“Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” Zechariah 4:6b NKJV

No one enjoys being weak, especially me. And the devil knows this. He takes advantage of our fears with promises of control, or at least a heavy influence over the circumstances of our lives. His ploys are so common, and they make so much sense to the world, they often feel right and normal.

A hard, but valuable lesson came about for me through my venture into writing. What began with playful experimentation progressed to the challenge of writing a novel. As I tackled the learning curve with books and articles, submitted my work to humbling critiques, and wrote hundreds of thousands of words, most of which were trashed, it was fun. I lost track of time. I forgot to eat. It became a joke when my husband would find me in the dark, busy at my computer when he came home from work.

Clearly, I had been born to write and didn’t know it for most of my life. Passion was ignited by the miracle of co-laboring with the Holy Spirit as He constantly came to my aid. Then, after six years, when I finally felt satisfied and had feedback that my manuscript was good, the trouble began. It was as if the Holy Spirit had done his job and I was on my own. What a lie.

Even after God opened a door to meet an editor who graciously talked to me and edited my work for less than the going rate, praised my book, and encouraged me to submit a proposal, I acted as if the lie were real. Right up until I signed the contract—a dream come true and a major big deal.

But the celebration ended quickly as worries about the future swelled like yeast in dough. In the middle of a four-week, expensive online course about launching books, the final melt-down came.

But God was there. My daily Bible reading brought me to one of David’s cries.

Psalm 57:2 “I will cry out to God Most High, to God who performs all things for me.” NKJV

As I wailed and wondered where my joy had gone, the precious Holy Spirit ministered truth. He showed me that in “graduating” from simply writing to becoming an author, I’d surrendered my identity as a beloved child of God for a false sense of accomplishment and responsibility. In my mind, authors were professional and competent. They worked hard to market themselves and held the secrets to selling books.

The real message sent through the Christians running the book launch course wasn’t wrong. They urged us to express our God-given personalities and share our gifts uniquely. But I’d lost track of who I was. I forgot I could be weak because God was strong on my behalf.

This writing journey was still about Him.

My trust is back where it belongs. God will handle the release of my book and the readers I wrote it for. He has a plan for those who He wants to bless with the story He helped me write. As I follow the Holy Spirit every day, I will be part of bringing this about.

In what part of life do you think you have to be strong? Have you forgotten, dear child of the King, that the battle belongs to the Lord? The truth is, no matter how large or small the tasks, we are branches in the vine. We abide as He brings the fruit and places his power within it.

A prayer: Bring me back to joy, precious Jesus. Remind me that your power is made perfect in my weakness. That the joy of the Lord is my strength. Amen.