What Is a Writer Who Can't Write? and more...

I know I’m prone to feeling sorry for myself and I am quite committed to avoiding the temptation. It is one of those sins that feels like it will feel good but actually just ends up feeling miserable. I know that intellectually—it’s just that ... --------------------------------------------------------------- In This Issue... - [What Is a Writer Who Can’t Write?](#0) - [A La Carte (October 20)](#1) [] [What Is a Writer Who Can’t Write?]( I know I’m prone to feeling sorry for myself and I am quite committed to avoiding the temptation. It is one of those sins that feels like it will feel good but actually just ends up feeling miserable. I know that intellectually—it’s just that tricky matter of implementing it emotionally. So here’s the deal: I’m a writer who can’t write. Sometimes I joke about it—I’m like a preacher without a voice or a painter without a brush. But seriously, who or what is a writer if he can’t write? The story behind the story is the cubital tunnel syndrome that has taken over my hands and left me unable to type. It’s not the tapping of the keys that gets me as much as the typing position—the rigid forearms, the cocked wrist, the extended fingers. That position is almost unbearable at the moment. I’m still mostly okay with pen and paper, at least, so I scrawled this in a notebook and Aileen deciphered and transcribed it. See, what I’m learning, that perhaps I didn’t know before, is that writing is more than just getting words out of my head and onto a screen. It’s habits. It’s patterns. It’s routines. It’s a well-practiced ways of thinking, behaving, creating. And it’s all of this that has been interrupted. It’s not just hands that aren’t working, but a whole way of life that has been left topsy-turvy. And that’s the part of it all that I find hardest and most frustrating. So what is a writer who can’t write? - Perplexed. Why am I facing this challenge? What can I do about it? Will it ever get better? What does God mean to teach me through it? - Concerned. I depend on a certain level of readers to charge advertisers a certain rate to make enough to keep going. Write less and people visit less. Visit less and I earn less. Earn less and … I really don’t know. - Challenged. How can I apply creative solutions to this problem? Is God using this to challenge a sin I’ve been harboring, an idol I’ve been worshipping? - Confident. God has extended his kindness to me in a million ways; there’s no reason to doubt he will do so again today and tomorrow, whether in writing or not writing. - Thankful. Thankful to you for reading this far. [Like on Facebook]( [Share on Google+]( [Pin it!](https%3a%2f%2fwww.challies.com%2fwp-content%2fuploads%2f2016%2f10%2ferl7089_eflad_260x125_101117.png) [Tweet This]( [Subscribe by email]( [Subscribe by RSS]( Related Stories - [Vlog: The 5 Tests of False Doctrine]( - [What I Want From the News]( - [Vlog: 7 False Teachers in the Church Today](   • [Email to a friend]( Is a Writer Who Can’t Write?;5815353) • [] [A La Carte (October 20)]( Today’s [Kindle deals]( include an eclectic collection of interesting titles. [Westminster Books]( ?utm_source=challies&utm_medium=challies) has some good deals this week as well. [At Least as Dangerous as Porn]( “Not to diminish the dangers of sexual sin (1 Corinthians 6:9–11), but have you ever noticed that the New Testament issues more dire warnings against the spiritual dangers of material prosperity than sexual immorality? Jesus didn’t say it’s harder for a sexually immoral person to get into heaven than a camel to squeeze through a needle’s eye. He said it about rich people. And most people who read this live in one of the richest nations in the history of the world.” [Who Should Teach Your Kids—Harvey or Hildebrand?]( “As the Harvey Weinstein scandal rumbles on, it is clear that no amount of money donated to liberal causes will purchase him a ‘get out of jail free’ card. Even in an amoral age such as ours, sexual assault can prove an unforgivable sin.” [American Daily Routine]( Here is an interesting visualization of the average person’s daily routine. [Worship Already in Progress]( “We’ve arrived on the scene and we’re fashionably late. In fact, when our church family gathers to worship on Sunday mornings in Kansas City, my brothers and sisters on the East Coast are already singing. What’s more, the entire eastern hemisphere is already into their Sunday evening and some are even easing their way into the wee morning hours of a Monday.” [Keeping Kids Safe From Sexual Predators]( I know you don’t want to read this, but you probably should. [Does the Fertility Clinic Illustration Disprove the Value of Human Embryos?]( You may have heard someone use the fertility clinic illustration to disprove the value of human embryos. Here is a good response. [Your Church Can Be a Gospel Culture]( Ray Ortlund: “Here are four categories of speech that church leaders should keep in mind at all times…” [Flashback: Why You May Be Tempted To Neglect Your Church]( Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” This passage warns us not to neglect local church fellowship and participation, and also hints at the reasons we may do so. Pride doesn’t listen. It knows. —Kevin Vanhoozer [Like on Facebook]( [Share on Google+]( [Pin it!](https%3a%2f%2fwww.challies.com%2fwp-content%2fuploads%2f2017%2f10%2fChallies_Oct15-21-05.png) [Tweet This]( [Subscribe by email]( [Subscribe by RSS]( Related Stories - [A La Carte (October 19)]( - [A La Carte (October 18)]( - [A La Carte (October 17)](   • [Email to a friend]( La Carte (October 20);5815353) • --------------------------------------------------------------- [Contact Us]( •[Past Issues](5815353/52189706/b5a4a06beea5103fbe1bc8ce5fa8a96c) •[Unsubscribe]( [Click here to safely unsubscribe]( from "challies.com - Informing the Reforming." [Click here to view mailing archives](, [here to change your preferences]( or [here to subscribe]( • [Privacy]( Email subscriptions powered by [FeedBlitz](), LLC, 365 Boston Post Rd, Suite 123, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA.