Same Old

October 27, 2018

Like most people, my life is pretty ordinary. I’ve never done anything heroic, don’t live dangerously, and haven’t done anything particularly stupid today. Sometimes that makes it difficult to write. Friends at our local writer’s group tell me they read my blogs every night as somewhat of a devotional. I’m humbled by this and encouraged to keep writing even when I don’t think I have much to say.

Our writer’s group consists of other ordinary people like me, except many of them have done some pretty extraordinary things. Retired college professors, published authors, a retired pilot...and me. When we go around the table with our accountability report, some will talk about where they are in editing of their manuscripts, or how the publishing business is going. Me? I simply say, “Same old, same old.” They tell me it’s extraordinary to write every day. I just see it as how I self-discipline. I don’t always feel like writing, but if I depended on my feelings, I’d never do anything in life. 

Maybe that’s tonight’s devotional. Just do it. Years ago, a college professor occasionally laid little platitudes on us. Dr. Floyd McCallum gave us his “McCallumisms.” His most memorable: “Emotion follows Motion.” People often tend to believe that they can only do what they feel like doing. Dr. McCallum told us the truth: If you do good even when you don’t feel like it, you’ll start feeling good. 

I don’t always feel like writing. Sometimes I ask myself why I started putting my thoughts out for the world to see. Sometimes I feel like saying, “It’s been fun, but now’s the time to draw it to a close.” The truth is, I write for me. Writing keeps me looking for grace in ordinary circumstances. It forces me to think, which often is the source of thanks. So tonight I write. I am grateful to be able to do so, and even more that once in awhile it seems to be helpful to others`