artist”.
Decades later, after much self-reflection on the roads I’ve traveled, and the journey still ahead, I find myself unable to contain my internal creative self. As I mature in my Christian faith, and with AI research, I can find Bible verses relevant to my current thoughts and find my feelings with devotions from my Bible study. From the Old Testament, the book of Ecclesiastes is very reassuring, but how do we know when it’s the right time? The first answer that comes to mind is to have faith. It may be hard to trust people, but it’s easy to trust God.
Life has different seasons, each with its own purpose. While it may feel like I’m simply returning to myself and my pursuit of artistic passions, I am still invigorated with familiar feelings of ambition.
No matter how I’ve pursued career ambitions, I never stopped being creative. I think my innate creativity actually propelled my business career. I’ve met many interesting people, shared many stories and ideas, and received diverse feedback. There have been many comments from people saying that I should write a book. I’ve always laughed it off, but then again, I would have never taken you seriously if you had told my younger self that I would sell cars and have an unrelenting drive to pursue a career in the car business.
I don’t know why we sometimes tell ourselves these unrealistic stories about who we are, or what we should or should not do. I suppose that social conditioning, family influences, and societal pressures are all at play. I see other creative people in my life with similar traits. We tend to create imaginary pressures that drive us forward, keep us stalled, or even cause us to regress.
Whatever the reasons, I’ve come to learn that there’s freedom and relief in not understanding all the reasons why. How many hours turned to months and years I’ve wasted longing to understand and know the reasons why! Instead, through prayerful meditation and engaging with the Word of God, communing thoughtfully on biblical messages has provided much more clarity and internal peace. Simply processing His Word has given me more inner calm that I’ve struggled to find elsewhere. I must give credit to Andrew Wommack, who has been a constant source of inspiration and knowledge in my faith journey. I highly recommend his teachings.
I think it’s safe to assume that most creative people are fueled, or inspired, in many ways by conflict.
The Bible says that struggle and conflict are guaranteed aspects of life; suffering is necessary.
Suffering can develop endurance, character, and hope.
I learned in Catholic school that we must value our struggles because of their valuable lessons. What would we know of joy if we had not experienced its nemesis, suffering? How would we know that we’re happy if we’ve never felt sad? We appreciate joy differently because we’ve experienced suffering.
So here you are, reading my words, and maybe wondering, why? Who is this woman? I don’t yet have a meaningful answer other than to reiterate my titles in life. But what we do is not really who we are, right? I suppose this project, this book, this blog, and this website are all parts of my current and future journey of rediscovering myself as an artist who desires to bring beauty to this world. I have always loved poetry, and this book, inspired by my kids, is my first real attempt in life to share my art with the world. It’s scary, but I have faith that I’m on the right path.
As it says many times in the Bible, we are guaranteed to have trouble in this world. I take comfort in knowing what to expect, but I find more comfort in knowing that my faith in Jesus will provide guidance.
I’m currently reading “Seven Steps to Victory” by Andrew Wommack, and this teaching also reminds me that I should break out of my comfort zone. To explore our capabilities and potential, to align our path with what God may have intended for our lives, we must take risks. That often involves breaking out of our comfort zone. The fact that this is scary doesn't mean it's the wrong thing for my life right now. It’s easy to be restrained by fear, and it’s maybe natural to avoid scary things. But I’ve learned that fear and anxiety are simply beliefs in the wrong things! Rather than being fearless (reckless or irresponsible), when I’m feeling nervous or anxious, I try to remember to ask myself what is the underlying reason causing this fear? Sometimes I receive that answer from within, or from above. Sometimes I think about what my husband says: “When you’re not sure about the best thing to do, it’s best to do nothing. Take time to think before deciding.”
This blog will be a place for me to share my thoughts and feelings about faith, life, and love. Over time, you may get to know me as a creative person, a poet, a writer, a mother, etc. And I thank you for sharing this experience with me.
Very well written and made me think Wishing you all the best> Hugs Brenda