Friday, April 10, 2009

Good Friday

Today is a very special day. As a lifelong Christian, Good Friday brought (and brings) me in touch with my deepest emotions. Even as a young child, I was awed by Christ's sacrifice for me, for you, for all man-kind.

I'm still awed and humbled and bursting with joy. If anything has changed over the years, I would say that my understanding of God's pure and abiding love for us is even greater than I could ever imagine. He delights in us even when we're singing off key. He is helping us even when we're grumbling and cranky. He smiles at our less-than-stellar first drafts. He comforts us when life feels too hard.

People, humans, have enormous standards. We tell people to aim for the moon but are terribly disappointed when the rocket explodes while being launched. We expect our leaders to fix every problem with the economy, the war, the banks, the auto manufacturers. And when the leaders don't? We don't give them the benefit of the doubt. We choose not to see the big picture, the forces beyond their control. We don't give them a second chance; we expect them to resign. We can be very unforgiving.

God is infinitely more forgiving than we are. He's the one nudging us to continue our writing when we get another rejection letter. He's the one whispering in our ear, "but I like it," when we're convinced no one will ever like our work. Yes, God has high standards, but he also has endless patience and love for his believers.

Good Friday. How true that is.

Enjoy your weekend and have a Happy Easter!

Please leave a comment, I'll be back to moderate next week.

5 comments:

  1. Have a blessed Easter, Jill! Thanks for the reminder that God is pleased with our writing. He gave us the talent and he enjoys seeing us flourish in it! Especially when we're using it for his glory!

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  2. "...but I like it."

    I love, love, love that! To hear God whisper those words would be validating indeed!

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  3. Have a very blessed Easter Jody and Sherrinda!

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  4. i'm with sherrinda...i love thinking about God whispering in our ear that HE likes our stories. and it's for his glory, so that should be enough to get us through any rejection by others. thanks for such a great reminder of whose we are and who we write for.

    happy easter to you, as well!

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  5. What a lovely post. I remember at church last Sunday, there was a man singing with all his heart (off-key) and I didn't care because I knew God loved his singing - and so should I! :-)

    Have a very Happy Easter!

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