May 20: GOD ISN'T AN EDITOR, HE'S A CREATOR.

Affirmation: I am compassionate. I care about myself and others. 

When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” “Yes, Lord,” they replied.” (Matthew 9:27-31)

Who we come to believe depends importantly on two things:

1. Knowing the person who made the promises or spoke the words;

2. Our actions in response to those promises and words upon hearing them.

~~~~~~~

Ponder, Personalize, Practice: Continue to meditate and memorize this passage. Ponder the message it brings to you as you read through it and as you go through the day.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians ­4:4-7 NIV

~~~~~~

Live in Grace. Walk in Love. By Bob Goff 

May 20

GOD ISN'T AN EDITOR, HE'S A CREATOR. HE'S NOT LOOKING FOR TYPOS IN OUR LIVES. HE'S LOOKING FOR THE BEAUTY IN THEM. 

I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. 

HEBREWS 8:12 

I didn't set out to be an author. I wanted to build a school in Africa for child soldiers. If I wanted to bake cupcakes to sell, people would die. I'll stick with schools and words. A friend of mine encouraged me to write a book, so I did. I figured if there were a couple of typos-no big deal. We sold way over a million of them and gave all the money away, so I wrote another book. I learned I'm much better at living stories than making sure all the punctuation is correct, so I have a few people in my life who love that sort of thing, and they helped me out. One of them is Jon, who is married to my daughter, Lindsey. Jon is an engineer, but that also means he's really good with details, and he really likes grammar. (I still don't understand why, but I'm thankful nonetheless.) Jon would read my words and graciously fix all the errors I made. He didn't point out each one and shake his head in disapproval. He just took what I wrote and made it better. 

I used to think God was like an editor trying to find all the typos in my life, standing over my shoulder like a schoolmarm ready to whack me on the knuckles with a yardstick. But I've learned that God isn't an editor; He's a crea­tor. He's not giving us the hairy eyeball when we make mistakes. He's pointing toward the horizon with a gleam in His eye and asking us to lift our eyes up toward a better story. He wants to tell a story of redemption. Of everyone He could use to tell it, He's made you one of the main characters. He wants you to keep your eyes on Him. 

If there's a typo or two on a couple of pages of your life, don't obsess over it. Keep writing. God's got this. He'll help you make the changes you need to make, but His purpose for your life is much bigger than giving you a failing grade. 

What typo have you been obsessing over?