You Can Write Powerful
Devotionals!
by
Devotional writing is not the
same as article writing. In an article you present and teach; in a devotional
you share. Think of it this way: instead of standing in front of a huge
amphitheater presenting to hundreds of people, you are sitting across a kitchen
table sipping coffee with a friend. Articles center around one theme, but use
several sources. Devotionals center around one theme and one Bible verse.
Articles can be anywhere from 500 - 2,000 words in length. Devotionals are
usually around 250 words. Articles usually come from head knowledge;
devotionals come from heart knowledge. How can you write powerful short pieces
and convey the message in your heart?
Follow these 5 steps:
1. Pray.
Prayer is where all powerful
writing starts -- in God's throne room. Ask God to reveal to you the message He
wants you to share with others. You have a unique voice He needs in order to
reach others. Take a look in the Bible. The theme of all the books is Jesus loving
us enough to come and die for us. But look at how many different authors wrote
it. Each author had his own voice, his own style, and his own way of seeing the
message. Don't feel like you cannot write a devotional on a certain topic
because someone else wrote on the same topic. Your devotional will not be the
same because your uniqueness will shine through.
2. Make it personal.
The beauty and power of a
devotional is its personal revelation. The reader is drawn into the experience
and feels like the author is speaking directly to him or her. Write what is on
your heart. Write about what you learned, what you felt, what you experienced,
and how you grew. You may feel that no one is interested in your personal
opinion, but happily this is not true. Somewhere, someone is going through the
same thing and he or she will be comforted and strengthened by the words you
share. Jesus was successful in His teachings because He shared great truths in
words that everyone, from the littlest tot to the oldest adult, could relate
to.
3. Read the Word.
Spend time reading the Bible.
Let God speak to your heart through its pages. As God touches your heart and
brings revelation to you, you will see one opportunity after another to write
what God is sharing with you. Your writing will be fresh because it will be
based on a current relationship with Him rather than something you learned 20
years ago.
4. Listen to the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit speaks to our
hearts all the time. The problem is we are not always listening. As you go
through your daily activities, listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to you.
As you practice listening, you will grow more and more sensitive to spiritual
applications to everyday occurrences. You'll see a lesson in how much God loves
by the unselfish act of a child. You'll see the work of the Holy Spirit in our
lives by the wind whipping through trees. You'll see God's power and majesty in
the wonder of a storm. Everyday examples are power word pictures for sharing
truth. Remember the sower going out to sow or the one lamb out of 99 that was
lost? Jesus used ordinary incidents as examples for His teaching. They were so
powerful we still remember them today.
5. Write it down.
Keep a pad of paper with you at
all times and write down every idea and revelation you get throughout the day.
As God speaks to you through the Word and through everyday occurrences, jot
down the idea. Write legibly and put as much down as you can so that you can
reconstruct the idea later when you sit down to write. It's amazing at how many
writing ideas we get all day long that we forget because something comes along
and refocuses our attention. A devotional is one of the hardest pieces to
write, and at the same time, it is one of the most rewarding. As the Peace
Corps says, "It's the toughest job you'll ever love!" God bless you
as you write for Him!
Copyright © 2001 by
Sharon Dalton Williams runs
Kingdom Ambassador Ministries and publishes a bi-weekly ezine, THE KINGDOM
HERALD, and a daily e-devotional, "From the Desk of the King."
Subscription instructions are listed at http://www.kingdomambassador.com.
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