I was having a conversation about writing with a dear friend recently, and like all conversations about writing, we ended up talking about whether I would ever be able to write full time. I’ve tried it before, and then, I didn’t have the creative energy to produce for so many hours. Now, as I have been steadily increasing my hours of writing, I think I could sustain the pace, but it’s impossible. I am not at an income-producing place in what I write. Then, there’s the matter of insurance and 401ks and sick days.
So, I have to have a day job.
And some days, I resent it.
Some days, I think about many of the writers I know who spend easily four or fives times more hours writing than I do, some who even write full-time, who have a spouse who provides a consistent income. I don’t have someone else to provide for me while I build a career and take creative risks.
So, I have to have a day job.
And some days, I resent it.
Other days, I think about a few writers I know who are successful and have published books and articles and give lectures at conferences. And they may or may not have a spouse who works, but it doesn’t matter. The writing supports them.
They certainly don’t have a day job.
And some days, to be honest, I resent it.
Then I remember what a gift my day job is. I remember my company’s loyalty to me when I was sick and the friendships I have made working side by side with people day after day. I think about the eight years I have been there, the consistency the work has brought to my life and the income it has provided, all while allowing me to write at least a few hours a week.
I think of the work, itself, the work that gives my left brain something meaningful to do, the work that organizes and queries and analyzes.
And I read
Mari’s words, words capturing the reality of our work: when we are there so is Jesus.
I tell myself God is with me as I pull into the parking lot.
God is with me.
If He is with me then He is here? At the office? (Bare with me, sometimes the simplest realities elude me)
And doesn’t that make this a holy place?
I am writing this in the morning – finally. Finally, I am going to bed early enough to get up early enough to write in the morning before work. But when I write in the morning, it means that words hit the keyboard even as my hair finishes drying, and paragraphs emerge as my breakfast finishes digesting. I sit here knowing I have to stop soon to go to the office.
But today, I don’t resent it. Today, I am going with God.
Join me for regular jaunts around The High Calling network, randomly visiting fellow bloggers, soaking up their words and ideas, and then coming back here to write about them from my perspective. This is what The High Calling network is all about, after all.
Our site is about casting a vision that is clear enough and inspiring enough that our readers can run with it on their own sites. We then spend the majority of our editorial time listening to them on their sites and helping them shine as writers. We believe in the power of the laity so much that we are relying on them and their audiences to help spread the vision that has been given to us. – Marcus Goodyear, senior editor, thehighcalling.org (from “The Challenge, Strategy, and Execution of Combining Web Properties” by Dan King on churchcrunch.com)
Each Thursday, consider going “There and Back Again” yourself. It’s simple.
1.) Choose another High Calling Blogger to visit. It can be someone you have “met” before, or do what I do, and work your way through the “Member Posts” section of thehighcalling.com to meet someone new.
2.) Visit his blog, digesting the message until it becomes something that you can write about.
3.) Go back to your blog and write about it, being sure to link to the post that gave you the idea so that your readers can visit, too.
4.) Add the button above to your blog so your readers know you are participating in “There and Back Again.”
5.) Go back to the Network blog and leave a comment so your new friend can feel the link love!
6.) Complete the journey by returning here, to Wide Open Spaces, and enter your link so that we all can benefit from the new High Calling connection you have made.
Ann – you, like many of the others, end up working far more than I do with homeschooling and homemaking, not to mention the teaching, editing, speaking. Then, there’s the writin.
I’ve obviously revealed my naïveté in what really is required of the writing life. And like Deidra, I would probably resent the writing, too. Lord have mercy.
I have the husband with the consistent income, but I still struggle to find writing time in the midst of other obligations and tasks.
Loved what Mari reminded us: everywhere I go, God goes with me.
Thank you for introducing me to another TheHighCalling.org member, and inviting me to head off and mingle with THC network members.
These comments are so helpful – we all struggle with the work we are given in different ways.
I appreciate the encouragement and that you all are sharing your own stories of learning that Jesus is with you when you work.
I have a day job, too. And I like it. I really like it. But some days it sucks the life right out of me and I don’t have the energy – creative or otherwise – to write. And some days? Some days there are things about writing that suck the life right out of me. So, there are days when I resent both. And there are days when I love both – but not usually on the same day. 🙂
I wanted a ministry, but instead God gave me a job in my County offices. There I ministered with Jesus shining through my life and only used words when the occasion arised. To say that anyone was born again, I am not certain, but many were influenced to return to their church. I can’t saya I resented my work, even at times I did not enjoy it, but I always love to improvise and my job was my pulpit. Then I retired, and now my ministry is telling my stories through my blog.
Oh thank you Charity for stopping by! It seems this is a struggle for a lot of us. But God has placed us for the time being where we are and so there He is too!
God Bless and keep on writing, even if it must be while digesting breakfast =)…I love that you bring a voice to the blog world from a single’s perspective (makes me feel not so alone)
Thanks for being real. What a good way to think about it – that Jesus is with us and that makes any place a holy place.
I have two jobs that I love. I am blessed but even then they leave me exhausted, overwhelmed, stressed, or in crisis management mode – because even in the best of situations it is still work. It is hard and has been effected by the curse in Genesis. We will toil but struggle. Sometimes we will plant and see a harvest and sometimes we will plant and the harvest is puny and withered.
I can’t wait until our work is redeemed!!! Until then, I will take your lines to heart about bringing Christ into my work today.
Much love back to you, girl.
Charity
I think we who are “artists” but don’t get to do it full time are in in this quandry. The way I look at it is that just because its a gift or a calling, doesnt mean I get paid for it. So I work at a job that I may not like, but that’s okay. Because my real joy is when I get to write.
Charity, this is great – not resenting work because Jesus is there in our midst. On the flip side, I’m home, not working full-time. Consulting, but at a reduced pace to care for the family – and some days I resent it. I feel unproductive and wonder if this being here, doing laundry and vacuuming floors and picking up dirty socks makes a difference. Some days I fear my brain has turned to jello and I have nothing substantial to write about and yes, sometimes I resent it.
But not today. God is here. Here in Lynchburg, and most certainly here in this post. Bless you dear friend!