Oh hey there, it’s been a while. Last I left you – back in February – I was starting my first class at Bible college (see here). I’ve since completed two classes (yay) and plan on taking another come January 2024. Without completely recapping what I’ve learned so far, I’ll say this: I’ve learned so much. My last class gave me the training and the tools I needed to perform more theologically sound research and writing. The class was a BEAR, but it was worth wrestling.

I don’t believe in many coincindences, so I don’t think it was chance that my class on exegetical writing concluded the same weekend that my pastor posed the following thought prompt:

God speaks to us in many different ways. Sometimes through other people, and sometimes through songs; sometimes when we think we’re minding our own business, and sometimes directly in prayer. But as our pastor pointed out, oftentimes He speaks in one word, or a single phrase, or a question. The challenge that our pastor proposed was to think about a specific question (if any) that God might be asking.

It’s Tuesday evening, and I’ve been thinking about it since Sunday morning.

I wrote my final, weekly reflection assignment for my class on Sunday night and asked myself (and God, I suppose) in the assignment itself, “what next?”

God answered my question with a question. Gently He nudged me and asked, “when will you stop making excuses?”

I’ve got plenty of them. Too tired. Too stressed. Too busy. Too hot. Too expensive. Too inconvenient. Too extroverted. Too introverted. Too underqualified. Et cetera and the rest.

I hate excuses; see prior blog posts. I am a solve-your-own-problems kind of gal, even if my timeline for those resolutions is slower. I despise being so tired and stressed and busy and overwhelmed and filled with imposter syndrome that I neglect important areas of my life, yet lately, that’s been my modus operandi because oh hey, anxiety is still a thing.

So when I asked, “what next?” and God replied with, “when will you stop making excuses?” I got my answer: stop making excuses. Take the next step. Trust God. Be obedient. Say yes to God. Do the thing. Stop procrastinating on the thing.

In other words, for me, write the next book (metaphorically and literally).

Last summer I read a book called There’s No Such Thing as Bad Weather by Linda Åkeson McGurk. If you are a parent, I highly recommend it. The basic idea is that children should be outside year-round because it’s stimulating and exciting. Clothes can be washed, dirt can be scrubbed off, and scratches and bruises will heal, so let kids be kids. The weather shouldn’t hinder a child’s play or wonder with the natural world.

I really enjoy that philosophy and believe it can apply to adults too. If we wait for perfect conditions, we might miss an opportunity. So, much like I’ve adopted fika as a part of my daily work routine, I’ve adopted this mantra as well: there’s no such thing as bad weather.

So if you need me, you know where to find me: up to my messy bun in coffee and words, trying to pour out the next book.

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I appreciate your patience with this blog as it evolves with me and my ever-changing life. At this point I highly doubt I’ll return to weekly postings for the foreseeable future, but I’m pretty active on social media if you want to follow me there:

IG @meg_messybunmantras

Facebook @megan.diefenbacher OR messybunmantras