Blank Page Syndrome

     Until I wrote this sentence my page was blank. Now there are twenty-two words and two periods to ease my writer’s mind. I learned just now by Googling “fear of the blank page” that there is such a thing as Blank Page Syndrome. The site discussing it had all the markings of a serious mental health publication—is it right to call a website a publication? If there is such a thing as Blank Page Syndrome then most students would say they’ve contracted it at some point during their education. In a nation where we can’t seem to see past our differences, we can add one thing to the list of humanity’s common characteristics. We all can get, if we haven’t got, a serious mental condition related to writer's block. Perhaps the solution to all the pontificating voices in comment sections and editorials is to step back and admit we’re all sick in the head from time to time. I might be right now; who knows?

     The more I admit that I can be downright loony and others might have at least one decent thought a day the less uppity I might be the next time I see an opinion I don’t like.
     As a daily reader of the Bible, I am well acquainted with its stance on universal syndromes and uppityness. “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We’re all broken, but like to try to feel less broken than the next broken person. According to the Bible, if anyone of us wants to know where we stand, we stand together at the bottom of the pile looking up. In Christian theology, we have the word “depravity” to explain the situation we are all in together. It’s a fine mess.
     There’s another word in Christian theology called, “gospel.” It means good news. At the heart of the gospel is the fact that we all stand condemned for just reasons, but Jesus Christ “endured the cross” that we might not be condemned, but have life! It’s free and available to all. The only catch is it comes to us through repentance and belief (Mark 1:15).
     I was in Barnes and Noble on Monday and they gave me a free coffee for being brave enough to pump sanitizer and enter. On my way to the desk, I passed the self-help section with titles like The Power of Positive Thinking, You are A Bada**, and The Self Love Workbook. If you need a personal cheerleader to tell you how great you are then look no further. Perhaps those authors can help with Blank Page Syndrome. If all of that sounds faddish or gimmicky there’s a dwindling section in the back where you can still purchase a copy of the Bible—a more time tested resource. If you do, you will not find any ooey gooey drivel about loving yourself. You will, however, discover that there is a God who loved the world enough to send his Son to offer himself as a substitute for us so we don’t have to stand condemned anymore. Now that's something to write about.