Hebrews 4:12

 

"For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."

Hebrews 4:12 (NKJ)

    It's really neat how God's word is called "a discerner" here. Because not only does searching the Bible help us find a solution to a problem in life, but it helps us see the situation more clearly. In some instances, the advice of others and personal bias can give a blurry view of the right thing to do, and even narrow how many options there are; but the word of God cuts through that like a bright headlight shining through fog. God's word points out the vital principles and unchanging facts that explain the way things really are (whether or not a person really did do something deserving resentment, and why Option C is a more Christ-like thing to do).
    Looking through the Bible thoroughly lets us see the way the whole situation really is, and with that knowledge, it gives us a solution through showing us the Lord's thoughts and His heart on the matter.
    So discerner is really a wonderful way to describe the word of God; don't you think? :)

Mountains are Incredible

    Mountains are incredible.
    They're very majestic to look at, especially when you're up close to them. Thick, solid rock with ridges and carving-like crevices formed over time by wind and water, it's like a gigantic, natural sculpture. From far away, those chiseled crevices can hold snow that covers a mountain and makes it look like sugar or flour has been dusted on it; and when rain hits a mountain, water can run down like small streams.
    Then there's the very fact that mountains are huge. Isn't there just something about large and tall things that's impressive? The Empire State Building, Big Ben, the Great Wall of China; these landmarks are incredibly tall structures that make people below look like insects, but the mountains that are even taller than them are colossal, and they can make people below seem smaller than specks! Standing up close to a mountain as massive as this can make a person feel small, but it's a good kind of small, not a bad kind. Especially when one thinks about the Creator of the mountains. The same One who made us individually also formed each and every one of the towering mountains. That concept is really interesting and awesome to think about.
    Mountains are indeed one of the Lord's most incredible masterpieces of creation. Majestic, massive, and made by the One who made us.
    Have you ever been really close to a mountain, or on one? Have you ever climbed or taken a hike up a mountain?

One Step at a Time

Monitoring one's story's progress can be kind of like reading
a book and glancing at the edges to see what "percentage" of the pages
are left to read--only writing takes longer than reading.

    Waiting a very long time for a good book to be completed and ready to read can be very, very, very boring--especially when it's one's own book! In that situation, a writer gets to watch each tiny step forward, but also have an idea of how much more still needs to be done.
    Writing projects can be like that quite a lot, can't they?  Especially when it's a project as long as a novel. Writing is time-consuming; writing a chapter could take over an hour, and some scenes take numerous re-writes in order for that part of the story to turn out right. With a certain time requirement for writing just one part of the story, and other activities in life to pay attention to, the writing process can end up being taking little steps day by day for a long, long time. Compared to the plotting stage of writing, where one could have the whole story down within a week, it's like a snail's pace. And thinking about how many more chapters/scenes--and days--have to go by before one finally has their beautiful manuscript completed can really stink.
    But having a positive mindset about it can make things better--a lot better. It can even make the long wait pleasant.
    When one can end their day knowing that they've got one more chapter completed, they can think about how they're one step closer to the end than they were yesterday; and that tomorrow, they'll be yet another step closer, or even two! And when thinking about the big picture, counting all the hours it'll be taking to finish the first (or second, or third) draft can give an encouraging idea of how much time and attention is being given to this story, of how much more quality there's going to be in the end.
    So while going one step at a time might be slow, thinking about the positive factors of it can make the wait more tolerable, right? What do you think?

Matthew 19:26

 

"But Jesus looked at them and said to them 'With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"

Matthew 19:26 (NKJ)

    This fact isn't difficult to believe (the Lord did create an intricate universe out of nothing, after all), even in the middle of difficulties that don't seem to have any possible solutions. On the contrary, once a person is in the midst of such a sticky situation, the incredibleness of God's unmatched power can really branch out and give the fullest kind of hope to the person who puts their faith in Him. Because since God can do things that are impossible for humans to accomplish or even think of as an option (like making bread, manna, fall from the sky), there's always a solution to whatever problem we're in! There's always hope; there's always a way.
    Our God is an unstoppable and incredible God. Amen? :)

