Taking My Passion to Write to the Next Level

Throughout this passion series, I’ve been sharing with you all how I’ve discovered and ignited my writing passion. Last time, we discussed writing for leisure and how it quenched a thirst I had for years. However, there still remained a questionable longing in the back of my mind…is there more? Have you ever asked yourself, is there more to your passion?

Is There More?

There was always a lingering thought of what more can I do with writing. Plenty of times the thought of writing a book would tiptoe in my mind, but I would never entertain it until an opportunity presented itself.

The Invitation to Do More

In 2022, family friends invited me to participate in a virtual life group they were hosting as part of their ministry. I decided to join. To my surprise towards the end of the life group, the leader mentioned he was planning to establish a collaborative book project and he needed authors. He invited and encouraged the group to think about participating. He didn’t go into much detail but gave just enough to make my ears perk up and make my eyes open wider. After the leader informed us to send him a message if we were interested, the wheels in my mind began to turn faster than usual. Could this be the more I was thinking of in past times to grow further in my passion to write?

To Do or Not to Do…

I thought, should I even give this a try? Then I remembered a quote my momma would say to me growing up…nothing beats a failure but a try. Another question that entered my mind was how much I believed in myself to do it. After contemplating it, I realized that I had to pray and step out on faith to block out the doubt that was trying to bombard my mind. Thoughts of ‘you can’t afford to do this’, ‘you don’t have time’, and ‘what if this and what if that’ started to distract me. But in those moments, I would have to quickly quiet my mind and pray. After a few days of praying and waiting, a clear answer finally came. I heard the still small voice say, “Give it a try”. So, I said, I am going to give this a try…what’s the worst that could happen? This was a chance for me to see if I was truly the writer that I thought I was. What is your approach to overcoming doubt when you feel intimidated to try something new?

To Do…But Why and How?

I have learned the very thing that I am supposed to do, or I desire to do that is good for me and could be beneficial to others is when skepticism creeps in like a thief. Trying to rob me of the valuable works that I was created to do. I can overpower that intimidation when I retreat to a place of humility where I pray to God for help, direction, and peace.

I’d rather give in to humility rather than any form of fear or doubt. Getting help from the Spirit of God aligns me with His desires and intensifies my passions because He knows exactly what I need to be successful. I believed that exercising this posture to take on the collaborative book opportunity would lead me on a successful journey.

Determined to Go to the Next Level

I took the chance and said yes to participating in the book project and received further details. Each author would contribute a chapter. Everything else to get the book designed, edited, and published would be handled by someone else. All I had to do was write. I knew it was my passion and I knew I wanted to take it to the next level. I would dip my toe into the book writing world through this collaboration and figure out if it was the right path for me. I had tapped into humility for guidance from God, so it seemed like perfect alignment when that still small voice spoke once again for me to write my chapter on humility, but here comes fear.

Walking through the Valley of Fear

Notice how fear and doubt always come right after you make up your mind to step out on faith and right before you can move to the next level to achieve that goal? I knew that sharing lessons in humility meant I would have to share my personal story. Fear came sneaking in, making me question myself causing a major distraction. I felt exposed and naked, but I dug deeper and realized it was really the fear of vulnerability. I knew I had to get back aligned to the core focus. For me to go to the next level in writing and move forward in life, I needed to follow the plan to share my story of building in humility. What do you need to do to take your passion to the next level?

Next Level Success

Writing out my experience of building in humility came easy once I started composing it on paper. It was a liberating journey that granted me the power to defeat fear and doubt, yet exposed me to a form of healing that I did not expect. I had done it! I wrote the chapter, submitted it, and took my writing to the next level by becoming one of the authors of Building Me While I’m Building It.

We Are All Building Something

What are you building? You are called to build upon that passion that will bless you, your life, others, and the world. If you or someone you know is looking for more encouragement of building yourself up for what you are called to do, make sure to get a copy of Building Me While I’m Building It at https://www.jalaree.com/product-page/build-me-while-i-m-building-it

How have you taken your passion for teaching, caregiving, baking, hairstyling, etc to the next level?

Comment below or email me back. I’d love to learn about your journey of taking your passion to the next level.