“The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray.” 1 Peter 4:7
I’m passionate about prayer, including leading retreats called “Adventures in Prayer.” Why? Because prayer opens up a divine conversation, and wonderfully, the Lord loves to meet us. The ways he reveals himself delight, like the time I was in a listening-prayer group with people I didn’t know, and one of them had a picture for me of roller skates. Sounds odd, but I immediately understood what the image meant – the roller skates symbolized the public speaking I was soon embarking on. Although I felt fear and trepidation when strapping on the skates (standing at the podium), once I got rolling, I’d feel the wind whip through my hair in exhilaration. I knew I was to trust God, including giving up my word-for-word scripts. That picture ushered in a new joy and freedom in my speaking.
Sometimes prayer is freeing and joyous, like that clear image, but sometimes we are sober of mind. Here Peter alerts us that the end is near, so we should be alert and pray. We might have before us heavy matters: a friend experiencing a crushing loss; a son facing depression and difficulty; a family member holding a grudge against us. As we take these issues to God, asking for his grace and mercy, he will bring us hope, relief and signs of joy.
Father God, I give you my concerns and delights. I know you hear me, and that you love me. Amen.
They will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 1 Peter 4:5
Some time ago, I was asked to draft, in advance, an obituary for a Christian leader. The task weighed on me, for not only was there no immanent deadline (thankfully, the person was in good health), but I recoiled from summing up the life of another. Finally I dedicated some time to the task and wrote a draft, although later I heard that it wasn’t what they had in mind.
Have you ever thought what you’d like for your obituary? Or what you’d write for one close to you? After my failed attempt, I read a friend’s lively and touching memories of her husband, who had died of cancer. After reading her short account I felt like I knew him, realizing also where my draft of the obituary came up short.
Even more daunting than writing an obituary will be giving our account of our life to God. Do you imagine the scenes flashing before you of every stinging comment, indiscreet action, or prideful boast? I know we will be judged for our sins, but I also know that Jesus will be there standing in our stead, our advocate and ambassador. Yet his redeeming us doesn’t give us license to sin all the more. For as we become more like him, we shrink from that which is unholy as we yearn to bring glory to God.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, may my life’s account be filled with stories of hope and redemption, for your sake. Amen.
For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do… 1 Peter 4:3
Last week we talked about suffering and death being out of fashion in our Western world. So too is judgment. Many Christians today fear making public their views on matters of ethics, thinking they will be branded judgmental or fundamentalist and therefore excluded from the conversation. Others fear sharing their faith and calling people to embrace God, for they don’t want to name another’s sin or selfishness. But Peter, like Paul, calls us to leave our old lives behind.
We become new people at our conversion, but we have to keep putting on these new selves daily as we put on Christ. We can easily be allured back to our old selves – perhaps with drunkenness, or gossip, anger, bitterness… the list goes on. But God doesn’t want us stuck in our former ways of behaving. He lives in us through his Spirit, giving us the power to be transformed. To resist the drink or nasty whisper or hastily exclaimed words of anger. As we ask God to change us, moment by moment, he will. He delights to make us more like him.
Our behavior will speak more loudly than our words to those around us. Like Peter, they will notice that we’ve put our past fully behind us, no longer slaves to detestable practices. Though we may struggle still, the light of Christ living in us will be revealed.
Prayer: Triune God, though you are the judge, you are merciful. Help me to choose life today. Amen.
Lovely to feature this interview with Julie Klassen (originally published in Woman Alive), who just won the fiction award for the Minnesota Book Awards with her book The Secret of Pembrooke Park. This makes me happy on many levels, not least because Minnesota is where I grew up but also because I was a reader of her book when it was in manuscript form, reading it through quirky Anglican eyes!
When I look back, I see how God graciously led me to become an editor. I learned so much from working with other editors and talented authors – things that taught me not only about writing but about how to craft a full-length novel. I am thankful for my years with Bethany House Publishers. But, I am also thankful that I could hang up my editorial “red pen” and focus on my writing. Two benefits I’ve especially enjoyed are having time to read for pleasure and developing friendships with more authors.
I think many of us, regardless of our place of birth, are swept away by the romance and chivalry of Jane Austen’s time. In fact, when I visited the Netherlands last year, I met with members of the Jane Austen society there. And last autumn I attended the annual meeting of the Jane Austen Society of North America with attendees from several countries. Miss Austen (and Mr Darcy) fans are everywhere!
