Boy (Anders) with binoculars (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Where there is no vision the people perish.”
— Proverbs 29:18
A children’s book writer shared one of her fan letters with me. Printed with crayon on bright yellow construction paper it read: “Thank you for writing god books.” We chuckled at the truth in the error, god vs. good. But later it made me think:
What is different between a good book and a God book?
As I grow in my faith and as my writing efforts shift to Christian books I want to know the difference. How do I write as a follower of Jesus? What does Christ-centered writing look like? Christ-centered writing begins with God’s idea instead of my idea, but how do I know the difference?
In his book Visioneering, Andy Stanley presents two ways to know the distinction between good ideas and God ideas:
1. A God-ordained vision will eventually feel like a moral imperative.
Have you ever had the idea for a book that would not let you go? “As the burden in you grows, you will feel compelled to take action.” My ideas wane over time, God’s grow stronger.
2. A God-ordained vision will be in line with what God is doing in the world.
My ideas serve myself or advance my career. God’s ideas are part of a bigger plan. This is not always apparent at first. “Initially, you may not see a connection. If not, wait.”
My idea? Or God’s idea? Will I ever know for sure? Probably not, but I am encouraged that Jesus was big on restoring people’s vision.
Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.” Matthew 20:29
May our eyes be opened too.
Laurie and Betsy
Wowee! Thank you sweet sisters!
Thanks for reading and commenting, Love seeing your picture pop up.
Love, love, love this. Thank you!
Thanks! I’m glad you stopped by. Blessings.
I’m so glad you stopped by my website and “liked” one of my posts. It gave me the perfect opportunity to discover YOUR site!
Just yesterday I had a flashback, of sorts, to one of my college classes. The discussion was on leadership and how to quantify a “good” one. The professor suggested that Hitler was a good leader because so many people passionately followed him and his instructions. I always struggled with that discussion because, at the time, I didn’t know how to articulate the difference between “good” and “effective.” I failed to make the point that leaders can do the job well without doing the right job.
As I review children’s books on one of my sites (Christian Children’s Book Review), I struggle to distinguish between quality books and good books. Just because it is well-written doesn’t mean it is good for our character or, if we are believers, for our pursuit of spiritual maturity.
You’ve done a great job here delineating between “good” and “God” books. Thank you.
Interesting thoughts on what is “good”. I like your idea that just because it is well-written doesn’t mean it is good. SOmething to think about. Thanks for commenting.
I really, really like this post, Sisters–I think it’s going to help me sort through some ideas. God bless you both abundantly–and Happy Mother’s Day!!
Thanks, Caddo. Always good to hear from you.
Thanks, Caddo. Have a blessed weekend.
This post about writing a God-book is exactly what I needed to keep me on track, girls!
Thanks Granbee, Keep writing your God-posts!
Excellent post. If we ask, He is sure to open our eyes. I questioned this alot because I dedicated my writing to God. I, in no way, wanted to write anything He didn’t approve of. Sometimes it’s hard to tell. But praying and asking and a continual dedicating of the day, ourselves, our work to The Lord, keeps us on track.
Thanks Holly, As Laurie and I have grown in our faith and now dedicate the writing to Him the question is how. There is something in the daily (maybe even hourly) dedication and surrender. As Merton says, “the desire to please Him, pleases Him. Betsy
Thank you for sharing tidbits of Andy’s book with us…I have little time to read, so this has been a real encouragement to me, ladies!
MakingTheWriteConnections
Love this! It’s so helpful to be reminded to check whether our creative inspirations are from ourselves or from God and will therefore glorify ourselves or God!