When writing feels like a tramp through a wilderness

Sometimes the writing journey feels like a tramp through a barren wilderness.

It’s lonely. It’s dry. There seems to be little fruit.

Sometimes it seems like you are walking around and around, getting nowhere.

In fact, I can tell you that even after you finally get that book published and finally have readers, there are still wilderness times.

The other day, I was studying Psalm 23:5 “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;” (NKJV).

There was a cross reference in my Bible to Psalm 78 verse 19.

I flipped over the pages to that passage, and these words leapt off the page: “They said, ‘Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?’” (Ps. 78:19. NKJV)

The contrast is stark. Psalm 23 says “You prepare a table,” but Psalm 78 asks “Can God prepare a table?”

It hit hard because I realised how often, sometimes without even knowing it, I ask that question: “Can God?”

When you read verse 78:19 in context, you see that it is talking about the journey of Israel through the desert after the Exodus.

It is referring to the ingratitude of the people when they wished for the meat of Egypt and were ungrateful for the manna that God provided.

I remember how often I used to read this story and think, Wow, those Israelites were so ungrateful, until I realised that I do this every day.

Yesterday, I saw God work in a mighty way. Today, a problem comes up. Deep down, a seed of a doubt begins to grow. Can God bring good out of this? Is it really true that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me?

But for the Israelites, that doubtful question wasn’t the end of the story.

God did provide physical meat for Israel in the wilderness. And the psalm shows how He eventually blessed the nation by raising up King David to shepherd them (verse 72).

One of the things that I love so much about the Bible is that while it reveals so much about the time in which it was written, it is still completely applicable to the modern reader.

As Christians on this side of the cross, we have already begun to see the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah that says “I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (43:19, NKJV)

We have seen the redeeming work of the ultimate Shepherd King. We have seen His work in the hard wilderness of the human heart. We’ve seen the power of the Gospel to transform nations. We’ve seen His light and truth literally transform the world.

And if He can do all that, then He can bring refreshment, flourishing and hope into your “wilderness.” He cares about you as an individual. Your seemingly small problems matter to Him. (Matt. 10:31)

Yes, He cares about your struggle with that plot hole or that chapter that just doesn’t seem to work. He cares about your loneliness and discouragement.

The wilderness is a time for trusting, waiting and working.

As my minister so often says, “Waiting time should never be wasted time.”

Spend time with the Lord in prayer. Search the Scriptures. Study them in depth. And prepare yourself for the moment when the wilderness will once again blossom as the rose. (Isaiah 35:1)

The writing journey has its wilderness moments, but it also has its beautiful oasis moments.

I can tell you that those moments make the wilderness journey feel so worth it.

But even more worthwhile, is the way God uses wilderness times to deepen our knowledge of Him and His love.

So, keep trusting, keep obeying, keep working, and keep writing!

I love all kinds of writing, but fiction is an area that I am particularly passionate about. It’s also an area in which I have a lot of experience. That’s why I’ve created this “Fiction Corner” where I give you practical tips you can implement to improve your storytelling.

Jesus was a master storyteller!

Read the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 and analyse it from a story-craft perspective. See if you can spot how Jesus presents a deep and powerful message without “preaching.”

Leave a comment and let us know what you discovered!

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