Chasing Rabbits?

In my spare time (hah!) I sometimes edit books for other Christian publishers. Right now I'm working on a book by John Trent called Chasing Skinny Rabbits, by John Trent (Thomas Nelson, 2007). In the book, he tells the story of a ___ of hunters (what do you call a group of them? A quiver? A brace? A herd?) who are urgently pursuing a Great Stag, the object of their great desire. They grow hungrier and hungrier in the chase, until one of them spots a rabbit shooting off into the bush.

Thinking of a fortifying pot of rabbit stew, one of the hunters decides to break off from the group for just a minute and bag the rabbit -- then return and join the others, strengthened and doubly resolved. Unfortunately, one thing leads to another, and when the hunter finally catches up with the varmint, he realizes the creature doesn't have enough meat on his bones to flavor a soup pot. To make matters worse, he is unable to find his way back to the main trail, and gets stuck in a mudpit where he meets his inglorious end.

The point, of course, is that we often get sidetracked "chasing rabbits" instead of staying on the course and capturing the real prize -- the Great Stag. The author offers many examples of "rabbit trails" -- and I was interested to find that even those caught up in "ministry" or other Church-related endeavors must be on guard against this. (To find out more, you'll need to buy the book. Since I'm doing the line edit now, I'm guessing it will be in your local bookstore in a month or so.)

As writers, we must also watch out for those "wascally wabbits." They may not be bad choices, in and of themselves. The question is: Are they part of God's plan for you? Is this the way God is asking you to use your gifts right now?

For reflection: Are you heading down the trail that leads to the Stag ... or down the rabbit hole?