I'm Not Called To Write A Book
I’m not a prolific writer.
I disliked most of my Language Arts courses in middle school.
I cheated pretty much whenever I could, in both my AP Lang. and AP Lit. courses.
I don’t recall taking any “English” courses in college.
Nor was I an avid reader throughout my adolescence.
To this day, it takes me about 2 to 3 months to finish a 250 page book.
Me and “words” have not gotten along for the majority of my life.
In all honesty, I don’t even know why I have a Substack by those merits alone, or lack thereof.
And you guessed it: here comes the “and yet” portion of this story.
And yet, here I am … writing.
And publicly committing to writing my first book.
My hope is that all will come to fruition by the end of 2025.
But I will be praying for direction on this (please join me in praying as well!).
I’ve been shy about this thought of writing a book, which came to mind several years ago, as I began my seminary and ministry career.
I’ve been shy about this thought, which ultimately became a dream in my mid-twenties, and now an actual goal in my early thirties.
Thought I’ve been shy about sharing with others that I want to write a book, after months of deliberating, I’ve finally committed to dive in.
However.
I’m not called to write a book.
Let me make that clear.
I don’t sense a “calling” from the Lord Most High, to write a book.
That’s not how I got here.
I got here because I have felt inspired over the last 8 to 10 years to write one.
Inspired by brothers and sisters in the faith, younger and older, writing short and lengthy books, all to benefit the greater body of Christ and glorify our Lord Jesus Christ. My heart and mind have been, “provoked” to “love and good works,” as the writer of Hebrews says.1
I got here because of a pivotal conversation I had with a group of next-gen pastors in San Diego, back in October 2023, where one of them told me advice he received from someone older and wiser than him in the Christian publishing world. She told him, “Grant, go write that book. Because after you write that book, someone on the other side of the world could be reading your book while you’re sleeping, and those words can change the course of their life forever.” This completely altered my perception of writing, the power of our written words, and what the Lord can do through them.
I got here because I have been encouraged these last 9 months of being on Substack. To read from amazing writers - from the likes of
, , , , , and so many more - I’ve been genuinely inspired to write with boldness and courage. Along with being inspired, it has felt like my twenty-odd years of blogging have come to this “tip of the spear” moment; writing on Substack regularly, getting paid to write on Substack, and now taking actual steps to begin writing a book.I’m not called to write a book and I’m still going to.
And I think that’s okay.
Because I’ve been inspired.
Encouraged.
Challenged.
Convicted.
To use all of me - my heart, mind, body, soul, and experiences - to do what I am certainly called to live out: to push back against the darkness in this world with the light of Christ.
And in this case, it is through the words I muster up and write within a book.
Despite my tattered history with reading, writing, and the English language, I love writing because my brain and soul get the same satisfactory feeling that comes over my body after a breakdancing or weightlifting session at the gym.
All of those thoughts and feelings swelling in my mind throughout the day, displayed on a sheet of paper or computer screen, for my eyes to recapture and process through the same mind that had just spat them out.
To me, writing is magical.
Writing is liberating.
Writing is holy.
Whenever I write, I am reminded of and receive power from the opening words from The Gospel of John, to which I leave you now, with hope that it refreshes and reinvigorates your soul today, as it does for me, especially as I journey toward this freshly minted goal of mine:
“1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.” - John 1:1-5, CSB
“24 And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, 25 not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.” - Hebrews 10:24-25, CSB
Gifting doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the good and right work before us. Go on in grace and write that book!
I failed both semesters of senior english class in high school. My first book comes out in January.
Write that book. Don't let your past keep you from what's ahead.