“Encourage him to put all his confidence in God, Who is always with him. He should communicate with God at all times, especially in the greatest dangers. Lifting our hearts up to God is sufficient. Remembering Him briefly or praising Him even in the midst of battle is very pleasing to God.”
~ 7th Letter, The Practice of the Presence of God (Whitaker House, 1982)
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Navigating the Battle of ADHD and Writing Distractions
On many occasions, as I write I find myself battling my ADHD on all sides. I get distracted very easily and my mind tends to pick up details that won’t ever matter to the story I am writing.
When I know something needs to be written and a deadline is swiftly coming upon me, the pressure almost always pulls me away from the story and into something else.
As I began to understand this more in my life, I thought back to the quote for today from the 7th Letter in The Practice of the Presence of God. It has never been something that just pops into my head either, although that does happen from time to time.
This time the quote stuck out to me on a recent read-through of this little book and I connected the dots as I pondered what to write this week.
Finding Focus: Writing as Spiritual Warfare
Distractions are all around us and the writing process is something that can easily be brushed aside if we let those distractions get the best of us.
This particular letter in Brother Lawrence’s book was written about a soldier going to war, and oftentimes, writing can feel like going to war. Balancing faith and writing has its ups and downs for sure.
Overcoming Self-Doubt Through Creative Faith
When I wrote my 2024 release, The Cyprus Journal, that battle was something real to me for sure. I had already given up on writing The Hope of Inheritance that year.
Trying to nail myself into a story focused on the Philosophical Warfare taking place on the island of Cyprus was not something I ever thought mattered.
Every step of the way my confidence withered. I wanted to let go of the dream like I had done in 2018. With each chapter, I asked myself unanswerable questions.
The sheer weight of telling a story about John Mark overcoming his failures on the first missionary journey, and the changes he experienced by the time he was in Rome with Paul at the end of Acts, echoed my own story.
Creative faith was finding its way onto the page in front of me, pressing me into my own struggles and pulling me up from the ashes that were left over from my time in church ministry that many would consider a failed attempt. I was reminded that God's presence was everywhere, even in the small things I could do each day as I struggled to write the story.
Writing as Worship: Inviting God onto the Page
When it came down to it, my experience with writing that novel opened my mind to something even bigger. If I turned my focus away from finishing the story and toward giving God the glory for the 200 words I got done each day in the beginning, I would enjoy writing the story more. So each day as I began to write, I prayed, inviting God onto the page with me.
The Miracle of Small Successes and Daily Praise
With each few hundred words, I thought to myself, “Thank you Lord, for helping me get there.” Then, NaNoWriMo hit, and I thought it would be worth trying out while still maintaining the attitude toward prayer I was already building.
By the time the end of the month came, the entire novel was written, over 50,000 words in 30 days. It was a miracle.
I knew that even though the battle was chasing me all along, offering praise to God in the little accomplishments kept me moving forward.
In a world where writing as worship has become my main focus, it helps to invite God into the stories we are writing. When the battle with writer's block, or ongoing deadlines comes to pull you away from a story you are writing, how can you offer praise for your writing ministry?
Reflective Takeaway
Writing isn't just about productivity; it is an act of spiritual focus. By inviting God into the messy distractions and small successes of the beginnings of a story, we transform the blank page from a source of anxiety into a sanctuary of prayer. When we offer even 200 words as a sacrifice of praise, we realize that His presence is with us in every sentence.
Join the Conversation:
What is your biggest spiritual or emotional hurdle when sitting down to start a new project?
Drop a comment below
I’d love to hear where you are in your writing journey right now!
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