I have loved all-things-British ever since I read The Secret Garden and Jane Eyre as a young girl. But like so many women, it was seeing Colin Firth in Pride and Prejudice that inspired me to read all of Jane Austen’s novels and cemented my love of the Regency time period. I find it a romantic time – with gentlemen in tail coats and tall boots and women in those lovely gowns, the courtly balls, and the chivalry where the mere touch of gloved hands during a country dance sparked romance. Sigh. It was also a time when church attendance and family prayers were commonplace. (After all, Jane Austen herself was a clergyman’s daughter.) Whatever the reasons, I am thankful so many readers are drawn to the era as I am.
When I am up for an award, I am always anxious when awaiting the big moment. Of course it’s a thrill to win, but that emotion is rapidly overshadowed by amazement and gratitude. I believe God has given me this gift, and I’m so thankful to be able to use it for His glory.
When I first visited the UK,while other tourists were visiting the London Eye or Buckingham Palace, I dragged my long-suffering husband to places like the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries and the Museum of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain. After all, I was researching my second novel, The Apothecary’s Daughter. On our second trip, when researching The Maid of Fairbourne Hall, we focused on visiting houses with their servants’ areas intact, such as in Bath or Newport. We also visited Devonshire and Cornwall where I pinpointed the setting for The Tutor’s Daughter.
I finally have “a room of her own,” as author Virginia Woolf described as necessary for fiction writers. For years, I simply wrote wherever I could find a quiet place – the dining room, while the kids watched TV in the living room, or tucked upstairs in our bedroom. Indeed, I wrote my first several novels without my own room, so I don’t know that I agree with Virginia Woolf, but it sure is nice having my own space.
Julie Klassen is an award-winning author of historical fiction. She enjoys travel, research, BBC period dramas, long hikes, short naps and coffee with friends. She lives with her family in Minnesota.
Time for a new devotional series! Let’s delve into some of Peter’s first letter, written probably around the year 60 by Peter, with the help of Silas. Peter writes to the Jewish and Gentile Christians scattered throughout much of Asia Minor. Over the next weeks we’ll be looking at 1 Peter 4:1–11 in depth:
Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. 2As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. 3For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do – living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 4They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. 5But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit.
7The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude… 1 Peter 4:1
The sight arrested me. The angels I was used to seeing were cute and cuddly – babies with smiling faces. This angel was no baby, but a skull with wings below it.
My first visit to Rome imparted many rich memories, but the image of that angel made a lasting impression. For in our sanitized Western world, we often are shielded from the realities of suffering and death. For instance, when a member of our family dies, we no longer lay them out in our front rooms. Nor do as many women die from giving birth (thankfully). But all the people I’ve met have suffered in one way or another, and one day we all will die.
So although we run from suffering and death, how can we yet be like Christ? Peter tells us to arm ourselves with Christ’s attitude, that our suffering may be the means of us being done with sin. As we turn to God in our pain and confusion, he transforms us. He may not relieve the situation we find ourselves in, but his loves changes us, including our perspective. He gives us strength and hope to persevere.
How can Christ meet you today in any suffering you might be enduring, whether physical or emotional? Look to him for relief and sustenance.
Prayer: Lord God, we run to you with our fears, hurts and disappointments. When we suffer, relieve us. Amen.
Today I have an article on Sacred Reading over at the Kingdom Life Now magazine. Here’s a taste.
Recently I led an exercise of meditative reading of the Bible. Four times I read the passage of Isaiah 43:1-8 with instructions to the women with a different emphasis in engaging with the text each time. About a month later, I was humbled to hear from one woman about how God spoke to her through the exercise. She said how she and her husband had been to Brunei in Southeast Asia a couple of weeks before the conference in Somerset, England, to visit their daughter and family (including three young grandchildren), who have lived there for the last seven years. While there, she learned that her son-in-law decided to apply for teaching jobs in Belgium, Singapore, and Oman. With Belgium being far closer to home, she and her husband were hoping this would be their final destination. She said,
When you read Isaiah to us the only sentences that I heard were verses 5 and 6, where it says, “I will bring your children from the East and your daughters from far-off lands.” How relevant to me were those words and I held onto them as a promise to me from God – that He was telling me that my son-in-law would get the job and my family would come close. I was so convinced that I told others what God was saying. So imagine the great joy when we heard on that he had been offered the job in Belgium and they were to start in September! No more 17 hour flight to see them! God truly had gathered my children from the East and my daughter from a far-off land.
