I don’t know who needs to hear this right now but…
I think God is speaking to me through my TV.
I was going to write about this yesterday, but then I got busy—calls, emails—and then my son’s school went into lockdown after a kid showed up with a weapon (no one got hurt, thankfully), and then I heard about the shootings in California where some people did get hurt and that got me thinking about other tragedies and how close we all are to losing everything we love, and how are those left behind faring right now, and also how can God let those things happen…
And then I landed back where I began, thinking about life. And how it’s just like a Choose Your Own Adventure book. Where everything is predetermined AND we have choice about how we reach the final destination.
Or like the mazes my kids used to love to do in their summer activity books. Where there is a clear beginning and end, but myriad routes in between, and some paths lead to dead ends, and so you keep U-turning and pivoting until you reach your final destination.
Everything is predetermined. And we have choice. And we’re being guided along the way.
That brings me back to God and my TV.
I’m working on a screenplay (Yes! I opened up my Celtx for the first time since 2016 and I’m so excited to play with it again), and a movie that gave me an idea for my script just happened to show up while I was browsing the TV guide the other day. This is a big deal because I never get to watch the only TV in our house that has cable. But my husband was at hockey with the twins and there was laundry to fold (FYI, I am always folding laundry), and so I picked up the converter, clicked Guide and there it was.
I’m taking it as a sign from God that I am on the right track.
I guess what I want to say, and why I’m sharing this with you is that…our days are always being hijacked, and there are always bad things happening in the world, and if you’re not careful, they will suck you in and distract you from the thing you are being called to create, and that which fills your heart with so much joy, and which will surely bring joy, hope and love to the world.
So, a few tips for you writers/artists/creators out there (and yes, we are all creators, the question is are you intentional about that which you create):
Protect your time - I don’t take calls before noon and I try to control the content I consume as much as possible to protect my head space and my interests. Personally, I like mornings to be creative time—where I let my imagination run wild and I basically act like a child following my whims and fancies until I put my big girl hat on at noon sharp, which is why most of my emails are answered at night. (Except for today—today I was at Ikea. But only today.)
Mind your head space. It’s hard to create in an emotional vacuum, and so for the most part, I like to keep my head space clean and happy, using a secret sauce infusion made up of comedy (like the delicious Smartless podcast with Ricky Gervais I listened to this morning), the YouVersion Bible App (I love seeing what the Verse of the Day opens up for me) and Abraham-Hicks YouTube videos. I’m not sure if I’m breaking any rules here, but also…I don’t care.
Listen. Listen for God. Listen for dialogue. Listen for cues. Listen for scenes. Listen for story. Even in my business, I believe there are no accidents. And so even when the wrong person ends up in a Zoom room with me, I am still listening.
I’ll be honest with you—the screenplay I’m working on is not a religious story. It’s completely sexy and raunchy and hilarious (to me, anyway), and would probably make Jesus blush. But at the heart of it, there’s a story of friendship, love, forgiveness and redemption. (I’m actually a terrible sister and friend—and mother too, for that matter—which is why I think I try so hard to be better, at least in my fiction anyway.)
I think God is good with that.