I am a big fan of Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time. Unlike C.S. Lewis’ Narnia series, which I read when I was fairly young, I discovered L’Engle’s classic as an adult and fell in love.
I fell in love with the characters, the story, the writing (oh, the writing!), the use of science, and the Christian themes that gently ran through it.
Last year, as I was struggling with coupling my faith with my writing, I discovered another book by this amazing author: Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith & Art.
I read about three-quarters of it, put it down for awhile, and am now going through it again (Don’t judge me; this is how I do things). There are so many golden nuggets that are affirming, thought-provoking, and downright challenging.
In the first chapter, “Cosmos from Chaos,” L’Engle talks about obedience.
What would have happened to Mary (and to all the rest of us) if she had said no to the angel? She was free to do so. But she said yes. She was obedient, and the artist too, must be obedient to the command of the work…If the work comes to the artist and says, “Here I am, serve me,” then the job of the artist, great or small is to serve…To serve should be a privilege…it is our greatest privilege to be its servant.
Artists – writers – are called to serve the art that we create. We are servants. It is not about us. Not for accolades, not for being woke or relevant, not for being an upstart or innovator, not for being the guardian of tradition, or speaker of truth. It is for the characters, their stories. That is whom we serve.
In serving that which springs forth from within – our imagination – we serve God, the Creator. He made us and planted the seed that would someday become an idea, then a story, which we serve. In serving our art, we serve Him.
We. Serve. Him.
That is our calling. That is why we are here. To serve. How we do it depends on the talents we are gifted by God. Whom we reach depends on where He places us. Geography has nothing to do with it, only His will if we are obedient.
This idea that obedience to my writing is an act of worship is a new and liberating one. It also makes perfect sense.
Obedience is an unpopular word nowadays, but the artist must be obedient to the work, whether it be a symphony, a painting, or a story for a small child. I believe that each work of art, whether it is a work of a great genius or something very small, comes to the artist and says “Here I am. Enflesh me. Give birth to me.” And the artist either says “My soul doth magnify the Lord,” and willingly becomes the bearer of the work, or refuses…
I’ve always said writing is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. It’s also one of the most rewarding. I am a much happier person when I’m working on my writing, much more at peace. Maybe that’s God telling me something.