She said that although before my talk she had never heard of lectio divina – a Latin phrase for the act of sacred reading – but now she had come across it several times.
Change Agent
This ancient practice of a slow, contemplative praying of the Scriptures moves what can be a merely rational process deep into one’s heart, for as we chew over a piece of Scripture, it sinks into our being. We begin to slow down, receive, and make a personal response. Continue reading.
On the 13th of every month I’m blogging over at the Association of Christian Writers’ blog. Here’s a taster of today’s entry. For last month’s, on riffing to Psalm 23, click here.
Photo: le vent le cri, Flickr
“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us… With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you … so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:1-4, NIV, abridged).
My heart felt ripped open when my job as a commissioning editor at a large Christian publisher was eliminated. I loved my work in coaxing writers to pen their creations – books that only they could write – to God’s glory. But the international market couldn’t support my job and so I had to bid it – and my authors – farewell. As I was leaving, the head of publishing said, “You’ll never know how many people’s lives are touched through the books you worked on. They’re God’s ambassadors.”
I’ll never forgot his encouragement, for he gave me perspective during a painful time. And indeed, as writers we’ll never fully grasp the impact of our words. Sometimes a reader will share encouragement, but often we write and press “send,” not knowing if and how God will use our labors. Read the rest.
I had a lovely time on Premier Christian Radio yesterday chatting about writing and publishing for World Book Day.
In prepping for the interview, I found out that World Book Day is celebrated in over 100 countries. Many countries celebrate on April 23 (Shakespeare’s birth and death day!); that’s when the UK marks World Book Night (with the stealth distribution of books among other things). They moved the celebration of World Book Day to March 5 to accommodate schools, as the latter date is often during the school holidays. Many schools participate in the schemes where children receive a voucher toward money off books.
Here is the interview, in which we talk about whole host of writing tips and things to consider about finding an agent and publisher.
You can see some of my other writing posts here, including how to write a devotional and advice to a newbie writer.
As I think about appearing on Premier Christian Radio tomorrow to celebrate World Book Day, I thought I’d share a few tips on how to give a great radio interview. I’m not a pro, but I’m much more comfortable behind the microphone than I was when I went the first time, shaking in my boots and nearly peeing my pants, to review the newspapers back a decade ago. That experience was a bit like baptism by fire, as I sat across from a tough interviewer who in Jeremy-Paxman style grilled me over opinions on issues I didn’t even know I had. Five days of that helped me overcome a lot of fear, and each day as I left the studios I breathed a sigh of relief, verily skipping my way back to the Tube station.
When my next interviews weren’t live but taped, I could hardly believe how fun and light the experience felt. Jeff Lucas and Ruth Dearnley invited me to their fab chat show “In Good Company,” which felt a dream in comparison to the live firing line. They talked; I listened; I chimed in… and we even could stop and go back and have bits edited out!
Imagine you’re talking with one person
This was my Best. Advice. Ever. I told a work colleague about my upcoming News Review interviews and he, an old hand at presenting on radio and television, imparted this wisdom. If we think of the potentially thousands of people who might be listening, we’ll clam up and sound stilted. Instead, imagine you’re having a conversation not only with your interviewer, but that one person from the audience is there in the studio with you. You’ll come across as much more personable.
Shut up!
Oh my goodness; I’ve learned this one the hard way. When I listen back to some of my early interviews, I cringe at how I would go on, and on, and on, and on. How boring for the listeners; how insensitive of me not to let the interviewer (or if you’re in a group, the others) to get a word in edgewise. I can see now that nerves were driving this drivel. Don’t be afraid to say your answer and then stop speaking; the interviewer, after all, is probably a seasoned professional and will carry the conversation. Your silence will also give her the opportunity to follow up on what you say or steer the conversation in another fashion.
Prepare – then let it go
You may be tempted to bring a load of detailed notes with you into the studio; don’t. Do prepare in advance, writing down your main points and even practicing some snappy lines or phrases that you’d like the listener to engage with. (Having a family member or friend conduct a mock interview is a good way to see if you need to practice more.) But if you are slavishly poring over your notes in the interview, you’ll probably sound scattered and disjointed.
