When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
~Edward Mote
A couple of weeks ago, Mike and I were talking about our future, and he said, “I want you writing more. You need to do it. You have a lot to say. Good stuff to say.” I never doubted that he thought I should do it, but the people closest to us are our worst critics, and I have a thin skin…
Writing is work. Not just, sitting-down-and-focusing-to-write work, but introspective-heart work. To write about life learned over these years and how to say it lovingly and with grace is difficult. The writing usually comes out with more venom then was intended in the beginning. It usually needs a lot of tweaking before the final goes out to the masses.
Fears of man run deep. Afraid of what people will say. Afraid of what people will think, but won’t say. Afraid of negative responses. Afraid of positive responses. Afraid that maybe our story isn’t all that unique and won’t benefit anyone. Afraid that our story is one that has been told over and over- just by different people.
To talk about suffering that is a part of life, and is worth the hard, arduous journey in the end. Suffering is full of life, and life is full of suffering, but Glory is around it even when it’s hard to see through the darkness. Jesus is always there and present to help us through.
It’s okay to grieve. It’s okay to mourn loss for a long time. Grieving changes over time. It doesn’t disappear. Ever. The pain will ease a bit, but the scar will remain.
Hoping to display an honest heart. Parenting a child with special needs is HARD, unexpected work, but also rewarding. There’s a strong desire for people to know that there is a mutual understanding, and acceptance of the children that we’ve been given.
Writing about things of the heart is difficult. If we are honest, writing exposes what our hearts really feel and say. It’s raw and unfiltered. If we allow it, it can also be healing and refreshing. We all have a heart. One that is messy and one that always needs a clean up. Only Jesus can clean it up.
A friend of mine said this fall when she arrived before me at co-op one morning (this is rare for her), “We’re a work in progress.” Ain’t that the truth.
This writing thing…..I’ll warn you. Some things are gonna be good. Some things are gonna be not so good. But I hope that all of it points to God’s Glory in the hardness of life. Because Glory is all around us. Even in the darkest of dawns.