Do you write or do you WRITE?

We writers are a strange lot.

There. I just had to say that.

But, really, we are. We talk so much about how we love to write. We can discourse on our latest project. We can tell stories of past plans. Someone mentions that "stack of stories I've started but never finished," and we all groan in unison and knowing sympathy. We talk an awful lot about how we love to write.

...But do we actually write?

It ought to be top on the list of "hindrances to writing." We just don't write. We do everything but write. We go to the library to "research." We brainstorm on a scrap of paper. We discuss ideas with friends. But it takes a lot to get us to sit down and write.

But that's what separates the true writers from the wanna-bes. We all know that person who is constantly talking about "their book," but never progressing. We silently sigh inside, and know they are never going to finish it. They've been working on chapter one for four years...once every three months, for about two days straight. Then the inspiration dies, and they push the work to the side.

Do you really want to be one of those? Is writing just a hobby you tinker with, or are you committed to it? You've gotta know. If God has made you a writer, you are out of His will until you get about the business of honoring the talent He put in you, and directing it to His service. If you are only playing with writing, you are wasting precious time and thought in something that isn't meant for you. Get busy doing what you are meant to do.

I'm not saying you shouldn't learn to write. Everybody should learn to write, just like everybody should learn to speak. But don't fool yourself into thinking you are going to finish that book someday and become a published author if you don't have a level of commitment that goes beyond the person who "likes writing." You've gotta do better than that. You've gotta have drive, buddy. There never was a great book written that didn't have sweat-stained pages.

True writers make themselves write. They have dedication. They are always moving, progressing, learning, changing. They aren't a stagnant pond - they are a living, flowing, body of water, whether they be a minuscule creek or a raging river. They are clean, and they are alive.

So, I ask you - which are you? Are you truly a writer? Did God put that in you? If He did, are you using that? Are you working? Are you striving? Stop the playing! This is real life. You've got a mission. You're blessed to be asked to do something you love. So love your work, but do work.

Wow, am I feeling convicted.