WRITING BLIND

by Cynthia Ruchti

Author Jerry Jenkins and I share something in common. We both once thought we had no "testimony." Jesus hadn't snatched us from lives of crime and debauchery. He didn't meet us in a rehab center or a prison cell or a bar or at Woodstock.

Both of us had been raised in loving homes that honored God, taught us about Jesus, and respected the Bible. When I heard Jerry speak at an awards banquet recently, I saw on his face and felt in my own heart the wonder of our testimonies. We'd been granted the exceptional mercy of having heard about Jesus as young children and had responded to Him with our whole lives yet ahead of us. The first step in an entire pathway lined with blessing, joy, the occasional hip-dislocating wrestling match with Him, but the steady assurance of His Presence.

I don't know about Jerry, but my childhood included church attendance whenever the doors were open. Church camp. Vacation Bible School. Sunday School. Kids' clubs. Youth group. Bible college…

A passion for God's Word was birthed even before I'd learned to read. Bible memorization contests and Bible quizzing teams brought out the competitor in me, but drove the Word deep into me.

If it weren't for God's Word, I'd be writing blind.

How could I create accurate character motivations and consequences if I didn't know what the Bible said about envy or gossip or what true love is like?

How would I even know where to look for comparisons of biblical characters whose adventures and misadventures mirrored the plot lines of my fiction?

Where would I have picked up a sense of God's attitude toward the brokenhearted? The stubborn? The orphan or widow?

How could I put one meaningful word on a page without The Word burned into my heart?

And how could I maneuver the ever-changing waters of publication with its fog and whirlpools without the Life Map?

How does anyone write blind, spiritually? How does anyone draw a breath for that matter when spiritually blind, or sustain a relationship, or chart a career path, or have anything of lasting significance to say?

I've tried diving into my writing assignments without spending time with the Author of our faith, in God's Word. Scrawls and ramblings compared to the stories that emerge from that place deeply rooted in the truths of the Bible.

Those who are new to faith have a ravenous hunger for the Word. Vast draughts of the Word pour over them and sink in quickly to make up for lost time.

My personal prayer--and maybe yours too?--is for that ravenous hunger to grow stronger rather than fade as the years pass. Stories are waiting. And I can't afford to write blind.



Cynthia Ruchti is an award-winning author and speaker who tells stories of Hope-that-glows-in-the-dark. Her latest releases are When the Morning Glory Blooms, All My Belongings, and Ragged Hope: Surviving the Fallout of Other People's Choices. She serves as Professional Relations Liaison for American Christian Fiction Writers. www.cynthiaruchti.com or www.facebook.com/CynthiaRuchtiReaderPage

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Listening for God's Voice

Sandra D. Bricker was an entertainment publicist in Los Angeles for 15+ years. She is now a best-selling, award-winning author of laugh-out-loud fiction for the inspirational market. As an ovarian cancer survivor, she gears time and effort toward raising awareness and funds for research, diagnostics and a cure. Her latest novel, Book #3 of 4 in the Another Emma Rae Creation series for Abingdon Press, is Always the Designer, Never the Bride. Sandie invites every reader to click the FOLLOW button on her newly-redesigned BLOG and contribute to the ongoing conversations.


I’m pleased to be back to share with you a special Bible study that I write for my church, CedarCreek, and their daily Bible study program called Living It Out (LIO). Each study is taken from the pastor's Sunday sermon, attempting to bring clarity and further explanation, or just to bless you in a deeper way as you strive to "live out" the teachings of the Bible. If you're interested in a deeper look at what you read here, please feel free to SIGN UP  for daily emailed studies to be sent to your inbox, or check out the audio versions for a quick Bible pick-me-up each day.


Words truly do matter! After all, if you misspell a word or forget a word, it could change the entire meaning of what you are trying to say. Take a gander at excerpts from actual church bulletins across the country and see why words matters:

• Scouts are saving aluminum cans, bottles, and other items to be recycled. Proceeds will be used to cripple children.
• The outreach committee has enlisted 25 visitors to make calls on people who are not afflicted with any church.
• Evening massage - 6 p.m.
• The Pastor would appreciate it if the ladies of the congregation would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday morning.
• Low Self-Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 to 8:30 p.m. Please use the back door.
• Ushers will eat latecomers.
• Our youth basketball team is back in action Wednesday at 8 PM in the recreation hall. Come out and watch us kill Christ the King.
• The Rev. Merriwether spoke briefly, much to the delight of the audience.
• Next Sunday Mrs. Vinson will be soloist for the morning service. The pastor will then speak on "It's a Terrible Experience."
• Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our church and community.
• Don't let worry kill you off—let the church help.

Although we can get a good laugh from these Bulletin Bloopers, we need to realize that we are competing with voices and words trying to drown out the Word of God and its truth and how God speaks to us and impacts our daily lives.

Looking through the window on the morning of an unexpected snow, it can be difficult to spot the traces of the familiar path of the driveway or the sidewalk. But since you’ve lived in that home for many winters, you know it’s there; it’s just a matter of hauling out the shovel or the snow-blower and getting to work at finding it. It’s the same with searching for God’s voice. You’ve heard it before, so you know it’s there.

An important thing to bear in mind is that our God desires to commune and fellowship with us. In 1 Corinthians 1:9, Paul writes that He “has invited you into partnership (fellowship) with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Fellowship involves a great deal more than occasional or sporadic communication. In this technological age, when it’s so much easier to maintain and nurture long distance friendships because of the capacity to keep in closer touch beyond the occasional phone call, consider the many options we’ve also been given to nurture our relationship with God.

If the love of your life lived somewhere else for a time, you would certainly utilize every platform possible to keep in touch and to fellowship with them. You would email and text regularly, set times for intimate phone calls so that you might exchange little details about one another’s daily lives, perhaps even chat with hope about that coming day when you’ll be reunited at last.

How much more diligent can we be about listening, praying, reading His Word, and pushing through the noise to find that still, small voice within us that seeks a conversation? His desire is to share an intimate fellowship with each of us…even in the winter of our relationship with Him, when we have to haul out the shovel to find it.

When listening, reading, or even praying doesn’t clear the path to God’s voice, keep digging. It’s there, beyond the noise.

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