When Writing is Like Riding a Horse

by Marcia Lee Laycock

I’ve always been horse crazy. It took many years of begging before my mother let me learn how to ride a horse and many more after that before I owned one. I remember the day I woke up and looked out my bedroom window and saw Cheyenne grazing in the field. I almost pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.
Cheyenne was a big Paint gelding. I had to stand on a box to saddle him. I used a stack of hay bales to mount. And I shook like a leaf the first few times I did it. It wasn’t that I was afraid, it was more that I was awestruck. This was a real live horse, who needed to be fed and groomed and cared for in all kinds of ways and he was now my responsibility. But then I’d put my foot in the stirrup and settle into the saddle, the reins held firmly, and with a slight movement of my hands and legs I could direct that huge animal. Cheyenne loved to run and I loved to let him. It was then I forgot all about the responsibility and just let the thrill of riding course through me.

Sometimes I still shake that way when I begin to work on a new writing project, especially a book. The task is so daunting, so huge, so important. It often leaves me a bit awestruck. I can’t help but think of the serious responsibility I have as the keeper of the gift of being a writer of faith, a writer in God’s kingdom. But then the keys begin to clack and the words begin to flow and I forget all about the responsibility. I just let the thrill of creating course through me.

I remember watching a blues singer perform on a small stage once. The man was a master of his art. He played and sang as though he were controlling a strong animal. He captivated his audience and he gloried in it. At one point, he started to nod and then he smiled. Then he laughed out loud. It had all come to together. The instruments, his voice, the eagerness of the audience. It was one big “Yes!” and he knew it.

Many have quoted that famous line from Chariots of Fire where Eric Liddell says, “When I run, I feel His pleasure.” Sometimes when I write, I sense His laughter. When I’m in the moment, in Him, tied to Him through the words that are pouring out, it is like nothing else matters. It is one big “Yes!”

I think perhaps this is what Paul meant by “in him it has always been “Yes” (2 Corinthians 1:19) - an emphatic, triumphant, laugh in the face of evil, shouted from the rooftops, “Yes!”

When we are in Christ, doing what He has called us to do, loving Him and loving the work, it will always be a joyous “Yes!”

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When Writing is Like Riding a Horse by Marcia Laycock (Click to Tweet)

It wasn’t that I was afraid, it was more that I was awestruck.~ Marcia Laycock (Click to Tweet)

Eric Liddell says, “When I run, I feel His pleasure.”~ Marcia Laycock (Click to Tweet)

Marcia Lee Laycock writes from central Alberta Canada where she is a pastor's wife and mother of three adult daughters. She was the winner of The Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her novel, One Smooth Stone. The sequel, A Tumbled Stone was also short listed for a Word Award. Marcia has three novels for middle grade readers and four devotional books in print and has contributed to several anthologies. Her work has been endorsed by Sigmund Brouwer, Janette Oke, Phil Callaway and Mark Buchanan. 

Abundant Rain, an ebook devotional for writers is available on Amazon. It is also now available in Journal format. 

Her most recent release is Celebrate This Day, a devotional book for special occasions like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Thanksgiving. 

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