Why I Write

Why do I write?

Why do you care? Truth be known, you probably don’t care.

If you read this far, (which really isn’t very far,) you probably started reading just out of curiosity.

So here it is in a nutshell: Mostly because I’m worse at talking.

But just that explanation wouldn’t make a very good blog, would it?
So for those of you who are a little more curious, here is a little more explanation.

I was a shy child. Although I enjoyed observing people, I was very uncomfortable interacting with them. I found talking to them was difficult as I felt that things I would say would come out wrong. I would get looks that said, “You’re weird.” Because of my timidity, I wouldn’t try to explain, I just became more tongue tied.

I have enjoyed writing for a long time, but I shared my writing with no one, because, well, I was insecure. Even though I could rewrite if I thought it was coming out wrong, most of my work went in the trash.

I got saved a long time ago. When you are saved, you are supposed to tell people about Jesus and what He did for you. It’s the Great Commission in Mark 16:15: go into all the world and preach the Gospel, right? Well, I had a lot of trouble with that. Not that I didn’t want to. I just didn’t think I was able. I didn’t communicate well, I didn’t think I knew enough, and I didn’t have a spectacular conversion experience to share. (Sounds kind of like Moses in Exodus 4:10, right?: “I don’t talk well.”)

Shyness, timidity, insecurity – these are just different forms of fear and I let fear stop me from sharing the best thing that ever happened to me. So what if my conversion was quiet? Not everyone has a conversion that is spectacular. That doesn’t make it invalid. Quiet salvations are just as supernatural as spectacular ones – a soul on the way to hell gets saved and is now on the way to heaven; a person becomes a new creature; they are forgiven a debt they couldn’t pay and are now free.

I worked on overcoming fear. I tried handing out tracks, and that was okay, unless someone asked me a question. I took classes on sharing Jesus, but I couldn’t initiate a conversation, or keep it going if I did manage to start one. These things bothered me, and some well-meaning soul told me once that not everyone was supposed to be an evangelist; after all, Paul planted, Apollos watered and God gave the increase. True, that everyone doesn’t have the calling of an evangelist on their lives, but we all are to share the good news with others. I was neither planting nor watering.

I started ‘witnessing’ through my writing. There are numerous women out there that read romance novels. They might not pick up a Bible or like someone ‘preaching’ at them, but they will read a Christian romance. In my books, the Christian aspect goes further than a character has a Bible on their coffee table. The Gospel is told and the steps to salvation are laid out. It is seed planted. That is why I write the adult books. It doesn’t replace telling someone in person, for there is nothing so rewarding as being able to pray the prayer of salvation with someone.

The thing that bothered me the most were those times when a door stood open and I didn’t recognize the opportunity until too late, or was just too plain chicken to take it. I did not teach my children to recognize opportunities or to be brave. Not only did I not teach them, but I was a bad example. I regretted this. Now that I am older and a little wiser, I want to help parents teach their young children how to recognize opportunities to share Jesus and their faith with someone, and to be brave enough to step through that open door. The children’s books are an example to follow. And that is why I write them.

So now you know.
Thank you for being curious enough to finish reading!