How to Find Your Mojo

A friend sent me a message one day after I appeared to her in her dream. She asked what the best way was to get people healed. I told her “It’s all about your mojo.” She wanted to know if I could explain that.

Not the healing thing. The mojo thing.

After I published my first book, some friends who had been teaching about healing were invited to speak at a conference. I was invited too, but I wasn’t able to go. I had to work.

The conference I missed out on was just the beginning. My friends soon began traveling around the country, speaking at more conferences, while I stayed home.

I was happy for them. They were teaching some cutting-edge things that the church needed to hear. Still, I couldn’t help feeling a little sorry for myself.

One day I had a chat with the Holy Spirit. I asked Him an uncomfortable question, “When was I going to have my chance?”

“Is that what you want?” He replied.

“I don’t know. I’ve never tried it.”

I didn’t feel like the life of an itinerant minister was for me. I was 30 years into a medical career and throwing it all away so I could speak on the conference circuit seemed a bit impulsive. And there were bills to pay.

But still, I felt… overlooked.

There were also books to write. So I kept my mind focused on writing.

Not long after this, my wife had a dream. In it, she went to buy a Christmas tree and ended up at the house of C.S. Lewis’ parents. They had a tree for sale and told her all about it. Then they told her about something else that was for sale.

It was their son’s writing desk. The desk and the Christmas tree were being sold for the same price. But she could only buy one. She didn’t purchase either of them.

When she told me about the dream, I immediately understood the symbolism of the desk, but not the Christmas tree. That revelation came later.

I kept working on the ambulance and managed to write a couple more books. My friends continued speaking at conferences and church meetings. Then one day, I was given my chance.

The conference I spoke at was the perfect venue for someone like me. It was small. There were lots of friends there. And I was surrounded by mature prophets with whom I could share the platform. The Gathering was perfect in another way.

Someone was there who was more developed in their gifting and they were willing to minister to the audience. Steve Harmon spent the weekend praying and prophesying over people and setting them free of demons. That allowed me time to mingle with my friends. The closest I came to any real “ministry” was hanging out with Steve while he worked his mojo.

A couple of months later, I was asked to speak at a church in another part of the country. The pastor said a lot of well-known ministers had spoken there recently and he thought I would be a good fit. I asked what I would be expected to do. He explained that I would give a couple of messages, pray over people for healing, deliver prophetic words, and walk away with a nice honorarium.

It took about 10 seconds to realize I had no interest in doing it.

Men of God aren’t supposed to say things like this. But flying across the country, talking for hours, and then standing in front of a line of people who need prayer and a word from God is the last thing I want to spend my weekend doing.

It isn’t that I don’t like meetings. I love being in the glory and seeing the miraculous. It’s not that I don’t like people. I’m an extrovert in every sense of the word. And I like praying for people, though at times, it can be emotionally overwhelming and physically exhausting. (It took three days for me to recover from the last meeting I ministered at.)

I think the problem is the disruption to my mojo that happens when I travel.

Every time I get on a plane with my wife, it takes half a day for us to pack our things. After we arrive, we need to get a rental car then rush to get showered and dressed, and then find our way to a place we’ve never been to before. After three or four hours, we return to the hotel exhausted. We get a few hours’ sleep then get up and do it all over again.

I like traveling for pleasure. But I could not imagine living half my life out of a suitcase. Going to meetings. Praying for strangers. Going to bed every night exhausted. Knowing I need to catch another plane tomorrow. And do I have time on the way to the airport to grab a cup of coffee?

The problem is that I like my daily routine and I can’t follow it when I’m on the road.

Most days, I wake up whenever I want. Sometimes, it’s 2:05 am. Other times it’s 9:23. The first order of business is making coffee. If Denise happens to be up I make enough for two. If I’m in the mood I’ll make breakfast. We chat. We watch the sunrise. We listen to the birds in the palm trees and enjoy the view from the window in our dining room. I check my email, see how the books are selling and take out the trash. Then I go to work.

Most days I sit at my writing desk with a cup of coffee and work on a book. I’m might be writing a new story, researching a supernatural subject, or editing a manuscript. It’s a routine. But it’s my routine. And I’m addicted to it. There’s nothing I love more than writing. Not even bacon or coffee.

We all encounter God in different ways. I do it mostly through writing. When I write, it’s like God is sitting next to me. I ask Him questions and He shares His thoughts. I sit at my computer and dictate our conversations. It’s how I’ve come to know Him and it’s how He’s working out my destiny. It’s my mojo. And if it matters, it’s my method of worship.

Being a writer isn’t a flashy life. There’s no podium. No bright lights. It’s not all sparkly and shiny like a Christmas tree. It’s comfortable. And if you happen to be a writer, it’s where you find your mojo.

God knew I wasn’t cut out to be an itinerant minister. So he gave me a wife who believed I could be a writer. And He gave her a dream.

If I have any advice, it would be to rest in the knowledge that God has a unique plan for you. A unique destiny. Your destiny doesn’t look like the one He has for someone else. When you see someone doing their thing don’t be envious. Be glad. They found their mojo. If someone tries to hand you a destiny that doesn’t fit, don’t buy it. God’s plan for you is so much better. Hold out for the thing that’s comfortable. The thing that fits you like a glove. When you find it, you’ll know it. Until you do, keep asking and keep seeking. Your mojo is out there looking for you.