Exude confidence – even if you don’t feel it
This is a tough one, for if our nerves are screaming at us and we’re live on air, we may feel anything but confident. Yet confidence breeds confidence, and as we slow down, take a deep breath, and focus on the interviewer and his questions, we’ll become more articulate and calm, maybe even exuding a sense of assurance. The interviewer too will gain in trust, knowing that he won’t be having to carry us in the interview.
Photo: Andréia Bohner, flickr
Smile
It may be radio (or television!), and you think the smile will be unseen, but what’s unseen matters (bigger spiritual principle alert). The smile in your voice will come through, and the listener will hear it.
After the fact, listen up
We can all learn from our experiences, especially with interviews. They get easier the more we do them, and we can learn from our triumphs and our missteps. Get a podcast of the interview and listen back in the privacy of your own home, cringing or smiling. What did you do well? What do you wish you would have said? When did you speak too much, or too little? Which ideas or words did you stumble over? Do you have any pet phrases that you seem to say all the time, or words such as “um,” that you utter too much? Don’t be too hard on yourself though – you’ll probably be a much harsher critic than those listening to you.
At the end of the day, give thanks. Any opportunity to share with others seems to me a gift from God, well worth returning thanks for.
I believe writing devotionals may be part of my soon-to-be-seriously-begun writing ministry. Have you any helpful tips as I start? I’m retiring at the end of March and although I will be a lay pastor, I will finally be able to give serious time to writing. I’ve read your CWR notes and love them!
Photo: “Bible time,” Brett Jordan, flickr
Hello and thanks for asking! I love, love, love writing Bible reading notes. As I prepare, I read and dream and research and wonder and pray, and then I get down to the writing. Often time seems suspended and I exclaim, “Wow, I love this, Lord!” But I say this acknowledging that not everyone has this experience when crafting devotionals. This kind of writing is my sweet spot; it’s part of how I’ve been made and who I am. And I’ve been writing devotionals since 2008. I haven’t counted up how many I’ve written for some time, but I’m guessing 400 or 500. So please don’t feel bad if you don’t experience the sense of sheer joy in your writing. It may come.
You asked for some tips as you dive in; here you go.
Make your words (characters) count.
“If I had more time, I’d make this shorter.” Writers of devotionals – Bible reading notes – don’t have the luxury of space. Usually the text is limited to around 300 words, so the content needs to matter. A publisher I’m currently writing for designates character (with spaces) counts, so there’s no fudging. You know, like those hyphenated words that only count as one word in a word count (The writer-who-likes-to-cheat Amy? Nope.) Write your first draft and then prune, prune, prune. Employ strong verbs – the passive voice eats up your word count. Delete adjectives and adverbs. And so on. (A read through of the classic Strunk & White can be enlightening before you dive in.)
Gather your thoughts.
In the weeks before your deadline, read through the text you’ve been assigned (or that you’ve chosen) prayerfully, asking God to reveal what he wants you to write. Start a “thoughts” file on your computer/device where you can jot down notes and illustrations that occur to you. Writers train themselves to notice details – it’s as if while we’re experiencing a near car accident, we’re also taking notes on what we were thinking when the car in front of us stopped, the hue of the sky and how the light hit our eyes, the pounding feeling in our chest when our foot reflexively hit the brakes and the car stopped just in time, and the “Thank you, Lord” prayer we exhaled. (Do stop the car before you note these down.)
Photo: Savio Sebastian, flickr
Submit yourself to the text.
I love writing notes that are assigned to me – such as the series I’m going through on my blog on Hosea, or the series on verse by verse of Psalm 18 (start from the bottom of the links). We so often skip over the hard bits in the Bible, and so writing on a chunk of Scripture in a series can be an effective way to avoid this.
But I also mean in submitting ourselves to the text that we seek not to read what we want to read in the Bible, but what God has put there. Do some research and find out the context. Don’t just jump to handy conclusions. Ask God’s Holy Spirit to reveal the meaning. Leading to…
Research.
