Christianity Archives - Page 6 of 9

What am I Pursuing?

Posted on June 7, 2010November 7, 2011 by Katie Ganshert

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had this slow-acting epiphany steal through my body. All these little things adding up to bring about an entire brain-shift. I thought maybe I’d share it here.

Most of you know I’ve been waiting. One of my manuscripts is awaiting Pub Board. The full is also in the hands of seven other publishing houses who have yet to respond (since January). Not sure if this means they aren’t interested, or if they truly just haven’t gotten to it yet. But I digress. This is not the point of my post.

The point is to share my epiphany.

I landed an agent in November of last year.

I’m going to be honest with you now. Dead honest. (And you have permission to laugh.) There was a part of me that thought all my dreams had come true the night I received The call (you know which call I’m talking about). There was a part of me that seriously thought all my problems would go away, I’d float on cloud nine for the remainder of my days, all happiness and joy mine forever and ever. This was the moment when everything would start happening! I’m still not sure yet what I thought would happen, but I was convinced my world would be in a permanent state of excitement from then on out. Because I. Had. An. Agent.

Then reality set in.

My fabulous agent submitted my stuff. The waiting began. And I started to think….Hey, wait a minute, this isn’t as glorious as it was supposed to be. I still get irritable over stuff that used to make me irritable. I still get PMS. I still go through periods of doubt where I think my writing is the most horrific excuse for story-telling ever penned by another human being. I still occasionally get the urge to shake my fist at the stars and scream, “Why isn’t anything happening?” when I open my gmail. I’m not published yet. And if possible, the waiting is worse. Yes, worse! This isn’t what I signed up for at all.

Then delusion creeps up on me.

I start to think. Okay, so getting an agent wasn’t the answer to all life’s problems. Okay, fine. But getting published. Oh, but getting published. Now THAT will be the answer. That will be the moment when everything comes together. That will be the day when all my dreams come true and all my prayers are answered. The moment when every breath will finally make sense. Yep. I get it now.

I’m poking fun at myself, but I don’t think I’m alone in my delusions. I think my thinking (whoa) sheds light on a serious human condition. This insidious belief that once we accomplish this thing we’ve set our sights on, or once we reach a certain rung on the ladder of our lives, everything is going to get better. For me, it’s publication. For others, it’s a promotion. Or a raise. Or a job. Or an award. Or a status. Or a guy. Or a girl. Or a baby. Or a million and one other dreams we might dream.

Here’s where the epiphany comes in.

I’m sitting through a church service like the one I sat through a few Sundays ago and God pretty much reaches out His holy hand and smacks me in the face.

The pastor showed a very short clip of Tom Brady being interviewed on 60 Seconds. Tom says, “This can’t be it. I mean, come on, there has to be something more.”

Umm…. I don’t know if you know this or not, but Tom Brady has three super bowl rings. Three. Let’s do an analogy. Tom Brady is to football as Karen Kingsbury is to the world of Christian fiction. He’s reached his goals. He’s won the super bowl three times. Yet, something inside him isn’t satisfied. He realizes life isn’t ultimately about the ring. And I realized something I already knew in my head, but hadn’t quite grasped with my heart.

My life isn’t about getting published.

Getting published, while one of my dearest dreams and grandest writing ambitions, is not my life’s pursuit. It shouldn’t be. Because if that’s the basket I’m putting my eggs into. If that’s what I’m banking on to bring about ultimate joy and fulfillment, then I’m in for a sore disappointment. Someday I’ll hold my book in my hand and realize I’m still easily-annoyed by traffic jams. I’m still angry when my husband fails to read my mind. My son still bites when I tell him not to. I’m not selling as many books as I envisioned. I’m not getting the accolades or great reviews I’d set my heart upon. And I’m still hungry (for chocolate, yes, but also for something more).

In the words of Tom Brady….this can’t be it. There has to be something else.

Oh, Lord, I’m so thankful there is.

My life isn’t about pursuing publication. My life’s ultimate goal isn’t about being multipublished with my own shelf in Barnes and Noble. My happiness does not (and should not) hinge upon selling my manuscripts.

My life’s pursuit is Jesus. It’s knowing Him. Drawing near to Him. Pursuing Him with a passion and devotion that trumps any contract, any advance, any amazing phone call that may or may not be coming my way. That’s the “it” Tom Brady was talking about. That’s the “it” I want to cling to. Like the words to that old hymn: Give me one pure and holy passion. Give me one magnificent obsession. Give me one glorious ambition for my life. To know and follow hard after you.”

While writing is a God-given gift and a passion He’s burned into my heart, it’s not my life’s breath. Jesus is my life’s breath. My job is to pursue Him. And let Him do what He wills with my writing. Knowing that makes waiting a lot easier.

Questions to Ponder: Have you had any epiphanies lately? Are you as delusional as me? Have you ever thought getting an agent, or getting a contract, will or would be the answer to all of your prayers?removetweetmeme

Are We Listening?

