Last week, I returned to Substack for the first time in a month, having been out of pocket due to a back injury. I was delighted by how many people were excited to see a new post and concerned that I hadn’t been around.
The fact that people find the little essays I float out inspiring and edifying humbles me. It’s something I’ve experienced since Why I Dyed My Hair Purple and Other Unorthodox Stories came out in January.
It’s proof that when you show up in obedience and write what God puts on your heart, He really does ensure it reaches the people who most need it.
This is our confidence as people who create for His glory. As Philippians 1:6 says, “He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.”
This doesn’t just apply to our sanctification, although that is the greatest context for the verse. He will complete the good works we do in all areas of our lives, as husbands and wives, parents, workers, friends, servants, and yes, as creative people.1
We serve a magnificent, sovereign God. Nothing can separate us from Him, and nothing can stop His purposes in our lives.2
Here’s the thing, though. I’m really, really tired.
April knocked me on my butt. Literally. On April 30, I said goodbye to the last of the commitments I had for the month, heaved a huge sigh of relief, and then promptly collapsed.
I bent down to refill my pets’ water dish. Immediately, it felt as if all my lower back muscles fell out on the floor.
I tried to drag myself through the rest of my day, hoping movement would improve the situation. Instead, it progressively got worse.
By the time Curtis got home, I was curled up in bed in the worst pain I’ve ever experienced. Even the slightest movement of my lower body sent an electric shock through my legs and back.
Fearing that I wouldn’t be able to care for myself the next day while he was at work, he carried me out to his truck and drove me to the ER. He pulled up to the entrance, got me a wheelchair, and pushed me through the sliding doors as I sobbed and screamed my brains out.
The attending doctor told me I had sciatica and prescribed steroids and ibuprofen. The pain began to decrease, and moving around wasn’t as tricky.
Still, I had no idea spending hours on end just lying on the couch could be so exhausting.
When I say “lying on the couch,” understand that I literally do mean the couch. Our mattress was five years old and beaten to a pulp, which certainly was a factor in this whole incident taking place.
For a week and a half, I didn’t sleep in a physical bed. I was in exile in the dark living room, spending a lot of time crying and listening to my audio Bible and hymns.
Meanwhile, a difficult situation in our home that had been operating in the background for a while began to escalate. While recovering, I was also trying to take measures to mitigate the damage.
This situation will likely require me to make some major life adjustments, and handling it is stressful on its own. Doing so while in pain was crushing.
I know this sounds like an epic tale of woe, but it’s really not. The Lord had some things to teach me, namely, reminding me of how deadly pride is and that I’m not in control of my life.
Sometimes these lessons are painful by necessity, but of course, He only chastens those He loves, so I’m ultimately encouraged by this.3
That reminder of the confidence I have in Him would have been enough, but He has also been kind and gracious in bringing me physical healing. It’s been up and down, but I have mostly resumed my everyday life. I’m even working to rebuild my endurance so I can return to long-distance cycling this summer.
One other thing that has saved me is writing. I’m excited to share that I’m working on a new fiction project and am almost done with the first draft. This idea is super off-brand for me (it has nothing to do with my novel, The Goodbye-Love Generation), but I haven’t been this excited about writing fiction in a long time.
So, what am I saying in all this?
Quite simply, I need to take a break.
A variety of circumstances have upended my life, and I’m honestly having to ration my energy, regroup, and wait for God to show me how to respond to what’s been unfolding over the last several weeks.
This account is going to have to be one of those things.
I’m not saying I’m going to disappear completely. I think that would be irresponsible. After all, I do have a lot of outtakes from Why I Dyed My Hair Purple that you haven’t seen. It’s also likely that after things settle down, I’ll be able to return on a regular basis.
But in the meantime, I need to hit pause, at least intermittently.
I know this is probably disappointing for all the new followers I’ve gotten recently, but don’t despair. There are many ways you can stay engaged with me. Here’s a short list.
Buy My Books
In case you don’t know, I’m the author of two. The Goodbye-Love Generation: A Novel in Stories is about a rock band based in Kent, Ohio, at the time of the shootings at Kent State University in 1970. It explores themes of creativity, the consequences of activism, and how shared trauma affects communities.
Why I Dyed My Hair Purple and Unorthodox Stories, my most recent book, is a collection of essays focused on my conversion to Christianity in college and how God has used the arts and creativity in my testimony.
If you’ve ever felt out of place in a religious community, wondered what to do with your art as a Christian, or just like stories of spiritual transformation, this one is for you.
The novel is available only on Amazon, but you can get the essay collection from Amazon or other fine online retailers, or support a small business by buying directly from Calla Press Publishing.
Use My Writing Resources
Since 2020, I’ve operated Inkling Creative Strategies, an author services company where I help writers reach their full creative potential so they can impact and inspire readers.
I offer services at all stages of the writing process, including free tools for people just getting started, developmental editing, line editing, and proofreading. Also, I do typesetting (i.e. designing the interiors of books) for authors who want to publish their work independently.
Additionally, I offer one-off consultations and have just launched a new self-guided writing resource, the Virtual Writing Retreat, which lets you create your own writing retreat in your own space in whatever season you’re in.
It includes video teachings, a workbook with prompts, activities, and printable goodies, as well as a bonus Zoom debriefing session.
Click here learn more about Inkling Creative Strategies, explore my resources, purchase the Virtual Writing Retreat, and more.
Read My Backlog of Peculiar Crossroads Posts
There is a ton of content on this account. Read my thought-provoking essays that link film, theatre, music, and literature with orthodox theology, and then share them and tell your friends.
As a bonus, I record all the posts in a podcast so you can listen at any time.
Follow Me on Instagram
For vinyl recommendations, pictures of my dog, and documentation of my adventures, follow @writerkori. For Inkling stuff, follow @inklingcreativestrategies.
And don’t worry. This isn’t goodbye. I’m sure I won’t be able to stay away long. I might also return with some cool new things to share, including maybe a preview of this new fiction project.
“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.” (Col 3:16)
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 8:38-39)
“My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD, and do not loathe His rebuke; for the LORD disciplines the one He loves, as does a father the son in whom he delights” (Prov 3:11-12)
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