I write because I want to offer hope, courage, and community to those reading my words. My humble gift presented in the way of words.

I write because I don’t want the hurting, struggling, or broken to think that they are alone in this journey of life.

I write because it helps me discover what I am thinking and feeling. It is a process that connects me to the deep places in my heart.

I write to discover who I am. I write to resolve issues and explore possibilities. At times, it’s a form of therapy. I’ve learned so much from my inward exploring I’ve probably saved half-a-million dollars in therapist’s fees by being a writer.

Cecil Murphy in Unleash the Writer Within

And I write honestly, because if I only tell you what makes me sound good, perfect, or like a worthy pastor’s wife, then I have cheated you in some way. If I tell you that adoption is hard, but I don’t tell you that it took me more than a year to feel any love for my child, I have alienated you if you too are an adopting parent struggling with love. If I tell you that I struggle with anxiety, but I don’t tell you that over a year ago I had to ask for help, then I have made you feel lonely in your own struggles thinking nobody will understand, or that you are “worse off” than the rest. If I tell you that being a parent is a joy, but I don’t tell you that at times I feel like a failure as a mother because of my media addiction, then I am not allowing a level of accountability or honesty to enter into my life, and maybe yours too.

The most personal is the most universal, the most hidden is the most public, and the most solitary is the most communal. What we live in the most intimate places of our being is not just for us but for all people. That is why our inner lives are lives for others.

– Henri Nouwen

And this, this is why I write.

Why do you write? Leave your thoughts in the comments!