Grace for the Writer’s Journey: Reliance

Dear Writer, I hope you’ve had a good week and considered what surrender looks like in your writing life! This week, we’re exploring the next step in our writing journey. That step is reliance.

You see, it can be difficult to partner with God’s grace in our lives until we realize we can do nothing without that grace. After all, when God calls us, it’s always to a work we cannot accomplish apart from Him. Learning what reliance looks like in our writing lives is key to stepping into all that God has for us.

But before we jump in, let’s look at some others whose reliance on God allowed Him to do amazing things through them…

Reliance in History

Saint Francis of Assisi is a beautiful example of total reliance on God. When Saint Francis became a monk, he took a vow of poverty, swearing to keep nothing for himself and rely on God alone to meet his needs. This life of poverty was not an easy one. But God honored Saint Francis’s dependence on Him. God not only cared for Francis’s needs but used him to revive the recognition of His love and dignity for all men an era of incessant feudal wars. 

Through Saint Francis’s reliance, God grew a movement Franciscan monks that carried on Francis’s legacy and call of service. Not only that, God also grew the Saint Francis’s influence to reach kings and popes and nations.

You see, writer, when we refuse to shrink back from God’s call and instead rely on Him for what only He can do, He has space to shape our voice and ministry to His purposes.

Reliance in the Bible

Elijah is another amazing example of reliance. Elijah knew God had called him to overthrow Baal worship in Israel. When Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal, the showdown pitted him, one man, against four hundred and fifty. But Elijah’s unshakeable confidence in God’s person and purposes created space for God to demonstrate his unparalleled power. As a result, the nation of Israel saw unequivocally that God alone held power and answered prayers.

You see, writer, reliance is simply confidence that God is who He said He is and will do what He’s promised to do. And because God Himself is so vast, the moment we begin to understand and trust His heart, astounding things begin to happen!

Reliance in Life

 I learned reliance on a whole new level, the second year I ran the experience Writing Conference. Though it was the conference’s second year, it was the first year I’d run it alone. That year, I grappled with several personal crises. When the day of the conference arrived, I told my husband, “This is going to be the grace of God, or it’s going to be nothing.” 

To my amazement, God honored my faithfulness to move forward, relying on Him. And He filled every gap, creating an unforgettable experience for those who came. And here’s the thing…

Reliance in Your Life

Relying on God is about recognizing our limits and willingly stepping beyond them, trusting that He will indeed do the things we can’t. Now reliance isn’t a license for irresponsibility. But it is a freedom to step forward in faith in the place we know God is calling us, knowing that as we give our wholehearted “yes,” He will indeed teach, guide, and provide for our needs along the way. 

When we walk with Him in this way, everyone can see that what was accomplished was impossible without Him. Let me show you…

• • …who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. – Hebrews 11:33-34
  • Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. – Psalm 37:5-6
  • For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. – Ephesians 2:10
  • But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. – 2 Corinthians 12:9
  • Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. 20Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. – Romans 4:19-21

At heart, reliance on God is about resolving, like Abraham, that God’s word to you is indeed true. It’s also about allowing Him to reign sovereign over the time, place, and method He uses to fulfill that word, whether it’s much larger or smaller than we expected. And the wonderful thing is this. As we rely on Him, He brings our destiny to life and ignites the destinies of others, too.

Where to Start with Reliance

So are you ready to look at deepening your reliance on God in your life and writing? Here are some things to consider…

1. 1. Get to Know God. Relying on God is tied inextricably to knowing Him. The more we get to know Him, the easier it is to trust Him. Spend time studying His word with an eye to learn who He is. Study His heart, promises, and character. Spend time meditating on His attributes. This will help you more readily recognize God’s heart and movement around you. And this step leads to…
   2. Spend Time with God. As you get to know who God is, learning to spend time with Him is a natural next step. Time in prayer, journaling, and worship is invaluable. But another way we get to know God is by learning to spend time with Him throughout our day. Talk to Him about your work and relationships. Ask for His help and wisdom. Share your joys and concerns with Him throughout the day. As we do this, we begin to recognize Him in the day to day. To cultivate this habit, consider setting some alarms to remind you to pause and engage Him. Using sticky notes or other physical reminders can also be helpful!
   3. Practice Gratitude. Intentionally practicing gratitude also trains our eye to recognize where God is at work around us. It tunes our mind to recognize the little ways He demonstrates His love to us. Cultivating a habit of gratitude for the little things prepares our heart to trust Him in the big things.
   4. Remember His Goodness. Humans are naturally forgetful creatures. Taking time to remember all that God has done for us builds our faith for all God has promised to do in our future. I encourage you to simply sit and recall outstanding moments of Gods intervention and provision in your life or in the lives of those you love. Write those moments down in a place you can review them again and again. Because here’s the thing…

Developing our reliance on God is about cultivating a mind and heart that remembers who He is and prefers Him above all else. After all, Saint Francis’s, Elijah’s and my own courage to do audacious things—or to follow through with commitments that seemed to outgrow us—sprang from rock-solid conviction that God had called us to those works and that our responsibility to answer was to Him alone. And here’s the amazing thing…

When we resolutely resolve to do what God has asked, He is faithful to provide what’s lacking. Whether it’s wisdom, people, strategies, provision, confidence, or something only He knows we need. And the beautiful thing? As we engage in those works, God demonstrates His power through us and makes our lives into a living testimony for Him.

So I encourage you today, writer, if you’ve felt discouraged or overwhelmed by the size of your call or the scope of the work ahead, take heart! You’ve been invited into a unique journey with your King! As you take that next step, and the next, and the next, you will get to know Him in ways you never have before. And He will use your life to write a story permeated with His power and glory.

#glory #reliance #EveryWriterWriting