Yearning to share encouragement, inspiration or a kind word (to lift the writer as well as the reader), when you can’t seem to get started — what can you do to get un-stuck?
Mentors have suggested we just keep writing and, if the concepts seem too abstract, to try using metaphor. So, I did.
Here is my attempt:
My sympathy is instantly aroused at the sight of roofing crews working through the heat of a summer day, spreading hot tar to seal a roof against leaks from coming rain. Like hot sticky tar, my ‘gummed up’ imagination seems sealed against leaks of any coming trickle of inspiration. I long to run, refreshed and invigorated, through a brainstorming rain of ideas – but I am ‘stuck’ in the tar of uncertainty.
Does that give you a better sense of my feelings – than if I simply said “… I’m stuck?”
The metaphor exercise was a deliberate act. As I worked to express my vague emotions, I began to sense a fine mist of possibility. What I wrote helped me identify the emotion more clearly. Doubts, discomfort, and even a bit of fear mixed with my frustration.
Who am I to write encouragement for others? Do I have anything worth saying? Maybe yes – maybe no. But certainly, if I continued to stand still in the hardening sludge of my doubts, we would never know.
It’s not really a matter of having nothing to say – it’s a matter of focus and judgment. I am my own worst critic. (I wonder if you do that to yourself too?)
Learning:
Of all that could be said, what is the central nugget of truth I can claim from this experience? Right now, for me, it is this: When in doubt – DO.
I can say a prayer, and remember that faith and provisions seem to be given not in advance, but as we go. It’s in mid-leap that we find strength and guidance to cover the gaps. Since that is true – I’ll attempt a small jump by shaping this article, to break free from today’s tar pit.
I sense a broader application. If you’re feeling ‘stuck’, or weighed down by vague ideas or emotions, try putting them into words. If you can’t make it specific, try a metaphor. (No one else need ever see it – this is just for you.)
Once you clearly identify the issue – lift it in prayer. Ask for wisdom, strength, courage, or whatever you need, and then get up and DO something.
Encouragement:
Remember that we can act… “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will be faithful to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ”. (Phillipians 5:6)
Asking for guidance? It takes much less effort to direct (or re-direct) movement, than to begin it from a dead stop. So, choose some action that aligns with your goals and values – and Do It!
That simple choice to move, in faith, may be enough to free you from sticky doubts and fears. You may even discover new treasures along the way, for yourself and/or for others. I hope you did find something of worth in this post. I know I did. Thanks for reading.
Blessings, Love and Laughter
Marge
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