Cranking Your Tractor

 Dear Friends,

It’s always such fun to strike up a “blog-versation” with you each week.  Really.

But I think I’ve been focusing lately more on the energy required to come up with something new, get it onto paper and from there onto a weekly blog site as well as to a mailing list.

That thought crossed my mind this last week when I was having coffee with a friend. I may have been commiserating a little too much, because she put her cup down and asked, “Why do you do it?”

Wow.  I didn’t see that one coming. I mumbled something about needing a job to do, and the joy of getting feedback from friends I might never touch base with otherwise. But it was a valid question and it made me stop and think.  

"Why do I write at all?"

First of all, don't mistake me for wanting affirmation, by sharing this conversation with you.  My Daddy, when I was a teen, told me to stop saying my cooking was no good because I was clearly fishing for compliments. 

And besides, I get plenty of great words back each week, and I thank you for that.  No, I don’t write this for the accolades ….. but please keep them coming! 

And I certainly don’t do this for the notoriety. I admit, my heart does a little flip flop when I check the stats and see how many countries light up the screen. But truth be known, I realize that a lot of those “readers” are little bots trying their best to break through my defences and grab my identity. Lord, don’t let me get cynical! 

When it comes down to it, I think I do this because, well, I can’t imagine not doing it. And I think a lot of you can relate to this. I still remember clearly the day when God “called” me into full-time ministry. That set me on a path that continues to this day, even in retirement.

And I’m not putting that kind of calling on the same level as the call to go and write something down every week and share it with as many as will read it.

….. no wait … maybe I AM. Who am I to place values on God’s calling, whatever it may be? We knew a man who felt God had called him to be the best church janitor who ever lived, and when we look at his life and the commitment and faithfulness that drove him every day, if there are “levels” to a person’s call, then that man belongs right up there next to David Livingstone, Annie Armstrong and Lottie Moon.

After much mulling, I see that I write because I love it. And not only that, I write because I can’t imagine NOT writing. I know full-well that the ability I possess now is not guaranteed to last for life. There may come a day when it joins a lot of other activities that used to define me, like hiking, camping, sports, gardening and fine sewing. But until that day comes, I will keep on “keeping on”, in the hopes that one day I’ll stand before God, completely used up, with nothing left to give.

So I hope (and pray!) that I’m not wasting your time every week with a blog that has no value. For me, the value lies in the producing of it. And by God’s grace, I’d like to think that value is multiplied whenever someone like you gives it a read and is blessed by it. 

So, in words of a fellow missionary friend, what “cranks your tractor”? What has God set before you and said, “Do this My Child to very best of your ability.”? We know that He has done that, don’t we? Ephesians 2:10 tells us, "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." 

Eric Lidell said in the movie, "Chariots of Fire", "When God made me, He made me fast. When I run, I feel His pleasure!"

Tell me what brings on that feeling in your own life. What has God given you to do with the time He’s allotted for you?

What's your calling?  I know for a fact that each of you has so many amazing talents and gifts, all of you.

Stay tuned, we love you all.  

Marsha