Writers write. It’s just what we do.
For writers not to write is like having fire shut up in the bones or some melancholy aching like an unrequited love. We actually feel this stuff, right? Every writer I talk to describes this feeling as their “passion” or even their “calling” to write.
But, what’s a calling and why do so many of us feel so strongly about it? Are we really “called” like missionaries are called? How will we know when we’ve fulfilled this call? Is getting our songs on the radio or recorded by an artist the true measure of success in our calling? How will we know when we’ve actually done it?
Let me start with my story and point out three ways I think we can know if we’re really called to write songs.
“Being a songwriter does not rely on an audience or other band members or a camera. I can just sit in a room and write songs.” ~ Rick Springfield
I moved to Nashville in 1983 to take a church job as a worship leader, but the job fell through. My wife and I had only $40 and no place to live. We were homeless. God provided, of course, but I had no way of knowing that I would be introduced to Bill Gaither through a casual friend and be signed to a publishing deal on the basis of a few simple songs he listened to. I had about 19 songs recorded my first year and eventually worked my way up to be VP of Publishing for Star Song Media and then on to Integrity Music, even though I hadn’t even finished a college degree and had no business experience.
But the untold story is that I had dreamed of writing songs for recording years before, had tried to be heard to no avail, and then gave up on it completely. I saw no chance of ever writing professionally, then God “tricked” me into moving to Nashville only to open doors that would lead me to a 30+ year career in songwriting and publishing. The other very important detail is that, once the doors opened, I spent five nights a week writing songs while doing odd jobs to make ends meet. I was highly motivated to make it work and applied myself with all my heart.
I could never have imagined what my calling would really turn out to be. That seems to be the case for a lot of people I’ve met who’ve virtually stumbled into their true purpose while merely trying to follow God’s leading one step at a time.
This leads me to three ways I think we can begin to know with certainty that we’re called to write.
First, writing isn’t something we use to make ourselves happy or to feel good about ourselves.
While writing can make us happy and can make us feel good about ourselves, if those are our primary motivators, we’re probably missing out on a lot of great writing while we’re worried about getting our own needs met. Anytime we’re leading worship or singing or creating out of a sense of emotional neediness, we’re missing our true calling. When we’re writing from the overflow of who we are in Christ and a sense of stewarding the gifts He’s put in us, we’re a lot closer to authentically communicating the Spirit of God and will probably find greater satisfaction, if not true success.
Second, songwriting is a priority for us.
I grew up in a musical home. My parents were good musicians and music filled our home throughout my childhood, everything from Flatt & Scruggs to Mahler. When I came to Christ as a teenager, the first thing I wanted to do was write a song about this amazing new love in my heart. I still want to. Every song I write to this day has a little something of my dramatic conversion in it, a little bit of that original moment of discovering God loved me and that I belonged to Him. Writing songs has remained a priority to me for over 30 years and is till one of the highest priorities in my life.
Whether I ever got a song recorded or not didn’t stop me before and doesn’t stop me now. I still write often because I want to. It’s still a serious priority in my schedule, even though there are a lot of other important things to do. When a writer tells me they don’t have time to write, I think of my triathlete dentist and his wife who, despite working 60 hours a week, manage to run, bike, or swim almost every day because it is a high priority for them. When I asked him once how they managed to make time to train, his answer was direct as he said, “Well, John, we make time for the things we really want to do.”
Third, our success isn’t measured by the accolades of others, but by the pleasure of God.
Paul said to do everything you do “as unto the Lord” (Col. 3:23). It’s so easy to begin to measure our “success” in the eyes of others instead of the eyes of the Lord. When we’ve built an industry around songs and the competition is high for a few slots on artists’ records, it’s tempting to be discouraged and even quit. But, if we believe in the concept of being called, we have to believe that God’s idea of success is a lot more about obedience than about being on the radio.
There’s also the fact of contextualization. I work with a lot of different kinds of songwriters. Some want to be heard on the radio, but not all. One of my greatest success stories with a song client is the attorney in his 60’s who only wanted to write songs to lead for his traditional congregation. We helped him do just that through our coaching. That’s success. Context is king. Where’s God planted you? Are you being faithful where you are by writing for the audience God’s given you? True success is doing what you can where you are, not fantasizing about the audience He’s given someone else.
Writers write. It’s just what we do.
