Things I've Learned in the Hands of a Master

"Edwina, The many comments below may discourage you, but that's not my intention."

My heart sank. I scrolled down the manuscript and read comment after comment until I couldn't read another word.

I closed my lap top and sat with my palms pressed against my eyes. I took several deep breaths and swallowed. I didn't want to cry.

"Honey, it's okay. You're still a good writer." My husband rubbed my shoulders.

I nodded.

Questions began to bombard my mind. Who said you could write? Have you spent a year wasting your time?

I shook my head to chase away the words that discouraged me. Isn't this what I wanted? An opportunity to have my writing critiqued by a master of the craft? Why was it so painful?

I learned when you are in the hands of a master and start to look around, doubt crowds your thoughts.

"You can write." I had heard often. Maybe too often.

When I presented what I thought was my best to a well-known writer, I felt defeated when I read his critique. The pain wasn't because his words were unkind. It was painful because I had been broken.

I learned you need to bend when you sit at the feet of a master. If you don't bend, you will break.

The one who critiqued my work wanted to make me better. I presented a piece that I thought needed polishing. The master took me back to the beginning of the process. The piece needed to be taken apart.

I learned the master can see what the student can't.

The next morning I sat in front of my computer. I cried. I asked God to make me teachable. An hour later, I had typed out two paragraphs the way I had been instructed. After many critiques, I received the words I longed to hear.

"YOU GOT IT. Excellent."

Being teachable is important and brokenness is sometimes part of the process. Painful; yes, but worth it.

In the hands of a master, I have so much to learn.