The Reason Why I Write

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Photo: Rocpoc

Sooner or later (we’re gonna make it, we’re gonna make it – anyone else have Mat Kearney pop into their head there? Me too.)

…

Sooner or later, the question “why?” will always find its way into the conversation. Example?

As I lay in bed in the morning snoozing my alarm for the zillionth time, the question pops up: “Why should I get out of bed?” Well, because if I lose my job I won’t be able to pay rent. Off goes the snooze, and out of bed I climb.

As prevalent the “why” question becomes in little things, even more so does it come in the big things. When the ‘why’ begins to plague my mind, I’ve gotten into the habit of letting it. There is nothing more valuable to me than knowing the reason behind my every movement. If a situation produces an unexpected reaction, I want to know why. I urge you to develop practices such as these. Think about the habits in your life–––what makes you do them?

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For me, the biggest question is “Why do I write?”

Whether it’s a blog, my work-in-progress bible study, or a little note to a friend away at summer camp… why do I pick up the pen, or rest my hands comfortably to dance on the keyboard?

After much pondering, over not enough coffee, I’ve come to the conclusion: I write because I believe in the power of words. I write because I believe that when truth is spoken, written, or even sung, lies become smaller. I write because I believe that words have the ability to reshape the way we think. And because the way we think is the prototype of the way we live, I think this reshaping is a process worthy of my best time and my deepest efforts.

And, maybe, a reason bigger than all of the others, I write because I need it. Because when I don’t write I feel as though I’m keeping from Jesus the most vulnerable and formative thing within me. Because I believe stronger than I believe anything else, that Jesus has given me a passion for words in order that His Kingdom might be furthered and His Name might be lifted high.

For these reasons, and for a thousand others, I write.

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And I pray that you will do that thing that you need to do, whatever it is. And if you’re not quite sure what it is, I pray you’ll find it (and soon). Once you find that thing you love, you’re gifted in, and you’re passionate about, find out why.

You see, the world needs you to do that thing, and the world will be better when you do it.

The why matters because it is your only fuel when things become difficult. And they will always (eventually) become difficult. If you do not have a strong “why”, you will give up. If you don’t know the reasons that cause you to do something, you will never accomplish your goals. You will never run that marathon, write that book, or learn to play that instrument. Discipline begs for purpose and the disciplined one will accomplish the goal.

I’ve heard it said that he who has a strong enough “why” can make it through any “how”. If I didn’t have a distinct reason to write, I would have given up the first time I hit writer’s block. I would have stopped trying the first time someone criticized my work. I would run from the burden to write for Jesus’ glory. But because I have never felt more alive than when I write, because my heart skips a beat in anticipation when someone I love reads my work, because I am anxious to put words on paper knowing that Jesus has created me for this very reason. Because of these things I continue to write and the roadblock of “how” will never be enough to keep me from finding a detour.

Find your passion. Find your why. In this, you will change the world around you for good.

[box_help]Sound Off: What’s your why? What is the one thing that you need to be doing in this life? Let us know in the comments.[/box_help]

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