If you’ve spent any time in a gym you know that the first 2 weeks are the “make it or break it” phase. These are the days where your body adjusts to new strain, your mind wrestles with mental aerobics, and together they must learn to balance the scales of pain. But without this time there would be no growth. Without experiencing the stretching of muscles, new strength would never happen. Scientifically, when a muscle fiber is stretched, the bonds which hold it together are broken over and over so it can become stronger. It hurts. Pain and fatigue exist in the same space. But in the end, the benefit outward the trial.
For those of you who do not know, I have had a calling on my heart to write a book in the coming year. I’ve prayed about it intensely. I’ve come to grips understanding that God wants to use my passion for building strong families to further his kingdom. I committed to starting my writing journey the first of September. I have no idea how long it will take. It maybe a life long project. But overall there is a deep urgency within my soul which says “write”.
So, over the last 20 days I sat down with an attitude of “this is going to be easy” and realized it’s been forever since I exercised my writing muscles. Rarely, can a person simply sit down with pencil and pen; or in a more modern terminology, a computer tablet and keyboard, and write a masterpiece. It would be the same as going to the gym and trying to deadlift 300 lbs. your first time out. You’d walk away with serious damage, a broken ego, and a frustration which would keep you from returning to the gym. No, writing this book requires a smoother, more graceful approach. It requires me to take time to slow down with my thoughts, write them down, and allow the words to learn to flow. It’s less about the book being created and more about relearning to express myself through written word.
So, for the next 30 days I’m hitting the proverbial gym and relearning how to stretch my writing muscles. What I write doesn’t have to be awe inspiring. It doesn’t even have to be grammatical correct. To stretch these muscles means taking the time to let the words flow and see where the journey takes me. Let the journey and challenge begin.
Surviving Chaos 
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