How’s Your WIP Coming Along?

In writer’s terminology, a WIP is a Work-in-Progress. Our lives, like my books, are a work-in-progress. They’re in process. In preparation, on the path to perfection.

When friends ask (some with dubious confidence, I suspect) how my latest project, Anchor at Alcázar Reef, is coming along, I share about four factors that indicate the status of a Finished Work:

• A time deadline is ended and fulfilled. I had hoped to complete Anchor during NaNoWriMo in the month of November. While I made great strides, I didn’t finish. I’ll reevaluate in mid-January.
• The author is satisfied with the end result of her work. While perfection is an illusion and more tweaking always seems possible, I’m happy with what I’ve accomplished thus far. I feel I’m reaching my personal aims for the story.
• The viewers/readers are delighted with the artistic value of the creation. In this case, since Anchor’s as yet unpublished, the jury’s still out on the effectiveness of its craft and message, which is about how a real God, involved in our real world, can transform real relationships.
• The sponsor/investor is pleased with the masterpiece. Whether I am a success or failure mainly depends on the opinion of my Lord who gifted and commended me to this ministry of writing to inspire and encourage others in their Christian lives.

I wonder if the enemies of God smirk when they ask how His WIPs (you and me) are coming along?

• When you reach the end of your life or of time itself, will you have fulfilled the work God entrusted to you? A good reply is: “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6).
• Will you be satisfied that you’ve done your best? “…we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Eph. 2:10).
• Will others commend you for completing your life assignment?  “And in Him you have been made complete…” (Col. 2:10)
• And more important, will the Lord Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant”? He “is able to…make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy” (Jude 24).

That’s the WIP that wins the prize for a Masterpiece-in-the-Making!