The Birth of Ideas

People have asked how I get ideas for the stories and articles I write. I tell them it is through much prayer. It is God who gave me and has helped me develop this talent; therefore, I trust Him to inspire me. And inspire me He has. I will be praying and a thought or storyline will pop into my head. I will be sleeping, having asked Him to speak to me when I went to bed, and a phrase or Scripture will impress itself upon my thoughts. When I wake up I will jot a few notes down so I can develop them later. It's a great partnership.

Sometimes, though, I will pray and nothing happens. I write quarterly articles and draw a comic strip for the Women's Ministry Newsletter of my church. I am sent the theme for the next edition about three months before publication. Usually I have about two to three weeks to prepare my article and cartoon. There have been times that I have prayed and waited for the Lord to respond. Sometimes I have waited up until a few days before the deadline with no inkling of what I am to do. Then all of a sudden an idea is stirred inside my head. I take that idea, sit down with either a piece of paper or my computer keyboard, and begin to work.

I am thankful that the Lord works with me like this. In the early stages of my writing career, I would get a little nervous when a deadline was approaching and no thoughts were transpiring. Now I have learned that the inspirations will come in God's perfect timing. I am just to pray and wait. I have never been disappointed.

"Commit your works to the LORD,

And your thoughts will be established."

Proverbs 16:3