Who Am I by Laura V. Hilton

Laura V. Hilton

I’m in a dry spell with my writing and can’t seem to create. I’ve managed to scrape together five chapters of my current work in progress, but it’s like fingernails digging into the rock at the bottom of the well to get any words written. There is nothing there. Not saying that my writing isn’t good. It is. I have critique partners who tell me they can’t wait for the next chapter. They say, this will be my best book yet. They claim it is so powerful… but I can’t do it.

I’ve questioned whether I’m the right person to write this book. Maybe God meant for it to go to someone else. Someone more talented. Someone better known. A *name*, an author who has a proven track record to write anything, in any genre. Someone like, maybe (insert favorite author’s name). That person is better than me. More important. More talented.

But no. God wants me to do it.

Why me? I’m insignificant. I’m nobody. Kind of like that poem we were all forced to memorize in Junior High. “I’m nobody. Who are you? Are you nobody too?”

Then God reminded me in 2 Corinthians 12:9-11

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. I have made a fool of myself, but you drove me to it. I ought to have been commended by you, for I am not in the least inferior to the “super-apostles,” even though I am nothing. 2 Corinthians 12:9-11 (NIV)

Yes, Lord. I recognize I can’t do this work without You. And right now I kneel before You, giving You this whole story. If it gets written it will not be because of me, but because of You.

Check out the beautiful lyrics of Casting Crown's classic, Who Am I, (contains links to listen on that page as well) then ask yourself: Are you feeling unworthy of a task God called you to do? Unable to complete it? Join me in turning it all over to Him, trusting Him to work in you, (and me) so that we may give glory and credit to His name.

Lord, please help me to give this assignment to You. Give me the strength to do what You have asked. Help me to say what You want me to say, write what You want me to write, do what You want me to do. And we give You all the glory, and all the honor, and all the praise. Amen.

About the Author

Award winning author, Laura Hilton, her husband, Steve, and three of their children make their home in Arkansas. She is a pastor’s wife, a stay-at-home mom and home-schools. Laura is also a breast cancer survivor. Laura also has two adult children.

Her publishing credits include three books in the Amish of Seymour series from Whitaker House: Patchwork Dreams, A Harvest of Hearts (winner of the 2012 Clash of the Titles Award in two categories), and Promised to Another. The Amish of Webster County series, Healing Love (finalist for the 2013 Christian Retail Awards). Surrendered Love and Awakened Love followed by her first Christmas novel, A White Christmas in Webster County, as well as a three book Amish series with Whitaker House, The Amish of Jamesport series, The Snow Globe, The Postcard, and The Bird House in September 2015. Other credits include Swept Away from Abingdon Press. Laura is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and a professional book reviewer.

Connect with Laura
http://www.amazon.com/Laura-V.-Hilton/e/B004IRSM5Q
visit her blogs: http://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/ & http://lauravhilton.blogspot.com/
Twitter: @Laura_V_Hilton
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Laura-V-Hilton/161478847242512
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/vernetlh/

The Bird House

The Bird House
by Laura V. Hilton

Twenty–year–old Greta Miller's daed has been injured in a farming accident during the summer. The supportive Amish community tries to help out, but Greta and her sister must work outside the home to make ends meet, and so Greta rents a booth at the farmers' market. Because Greta is still in her rumspringa and free to explore the world, her family selects her to sell her homemade jams, jellies, and preserves to Englischers. Josh Yoder wants to court Greta, but years ago, he made the mistake of rejecting her during a seemingly innocent game; which resulted in him leaving the Amish. Three years later, he's back, but Greta wants nothing to do with him. Josh struggles to fit in and rebuild relationships he destroyed. Knowing Greta's family needs help, he steps in, hoping to win her back. When Greta admires one of his birdhouses, he gives it to her, hoping that it will open the door to more. But as their friendship begins to grow, a series of unfortunate events pull Greta away from the Amish, leaving her rejected by those she loves. Will Greta get beyond her family's distrust and return home? Will she prove her innocence? Or will she remain outside her Amish community?

What’s My Worth? by Heidi Chiavaroli

Heidi Chiavaroli

I suppose like many, I struggle with proving my own worth. My worth as a mother, a wife, a daughter, a follower of Christ…and as a writer.

Concerning the latter, I had convinced myself that if only I could secure a reputable agent, the search for validation would be over. If someone in this business was convinced I had what it took to make it as an author, then bam. I’d need no other encouragement. I could soar—forever perhaps—on this one person’s belief of my worth.

Strange, but I should have recognized the falsehood of this thinking after I won ACFW’s Genesis contest in the Historical Category. For hadn’t I told myself many times that if only I could final or win a prestigious contest (such as this one!) I’d be validated as a writer?

Oh, how quickly I forget.

Last month, it was my extreme pleasure to sign with agent Susan Brower of the Natasha Kern Literary Agency.

So there. I did it. I should feel validated as a writer. And for about three days I did. No one could bring me down or convince me otherwise. If Susan Brower liked my book, then who cared what anyone else thought.

Right…

As I printed out my manuscript to give to an important beta reader, doubts about my worth as a writer poked hard once again. What if she didn’t like it? What if she said she hated my writing and my book?

That’s when I realized my doubts would always be there. I could gain a multi-book contract…and they’d still be there. I could win a handful of awards…and they’d still be there. I could make it to a bestseller list…and they’d still be there.

And the reality is, there will always be someone who will not like my writing, or my books. There will always be someone who thinks my books are not spiritual enough, someone who thinks my books are too spiritual. Someone who doesn’t like my characters or my plots or how I string three words together.

So what’s a writer to do?

What I always have to remind myself to do—preach the gospel to myself. I can’t root my worth in my writing. Or being a good mother, wife, or daughter. I can’t even base my worth on being a good follower of Jesus because I will always fall short there as well.

What I can do is base my worth in Jesus himself, and all He has already done for me. This Christmas season I can remember that Christ was born to make me worthy. He died to make me worthy. And today, He still lives to make me worthy.

“Christmas highlights the inescapable fact that no matter how hard we try, we can’t do it. Apart from the Incarnation we are left to our own bankrupt resources. But at the same time it shows us Jesus, who came to liberate us from the pressure of having to fix ourselves (and others!), find ourselves, and free ourselves. He came to relieve us of the burden we inherently feel “to get it done” and make it on our own. He came to set us free from the need to secure for ourselves the affection and approval we long for but cannot attain.”

~Tullian Tchividjian, Christmas for the Weary and Heavy-Laden

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Heidi Chiavaroli writes History Woven in Grace. She is a wife, mother, disciple, and grace-clinger. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and has finaled in the Genesis contest and My Book Therapy’s Frasier contest.