When I first started writing Bible reading notes, I spent a week or more reading and taking notes on various Bible commentaries. In one sense I needed the help because I hadn’t engaged with the Bible at that level before. (Those of you who preach regularly will have the benefit of this close engagement.) But in another sense I found myself crippled to form my own opinion. In doing so much background reading, I was in danger of merely parroting back the ideas in the commentaries. I had to put my notes aside for several days so that I wasn’t stealing the content of others in what I wrote. (Of course, there’s nothing new under the sun, and we unconsciously share the wisdom of others all the time – along with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.)
A lovely letter from a reader who sent me a Thanksgiving card for many years.
Journey with the reader.
This probably doesn’t need stating, but you as the writer are a fellow pilgrim, and in the writing of Bible reading notes, you’re often sharing what you’re learning even as you write. So put on the cloak of humility, because wow it’s so amazing to get paid to submerge ourselves in the Bible and to share what we’re gleaning with others!
Yes, you can use the classic formula.
Devotionals often start with an arresting anecdote, which links to the biblical text that the writer delves into, which leads to the application. So that would be
Illustration
Text
Application
Being one who likes to buck the rules, I like to vary things up, sometimes diving straight into the text, for instance. But I do seek to add an application for each reading – after all, we do want to be living under the wisdom of God’s word.
Weave in biblical text.
I love to fold into my reflections various verses from Scripture. I don’t seek to do this slavishly, for that would make it feel forced, but often in the prayer section at the end of the devotional, a verse will stand out to me as suitable for prayer and reflection. (I don’t have the mind of NicTheVic who can name chapter and verse when it comes to Scripture. I have fragments and pieces stored in various levels of my brain, so I find the search facility at BibleGateway a fantastic resource for bringing them to the fore.) Reminding the readers of the great sweep of Scripture can be helpful too, depending on what you’re addressing.
Pray.
This is the most important element of writing devotionals. Pray before you start; pray while you’re writing; pray while you’re rewriting; pray when you send off your work to your editor. We trust that God will inspire us with his word; we yearn for him to bring just the right encouragement for the broken-hearted, the lonely widower, the overwhelmed parent. We oftentimes write a year in advance, so we can’t control the outcome or the effect of what we write. Which makes the sometimes miraculous meetings between devotionals and the reader’s experience so humbling (as I wrote in a blog about some notes that God used during an earthquake in New Zealand).
I can’t explain how sometimes an illustration will pop into my head when I’m writing. Oftentimes I approach the text without seemingly a clue of where I’ll go with it in terms of the illustration and application. But as with so many creative pursuits of collaborating with God, we take the first step and he helps us to continue. As with the Israelites wandering through the desert who had enough food for the day, he provides just enough inspiration for the devotional we’re writing.
A “wow this is humbling” letter.
Try to develop a thick skin.
The first publication I wrote for had an exacting readership. Any theological matter I addressed could be questioned; any uninformed opinion taken to task. I came to dread the letters from readers, for they pointed out where I was lacking. But the readers’ letters made me welcome my editor’s comments all the more, for she knew her readership and was careful to massage my text into a more acceptable format (without asking me to budge on key theological matters). I always took the time to reply to these readers (asking God to let a humble response come through), for they had taken the time to write to me.
Then I wrote a series on being a pilgrim in a foreign land. Bulky packages from the publisher started to pop through my letterbox, and amazingly, this time the readers wrote with their stories of feeling in exile! The publisher said they had never had such a big response in terms of feedback. I heard from other Americans living in the UK or those with connections to other countries. I felt overwhelmed with gratitude at this response, made all the sweeter by my long history of not-so-easy reader letters.
I hope this is helpful; do let me know how you get on. And thanks for your kind words about the CWR notes. I’m humbled when people find my writing helpful or inspiring. Praise God!
I’m passionate about prayer, including leading retreats called “Adventures in Prayer.” Why? Because prayer opens up a divine conversation, and wonderfully, the Lord loves to meet us. The ways he reveals himself delight, like the time I was in a listening-prayer group with people I didn’t know, and one of them had a picture for me of roller skates. Sounds odd, but I immediately understood what the image meant – the roller skates symbolized the public speaking I was soon embarking on. Although I felt fear and trepidation when strapping on the skates (standing at the podium), once I got rolling, I’d feel the wind whip through my hair in exhilaration. I knew I was to trust God, including giving up my word-for-word scripts. That picture ushered in a new joy and freedom in my speaking.
