Time to get writing!

Hello everyone! Sorry for going MIA on you. We have been hosting a wonderful young girl from France. It has been a wonderful experience so far and would recommend it to everyone! We are learning as much as she, I think. We have visited many historical sites within a one-hour drive from our house – blessings we don’t nearly appreciate as much as we should. Anyway…back to my writing.

Since returning from the writer’s gathering at Delta Lake Bible Conference Center, I have just about wrapped up the next chapter. I have a new philosophy and mission – one learned while at the Christian Writer’s Gathering. This is my summary based on the different presenters and people sharing messages during the week. Dave Fessenden, Barbara Hansen, Randy Singer, or Rev. John Stumbo – while their messages filled three days and were far more eloquent – this New Haven Country girls sums it up this way…GET IT DONE!

I wrote the first draft over a weekend so it is time to get a fully revised version complete. As I pray and prepare for my Philly departure in August, it is evident I need to step up my game. Why do I procrastinate finishing the revisions? Am I a writer or a person who talks about writing? By golly, I am a writer! God has given me the strength and words to tell my story so another sister or brother isn’t left to hurt for a decade like I did. Some days the writing is easier than others. Some days I know exactly where to go, others I can’t remember that far back. Where did the days and months go? Friends got married, aunts and uncles passed away, a cousin is killed and my brain can’t keep the dates straight. How can I tell my story if I can’t organize events and dates in a sensible and chronological order?

Here is my answer…I don’t need to have them organized, I only need to have them in any order but the order God leads me.  The confusion and lost time are a part of my story. I know I missed important moments in my friend’s lives. I let the anger and hurt push people away. This isn’t to say that I didn’t have joyful moments and haven’t enjoyed my life ~ I have. In spite of losing my sister…I’ve learned to enjoy life and people. I have a story to tell and it is time to finish. With the last chapter written ~ it is time to revise the rest.

My newest and biggest goal…by August 8th!! I leave for Philadelphia on August 10th for another Christian Writer’s Conference. With at least four appointments upcoming – keep my writing and this book in your prayers. There are siblings hiding behind a happy face, suffering the loss of their brother or sister – they need to know God loves them and there is Hope! My book is one tool for reaching them…time to write.

For the next few weeks I will still be posting a blog but not on a daily basis. I was beating myself up for not writing enough when I realized I have written over 40,000 words in my blog since April!! That’s write…my next book has been written. “Has the blog been an avoidance, to not work on the book?” someone asked, I say no. It has been a part of the process. Keep reading – I’ll post at least a few times a week!

My email is lbuskewriter@aol.com if you want to send a note of encouragement while I write. Your prayers and words keep me going, in God’s strength.