[:en]THE SHEPHERD’S CORNER

Almost all—or perhaps all—writers in America have read William Zinsser’s book, On Writing Well, a classic book on writing. Besides giving his readers tools how to write well, in it he also encourages those who aspire to be writers to be patient and tenacious.

He says, “Good writing doesn’t come naturally, though most people seem to think it does . . . . Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time. Remember this in moments of despair. If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard.”

When I was little, I used to think that those who were spiritual—like the biblical figures—were spiritual because they were just spiritual. Somehow I just assumed that God had endowed certain individuals with spirituality. Being spiritual was simply a given, so I thought.

Now I know I thought wrong. Even people like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, Solomon, Elijah, or Jeremiah were not like I thought. They had to struggle to maintain their spiritual conditions. Sometimes they succeeded, sometimes they failed. Sometimes they obeyed God, sometimes they disobeyed Him. Like writing, to be a man after God’s own heart is not easy, because it is not easy.

However, there is a way that God has set for us to walk on so we can be spiritual—to be a person after God’s own heart. The road is called repentance. On this long road, there are rest areas which are none other than confession. When we confess our sins, we will be put right back on the road of repentance. And, it is when we confess our sins, we rest and are refreshed by Jesus Our Lord. Like good writing, repentance doesn’t come naturally. So, don’t give up.

Pastor Paul[:id]THE SHEPHERD’S CORNER

Almost all—or perhaps all—writers in America have read William Zinsser’s book, On Writing Well, a classic book on writing. Besides giving his readers tools how to write well, in it he also encourages those who aspire to be writers to be patient and tenacious.

He says, “Good writing doesn’t come naturally, though most people seem to think it does . . . . Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time. Remember this in moments of despair. If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard.”

When I was little, I used to think that those who were spiritual—like the biblical figures—were spiritual because they were just spiritual. Somehow I just assumed that God had endowed certain individuals with spirituality. Being spiritual was simply a given, so I thought.

Now I know I thought wrong. Even people like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, Solomon, Elijah, or Jeremiah were not like I thought. They had to struggle to maintain their spiritual conditions. Sometimes they succeeded, sometimes they failed. Sometimes they obeyed God, sometimes they disobeyed Him. Like writing, to be a man after God’s own heart is not easy, because it is not easy.

However, there is a way that God has set for us to walk on so we can be spiritual—to be a person after God’s own heart. The road is called repentance. On this long road, there are rest areas which are none other than confession. When we confess our sins, we will be put right back on the road of repentance. And, it is when we confess our sins, we rest and are refreshed by Jesus Our Lord. Like good writing, repentance doesn’t come naturally. So, don’t give up.

Pastor Paul[:]