Rethinking Motivations
by Amy Rohrbaugh
“And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself’”
(Matthew 22:37-39, ESV).
When I first pursued writing and publication, my self-focus conjured a storm of emotion within me. One rejection might spur on a season of depression. Maybe my motives aimed toward success or validation. But these goals centered around a fear of man, not God. Wrong motives pervert the goodness of our giftedness.
If love is the greatest commandment, shouldn’t it be what drives us in our writing? One pastor said that our gifts come from God and how we use them is our way of giving back to him. What a beautiful thing that as we write and create, our God receives the glory. We love him with our words. We love him by being the person he made us to be.
Whatever your genre, you pour love into all those who read your work. I am an aspiring picture book author, and I am in awe of how these magical books can create such a strong bond. Knowing that my book might inspire such a connectedness between people, I labor in love with a great sense of peace to make this happen.
Another way love motivates my writing relates to my family. To bring in an income at some point would allow me to help meet the physical needs in my home. But just as important, I want to model to my kids that God’s grace is always sufficient in what he calls us to do. When we use the gifts he’s given us and the passions he puts in our hearts, we glorify him. I believe I am loving my kids and my God in this way. Rethinking motives leads to peace and freedom as we trust in our good God who has given us all that we have.
Father God, you say that if we ask anything in your name, it will be given to us. We ask that our greatest motive in writing is to love, you and others. Thank you for giving us the gifting, ideas, words, perseverance, right motives and passion to pursue our writing. You are the giver of every good gift, and we give these all back to you for your glory. Amen.
Amy delights most in writing picture books and believes visiting a children’s bookstore is like feasting on a cone topped with scoops of light. She loves to homeschool her three children, 16, 14, and 9. She is published in Quail Bell Magazine for The Artist and You and in Literary Yard for The Day the Little Lamb Roared. https://www.instagram.com/picture_book_reviews_amyrenee/
Wow, this was such a great way of seeing how we are to always use our gifts to honor our God! This is inspiring!
Your words made me feel that my motive for writing has been skewed and needs to involve, besides my love for words, God’s love for the reader. I’m not an author but I have written a book that is still in need of more rigorous editing. It’s wonderful that God’s law of love can be utilized in everything I write and in my total living experience. Thanks for reminding me of why I write. It’s to express God’s love and glorify His name.
hp7285katgmail I’m so glad you were encouraged. Thank you for your feedback. I’m sure your book will be a labor of love and pleasing to God.
The past few weeks, I have felt an overwhelming need to pray before, during, and after the writing is done. Your article describes the sacredness and awe I feel in loving a God who spoke creation into existence with his words.
Karisa, I just now saw your response. I love that you mention praying before, during and after writing. Thank you for reminding me of this important way to worship, love and give God the glory and thanks.