Posted on March 29, 2010February 27, 2012 by Katie Ganshert

Do you think it’s harder for us, here in America, to hear the voice of God? Do you think, in all our busyness, in all our running from here to there, our chasing success and comfort, that we miss out on witnessing God move?

Sometimes I wonder.

Jesus came to earth and flipped the world on its head. The ultimate King, the Lord of Lords, the Creator of the Universe, all authority and dominion are his – yet he comes to earth as a man and washes the disciples’ feet. He saves a prostitute from stoning. He touches lepers. He ministers to the lowly. He uses the despised things of this world to glorify his name. Like an executioner’s cross to bring salvation to the world.

Then Paul adds to the confusion by saying, “For when I am weak, then I am strong.” It makes no sense. Not in our world’s economy. How can I be strong when I’m weak?

This reminds me of Nairobi, Kenya. More specifically Kibera – the biggest slum in sub-Sahara Africa. I walked the streets of that place. The stench was unbearable. Imagine standing in the foulest of porta-potties. Imagine tin shacks crammed so tightly together they’re practically stacked on top of one another. Imagine streams of human excrement flowing past front doors, sometimes through houses.

I was there. A few years ago. Eager to offer encouragement and pray for these people who so obviously needed it. Only when I got there, I couldn’t think straight. We went into this woman’s home. A woman sick with HIV. A woman trying to raise six children in a tiny shack, three of whom were not her own, but her dead sister’s. I sat inside her home. Cramped. Hot. Uncomfortable. Craving America. Craving the comfort and peace of the familiar. And then something pretty unbelievable happened.

This woman started talking. Words poured out of her mouth. Words about Jesus, her redeemer and savior. She was positively glowing. I remember sitting there, tears streaming down my face, because this woman – this lowly woman – was encouraging me.

I think it’s so easy for us, here in America, to “do it on our own”. Who needs God when we have a roof over our head? Who needs God when we have jobs that pay the bills? Who needs God when we have cable, high-speed Internet, fast cars, recycling bins, comfortable beds, doctors, medicine, and plastic surgery?

God’s voice is so muted here. Not because He lacks power. But because we’re too busy and comfortable to stop and listen. But in Africa? In places like that woman’s filthy shack? God’s voice shouts. It shakes the walls with power and might. And I see with clarity His hand moving. Working miracles. Even now.

I think there is a special blessing for that woman living in Africa. She knew, with absolute assurance, that Jesus was enough. That He was all she needed. Of course she knew. Because Jesus was all she had.

In her weakness, God revealed His perfect strength. And all of a sudden, Paul’s words make sense.

Question to Ponder: Are you listening?removetweetmeme

Entrenched in Place

Posted on February 10, 2010November 6, 2011 by Katie Ganshert

I’m no Jewish queen. And I have no people to save from the hand of death. But I still resonate with the words Mordecai spoke to Esther all those years ago, when God entrusted her with a great and terrifying task.

“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place….And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?”

For such a time as this.

Those words hold such power. Such meaning. They bring such a sense of purpose to my helter-skelter existence. Sure, the Bible wasn’t written to me, but it was written for me. For all of us. And so were the words of Mordecai.

As a writer, I plunk my characters into a specific setting. Into a specific time and place. I don’t choose randomly. I consider my character – her strengths, her weaknesses, the gifts I’ve given her. I consider what I want to accomplish through my character. Then I choose accordingly. I choose the perfect time, the perfect place, the perfect circumstances and set my character down. My choices are far from random. Far from accidental. They are very strategic.

And I’m just a writer.

Now imagine God, the Author of our souls, who penned the universe and all who inhabit it. God knows us better than any writer could know his characters. He’s fashioned us. He’s considered our uniqueness. Considered what He wants to accomplish through us. And He chooses accordingly. Strategically.

I’m not living in the 21st century, in Eastern Iowa, going to a particular church, living with a particular man, raising a particular son, teaching a particular group of students, and writing particular stories….all by random chance. God knows. He’s placed me here. In this setting. On purpose.

And I hear Mordecai whisper those words. “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverence will arise from another….” I can say yes and experience the wonder of being used by an almighty God, or I can say no and miss out. The wonder can fall to another.

Sometimes I say no. Not intentionally. Not rebelliously. But I say no. I turn a deaf ear to God and let the megaphone of discontentment blare in my ears. Why can’t we have enough money so I can stay home? So-and-so gets to stay home with her kids. Man, my life would be so much easier if I could just stay home. Or, why can’t I be published already? So-and-so is published. I bet life would be easier if I were published.

Satan speaks to our discontentment. He fires the flame into something greater. Something insidious. Until we forget God has us exactly where He has us for a reason. For a purpose. For such a time as this.

Questions to Ponder: What setting are you living in? Where does God have you? What might His purpose be for having you there?

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