Sowing in Tears Reaping in Joy

Do your creative passions seem to be competing with one another? Are you going through a tough time emotionally and it seems to be hindering your creative juices from flowing? Be encouraged, pain and oppression often precede praise and productivity. You will dream again. You will laugh, sing, reap, dance or write again.

Psalm 126:1-5 (NKJV)

When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion,

We were like those who dream.

Then our mouth was filled with laughter,

And our tongue with singing.

Then they said among the nations,

“The Lord has done great things for them.”

The Lord has done great things for us,

And we are glad.

Bring back our captivity, O Lord,

As the streams in the South.

Those who sow in tears

Shall reap in joy.

Creativity is comprehensive. When I am walking through a creative crisis it effects everything that I do. My initial thought is to quit but, once I move beyond giving up I usually get better. Recently while writing, a software glitch caused me to lose everything. I laid in the floor in the fetal position and cried. After I calmed down I was able to recall most of what I wrote. My husband was able to later recover my initial piece and much to my surprise, what I wrote the second time was better than before. My crisis was a blessing in disguise.

If you are currently in a creative crisis take note that it is a necessary part of your process that will produce invaluable growth. Great joy comes from completing a project that you wanted to give up on. While walking through it feels like it’s killing you, but what is worse is to stop creating altogether and feel as though a part of you is dying. The only way to live is to overcome. When you sow in tears be reminded that your current crisis is fertile ground for future joy. Keep going!

Share about a time in which your breakdown led to your breakthrough.

Too Afraid to Start

Words flow through your mind, time after time.
Sometimes they even rhyme, line after line.
You are a poet, but you don’t know it.
You have a gift, but you won’t show it.
You are a potter holding clay, whose too afraid to mold it.
Is it the news headline that diverted your attention?
Are you waiting for someone to give you special recognition?
When you sit still to write do you want to go to sleep?
Does Social Media beckon you to take just one last peek?
Is your room a reflection of the clutter in your mind?
…Now you’re washing clothes instead of writing rhymes.
Does your stomach start to growl when you grab your pen to write?
Do you throw in the towel and say, “it’s just not worth the fight”?
Do you decide before beginning, “this must be writer’s block”?
You haven’t even started yet you feel it’s time to stop.
These things are comical when you read them on a page.
But there is nothing funny about being stuck at this stage.
Words are like treasure that you get to give away.
As a writer you articulate words people wish that they could say.
God gave you a gift so that you could speak His heart.
How will you hear “well done” if you are too afraid to start? 

7 Quotes to Help You Stay Focused & Overcome Fear

1. “Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hour days.” – Zig Ziglar
2. “It’s only by saying “No” that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.” – Steve Jobs
3. “Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.” – John F.Kennedy
4. “The main thing is to keep the main thing a main thing.” – Stephen R.Covey
5. “Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” -Dale Carnegie
6. “The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”              -Nelson Mandela
7. “Don’t let the fear of striking out hold you back.” -Babe Ruth

Share some of your favorite quotes about staying focused or overcoming fears.

Take a Leap of Faith

“This is why I write to remind you to stir up the gift of God that was conveyed to you when I laid my hands upon you. You see, God did not give us a cowardly spirit but a powerful, loving, and disciplined spirit.” 2 Timothy 1:6-7 (VOICE)

Take a Leap of Faith

Don’t be discouraged.  

The Devil’s desire is to distract you.  

Though your dream is delayed it is definitely not denied.  

Do you hear that sound?  It’s a song of deliverance.  

God rejoices over you with singing and quiets you with His love.  

When all hope seems lost, start looking to the hills.  

Your help comes from Heaven and Heaven’s hope will not fail.  

You are closer than you think.  Keep moving forward.  

Though you feel forgotten, you are still the apple of His eye.  

When your heart has shattered into a thousand tiny pieces is when God is most near, though He feels so far away.  

Cling to the truth when fear is all you feel. Close your eyes to life’s lies and take a leap of faith.