Dear Writer, I hope you had a beautiful week and took time to foster a pioneering mindset for your writing and marketing journey! This week, we’re going to look at the marketing mindset of patience.
You see, sometimes we need to keep moving in order to grow and get results. A big part of the marketing journey is staying in the game long enough to see how God is fitting you to reach those He’s called you to. If we give up too easily, it can be hard to learn from mistakes or to discover the fruitful path God has for us.
But before we dive in, here are a few examples of others whose patience helped fuel their journey…
Patience in History
Mother Teresa is a beautiful example of patience. When Mother Teresa received her call to serve the impoverished in the city of Calcutta, she went directly to her overseers to seek their approval. Mother Teresa had vowed to remain obedient to the Catholic Church and could not leave her convent without official permission. Though the church originally denied her request to serve the poor, Mother Teresa patiently lobbied her superiors for a year and a half until she finally received approval for her new ministry.
When Mother Teresa finally launched her ministry, she did so with the full backing of the Catholic Church, which helped fuel and stabilize that ministry as it grew.
You see, writer, sometimes we take a “no” or a lack of results as a sign of disqualification or an indicator we’re doing something wrong. But when we develop a mindset of patience, we recognize that failure can simply be an indicator to press in as God uses the process to prepare us for our work.
Patience in the Bible
Jeremiah is another beautiful and poignant example of patience. No one heeded Jeremiah’s prophecies that Judah would be overrun by Babylon, during his forty-plus year ministry. Even so, Jeremiah patiently (and sometimes not so patiently!) persisted in God’s call and message. In a prophetic act looking forward to God’s restoration as Jerusalem faced invasion, Jeremiah even bought a field in the territory of Benjamin.
Though his message fell on deaf ears in his own time, Jeremiah’s words speak powerfully to God’s people today as his example of patience encourages our own.
You see, writer, there may be times in our marketing journey when God puts certain acts on our heart that seem to bear no fruit. But here’s the thing: some of the seeds God directs us to sow are designed to bring about a long term results we won’t get to see. That’s why patience and recognition of God’s voice are key to our marketing process.
Patience in Life
I grew in patience when I began working on my disorganized home. I struggled to keep the house clean while working part time from home without children. Though tackling the situation felt overwhelming, God led me to teaching that underscored the need to be patient with myself and with the process. After all, my house had not gotten where it was overnight, and it would be foolish to think getting it back in shape would be an instant accomplishment.
The process ended up taking nearly eight years. But by the time I was done, my house was no longer a burden. Instead it was a tool that fueled my work and ministry. And here’s the thing…
Patience in Your Life
Developing a mindset of patience in your marketing is about realizing that marketing is a building process. We build our brand and identity as we understand more clearly who God called us to be as authors. We build our platform as we get to know our readers. We build relationships as we begin to boldly walk out that identity and take steps toward our readers. And that building takes time. But here’s the other thing…
That building is not something we do alone. Let me prove it to you…
- Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep. – Psalm 127:1-2
- Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. – Philippians 2:12-13
- Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. – Proverbs 3:5-6
You see, writer, developing a mindset of patience is really about learning to recognize and stay in step with the Lord’s timing for our lives. It’s about gaining clarity and receiving counsel that will help you discern when to press forward and when to pause and make adjustments. As we learn to stay in step with Him, God can pave the way for results we never imagined.
Where to Start with Patience
So are you ready to grow your patience for your marketing journey? Here are some ideas to get you started…
- Spend Time in Prayer & the Word. One of the biggest keys to developing patience is to invest in our walk with God. We develop our trust in Him, our awareness of His presence, and our understanding of His Word, will, and ways through time in prayer and Bible Study. Journaling what He reveals in prayer and in His word is a great help in this process. And, cultivating these consistent times, adds substance to our relationship and helps us recognize where He is at work in our lives.
- Clarify Your Why. Another key to patience is getting clear on your God-given call to write. If you haven’t yet, write down God’s call for you as a writer, as you currently understand it. As you spend time with Him, regularly pray about your writing journey and goals. This practice will keep you anchored and help you discern what opportunities and decision “fit” and which don’t.
- Engage in Community. Part of developing a mindset of patience is recognizing and embracing the fact that God often speaks to us through others. One great way to do this is to engage in a local writers group. Another, is to ask one or two friends to partner with you in prayer as you go through your writing journey. These kinds of activities will keep you encouraged, expand and grow your skills, and position you to receive timely Godly counsel from others.
- Commit to God’s Plan. Another key to developing a mindset of patience is to resolve that God has indeed called you and that He is not a liar. This doesn’t mean that you won’t fail. But it does mean you have resolved to lean into the Lord and His people when the journey isn’t easy, instead of giving up. Because here’s the real deal…
Developing a mindset of patience is really about developing an unshakeable trust in the Lord and in His call on your life. A trust that knows you cannot ultimately fail because God cannot fail. It’s about leaning into Him when life’s circumstances and outcomes seem contrary to that call. It’s about training ourselves to see how He is using life’s obstacles to leverage us toward His plans. And it’s about moving forward in faith even when we don’t see those answers for some time. Because here’s the thing…
If Mother Teresa had given up when her overseers said “no” to her vision, thousands upon thousands would never have encountered the love and saving knowledge of God. If Jeremiah had not patiently persisted in his message, through the attacks and threats of the Jews, we would not have his record of God’s enduring love and purposes in the midst of judgment. If I had not persisted through those early years, my home would still be a hindrance to my work and ministry.
You see, developing a mindset of patience is about recognizing that only God knows the glory waiting on the other side of our endurance. And it’s about trusting what He said will come to pass—even if we never see its fullness for ourselves. Because here’s the final thought: when we push forward in patient faith, God uses adversity to expand us and our stories to hold a measure of His glory we never imagined.
So I encourage you today, if a lack of patience has been undermining your writing and marketing journey, take heart! Lean into God and into the processes and people He’s provided to mature you. As you do, you enter into His great adventure, where He becomes the hero of your story and fits your life to become a beacon of His glory, too.
#patience #keepgoing #faith #EveryWriterWriting
