by Rebecca Yauger, @RebeccaYauger
Have you ever had a time where you kept seeing the same Bible verse or same phrase again and again? Whether it’s part of your daily devotional, on social media, or in prayer with a friend, the same message comes up again and again?
That happened to me recently. The story from Exodus of Moses and the Israelites wandering in the desert showed up in various ways in my life, literally four or five times. Especially the part where the Lord rained down manna every day to provide the Israelites exactly what they needed to eat for that day. No more, no less.
The story of the manna wouldn’t leave me no matter where I turned. As I thought more about it, the more I realized this story could translate to our writing life.
As writers, there are times when you open your computer to work on your manuscript and all you can do is stare at the blank screen. You’re stuck. Even if you’ve outlined your novel, you can become blocked. Or you see that the amount of work required to complete the story is overwhelming. You think to yourself, “there’s no way I can get this all done.” If you’re a pantster, you may have written yourself into a corner. Right now, we’re in the midst of NaNoWriMo. You may be struggling to meet your daily word count (raises hand).
The writing frustrations can stop in your tracks. But that’s where this story of Moses and the Israelites can help. The Lord provided manna every day, just want the Israelites needed. And guess what? When we pray and trust, the Lord will also provide what we require every day.
We need to believe in His provision, and in the story He’s given us. Just focus on the words that we want to be written today… only today.
Have confidence that God is beside you, pouring down the manna you need right this minute.
Then day by day, you’ll make progress. You’ll finish your story, one day at a time.
Rebecca Yauger worked for 15 years in radio and television broadcasting, before starting on her writing career. She’s been published in Chicken Soup for the Soul and Guideposts Magazine and continues to scribble away on various projects. She also blogs at www.TalkingAmongFriends.com. Becky was past Vice-President and Membership Director for American Christian Fiction Writers and currently serves as ACFW’s Web Manager. Becky and her husband live near Dallas and have two grown children, one beautiful grandchild with another one on the way.