KNOWN FOR WHAT

KNOWN FOR WHAT
Wednesday, June 17, 2020 by MARTIN WILES

PLEASE WELCOME

MARTIN WILES

DEVOTIONAL WEDNESDAY

When the queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, which brought honor to the name of the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions. 1 Kings 10:1 NLT

Most know her only as the creator of Harry Potter.

What most people don’t know is what J. K. Rowling went through prior to becoming successful. Rowling first conceived the idea of Harry Potter in 1990 as she rode a train from Manchester to London. She began putting the fully-formed story on to paper but was interrupted when her mother died after a ten-year battle with Multiple Sclerosis.

Two years later, Rowling moved to Portugal where she taught English, met a man, married, and had a daughter. One year later, the marriage ended. She then moved to Edinburgh, Scotland, to be closer to her sister. By this time, she had three chapters of the future famous book in her suitcase.

Rowling didn’t see herself as a successful person—rather as a failure. She had no job and no money. She was also divorced and had a child. Bouts of depression assaulted her, and she eventually found herself signing up for welfare.

By 1995, Rowling had finished the book—but had also experienced rejection from twelve major publishers. One year later, Bloomsbury, a small publishing house, accepted her manuscript and offered her a small advance. They published the book in 1997 but printed only one thousand copies, five hundred of which they distributed to libraries.

Amazingly, in 1997 and 1998, Harry Potter won awards from Nestle Smarties Book Prize and the British Book Award for Children’s Book of the Year. Today, Rowling’s books have sold more than 400 million copies, and she is considered one of the most successful women authors in the United Kingdom.

King Solomon wrote, too, but people knew him for more than that. His fame made headlines, so much so that the queen of Sheba had to see him for herself. His possessions—both material and chattel—amazed her, but so did his wisdom. Especially the way he solved a puzzle of which mother a particular baby belonged to. When two women came claiming a certain child belonged to them—and neither would tell the truth—Solomon demanded that the child be cut in half and one half given to each woman. Of course, the real mother didn’t want her child killed, so she offered it to the woman making the false claim.

Rowling certainly isn’t the only person known for overcoming difficult circumstances and moving ahead to success. Successful people fill history’s pages. And other authors trump Rowland’s reputation.

Of all the things for which others could know us—or of all the things for which we might want to be known—God has His own list in mind. His list might not make us famous or known worldwide, but living by His directory will bring us peace, fulfillment, and joy such as we won’t discover anywhere else.

God’s roster includes things like honesty, integrity, selflessness, kindness, love, joy, and optimism. Things Jesus modeled while on earth. Traits some didn’t appreciate but that others admired. Things, however, that pleased His heavenly Father.

Our enemy will tempt us to be known for things that displease God, but God gives us a different list. When we allow ourselves to be known by the things on His register, we’ll please God, and that, after all, is the most important thing in life. At the end of the day, it only matters what He thinks.

Make up your mind to be known by those characteristics that reflect the God you serve.

ABOUT WHISPER IN THE WOODS

Whisper in the Woods: Quiet Escapes in a Noisy World was birthed from Martin Wiles ' numerous treks with his two children and his middle brother in mountainous areas on the eastern coast of the United States. Through these hiking and camping experiences, God taught him valuable lessons that have seen him through many difficult life experiences.

Martin's weekly devotionals found in A Whisper in the Woods take the reader out of the noise that often accompanies living in this world and into the quiet escapades of wooded areas where the voice of God is more clearly heard.

As you walk with Martin through the mountain valleys and over the high summits, you too will hear God whisper words of comfort to you.

Buy links:

A Whisper in the Woods: Quiet Escapes in a Noisy World https://www.amazon.com/Whisper-Woods-Quiet-Escapes-Noisy/dp/1620208652

Grits & Grace & God https://www.amazon.com/Grits-Grace-God-Heaven-Southern/dp/1645261379

Grits, Gumbo, and Going to Church https://www.amazon.com/Grits-Gumbo-Going-Church-Martin/dp/1798510375

ABOUT MARTIN WILES

Martin Wiles lives in Greenwood and is the founder of Love Lines from God. He is a freelance editor, English teacher, minister, and author who serves as Managing Editor for Christian Devotions and as a proof-editor for Courier Publishing. He is the author of six books and has been published in numerous publications. His most recent book, A Whisper in the Woods: Quiet Escapes in a Busy World, released in December 2019.