Reading Quickly, Slowly, and/or at a Normal Pace

    Some people have a very definitive reading speed, the average rate of time it usually takes them to read something. One particular person I know needs to renew her library books over and over and over again to finish them, and another person I know can read a novel over 500 pages long in a single day.
    But between reading quickly, slowly, or at a moderate speed, there isn't one particular rate that's superior to the others. Each one has their own qualities and benefits.
    Reading quickly is helpful in saving time and in satisfying curiosity. When you read quickly, you get the plot and the facts quicker, going multiple chapters at a time before you have to move on to another activity (like sleeping). Reading quickly also avoids the dreaded moments where one is forced to put the book down and wait for as long as a day to learn the answers to pressing questions--not only is this uncomfortable, but it can be a serious distraction from other things that need attention, like a classroom discussion. Generally, people who can read quickly can finish novels in a day, and go through a whole series within a week or two.
    Reading at a moderate speed combines the best of both worlds. When you read at a normal pace, you get the plot, you get the details, and you don't have to feel pressured to speed up or worry about missing tiny but vital moments. You can re-read beautiful lines, you can progress through a novel at a steady pace. It's a pleasant way to experience the adventure of the story or the information of a non-fiction book in good time.
    Finally, reading slowly is great for noticing all the details, using one's imagination to visualize scenes, and being able to process the information of the text. It's also good for studying. Without much concern for time, you could read something, try to picture every moment, hear every character's voice, consider what the characters are thinking and feeling, and even consider what might come next in response to the actions. People who like to read slowly can re-read not only a sentence, but a paragraph, and they might even go back to a previous chapter to make comparisons, or to just re-live favorite moments. Soaking in the details (especially the small ones) immerses a person in the story, and makes the reading experience very in-depth .
    So what about you? :) Do you usually read quickly, at a moderate pace, or slowly?

Anne Lamott: "Until They've Done It"

 

"Very few writers really know what they are doing until they've done it."

~Anne Lamott

    This quote is funny! And also very inspirational; a good phrase to remember when one's feeling doubts about a project. And personally, I think this marvelous quote can be applied to every part of the writing process, not just one.
    During the plotting of a story, a writer thinks up the basic ideas and tries to graph it all out, either in their mind or on paper. During this period, some ideas can sound too crazy or too random to work well, and it can be difficult every now and then to finding ways to connect two events in the story together ("now how does the main character get from their epiphany to the climax scene?"). There could be a whole lot of plot holes and unknown factors in this planning stage, like what a character is actually like when they're written, and this could make the story seem skeletal. But this is okay, because the plotting stage isn't the final result, but the launching pad for the next steps, the time to go crazy with "what ifs."
    Then there's the first draft stage of writing. While writing this draft, it can seem like everything's a mess in comparison to how beautiful it was while imagining it; but fortunately this isn't a disaster because the first draft is supposed to be that way! It's the draft meant for walking the grounds of the story for the first time, getting an insider's view of who the characters actually are, what the scenery is like, and which actions work well in the story. It's the discovery draft, and discovery expeditions can come across a couple unexpected finds before reaching what they were seeking in the first place.
    After the first draft is done, the rewrites (or the editing stage) can happen. And this might be even more difficult than the first draft, because now a writer has the task of bringing change to factors in the story that need improvement without changing things that were actually done well. But throughout this whole stage of the process, the question of "Which changes are the right ones?" is always there, and very pressing because no one wants to accidentally get rid of something good. Making those decisions can seem blind sometimes (a really frightening thought), but the revision stage is more than just taking things out; it's putting more things in, making additions. It's as much as a creative process as plotting the story and writing the first draft was, and this means that new awesome things can be created in the revisions.
    So in every area of writing, this quote by Anne Lamott can be applied and used to give encouragement. Do you agree? :)

Psalm 93:4

 

"The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, than the mighty waves of the sea."

Psalm 93: 4 (NKJ)

    God is incredible; stronger than anyone could imagine, able to do anything. He can (and has, in fact, as Matthew 8:24-26, Mark 4:37-39, and Luke 8:23-24 state) easily calm a raging storm.
    "The noise of many waters" and "the mighty waves of the sea" can be likened to fear, and the things in life that prompt fear, can't it? Because  the sound of water crashing against things close to a person, sloshing around their feet, and churning into powerful currents tumbling at them is frightening, and it threatens to damage anything it touches.
    But God is more powerful than the things that can make us afraid, just as He's greater than the oceans He created. He's far mightier than fear, able to conquer it, and this same God who's stronger than fear is willing to deliver us from it.
    And this in itself can strengthen us in hope; the Lord's invincible strength. It's so marvelous, isn't it?