Wednesday's #FaithandInk Devotional ==> Losing Sight

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“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” ~ Matthew 6:24
Sometimes as an author it’s tempting to take our eyes off of the real reason that we do what we do. It’s tempting to shift the focus from glorifying Christ, to supporting our families financially. I’ve been there recently.



I’ll be honest, our family has been in a rough spot and I thought that maybe, just maybe if I could finish the book projects that I was working on, then we wouldn’t have to worry about it. Or maybe if I could increase my affiliate sales, things would improve. After all, I know several writers that are making a living from their book royalties and/or affiliate sales (and I have been one of them in the past), and I really believe that someday God has that in store for me again. But I also know that today isn’t that day. It doesn’t simply happen overnight, and if I take my eyes off of serving God, then it wouldn’t be worth it anyway.

Jesus made it very clear that we cannot serve two masters. If I’m writing for Christ, then I can’t be concerned about the income that comes from it. If I’m writing to make more money, then I can’t be writing for Christ. Yet I’m sure that you can relate, that earning money for our work makes it feel even more valuable; and earning money isn’t a bad thing.


It’s when we do what we do for the money, instead of for Christ that it becomes a problem.
When we are chasing our dreams of being financially well off, instead of pursuing Christ to know Him and make Him known, we have lost sight of the prize.

Philippians 3:14 says, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” That’s what I want. I want to press on toward the goal, to win the prize
for which God has called me heavenward. Don’t you?

I don’t know where today finds you, but I pray that you keep your eyes on Jesus. I know how tempting it is to write for income, but if you are writing for Christ, keep on writing for Him. Don’t let Satan get a foothold and tempt you to lose your focus. Keep trusting that God will provide.


Reflection:
Remembering that you cannot serve two masters, who are you serving with your writing? Are you writing for Christ, or writing for cash?

Application:
Find someone who can hold you accountable for your writing - someone who can gently let you know if you are starting to lose sight of the reason that you started writing in the first place. It can be someone in your family, your spouse, a friend from church, or another author.



 Heather Hart is an internationally best-selling and award-winning author with an unquenchable passion for Jesus. She knows one thing every girl needs is a little honesty, so she’s not afraid to get candid and share her struggles. Her hope is that through her writing, she can help others soak up the love of Jesus. Heather currently resides in a small Texas town with her husband, Paul, and their four quickly-growing children. You can connect with her online by visiting her website

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