Happy Monday and welcome to today's blog post. I hope you are all healthy and well. It's so good to have you here with me. If you're already a subscriber, I appreciate your support tremendously! If you aren't, take a moment to subscribe and follow my journey to authorship and beyond.
My Editing Saga
As many of you know I've been editing my novels, especially my first novel, for quite a long time. As of last week, I hired a professional editor to do an editorial assessment on Hope for Charity. I plan to work with her through that process and then move on to her colleague for the copy edits. By the time we're done, it should be about a two-three month process. The plan is to get my novel Hope for Charity completely ready to publish. Then the challenge is to find a publisher who will take a chance on an unpublished writer. If you want, please add that little problem to your prayer list for me.
Editing Me?
Needless to say this whole editing saga, has been entrenched on my mind and in my prayers for awhile now. A couple weeks ago as I was having my daily devotions, I had a serious moment of clarity. Of course, I believe this clarity came from the Lord. I keep a small notebook called "My Adventures With The Lord,"** In this notebook, I may write a question for the Lord and pray for his answer. I believe He answers me through scripture, music, preachers, teachers, writers, etc. His still small voice can be hard to hear, but when we truly listen, sometimes He makes His answer clear to us. Today, I'd like to share what I learned with you. First, here is the question I asked:
The Question
"You've given me a specific talent and passion, so why does it feel like this dream will never become a reality?" This is the question I asked. I waited, I prayed, I listened and here is the answer I felt the Lord gave me. Audibly? No, but clear nonetheless.
The Answer
You needed honing. That's it. I thought about this. A lot. After more prayer and Bible study, I understood. Below is the excerpts from "My Adventures With The Lord," notebook and my regular devotional notebook.
4/23/20 "Just like I edit and edit my manuscript to make it what I want it to be, God is editing my story, making me what He wants me to be."
4/23/20 "I haven't reached my dreams yet, because He (Jesus) is still honing and editing me, making me and my story a masterpiece, before I can write a masterpiece of my own. He loves my story He is writing more than I love Hope for Charity. Wow!!"
Author God
You see, The Lord God is the Author of each of our stories and as a writer will go over and over and over a manuscript to make it the exact way they want it, God works on us through His Holy Spirit. It's not that God has made mistakes with me or you or that He couldn't make us perfect immediately, but sin distorts what would have been perfect without it and God chooses to work on us gradually. There is another word for this God Editing, it's called sanctification.
I already knew about sanctification and that I was going through that process, but when I saw it as a form of editing, it made sense to my writer mind. One of my favorite scriptures is this one, which goes along perfectly with this truth.
The completed work which He finishes in me, is His masterpiece. The work He completes in you will look different, but it will still be a masterpiece, finished by the Master Author of your story, the Lord God Himself. Will the Lord help me reach my dream of becoming a published author before He's finished with me? I don't know. I hope so, but I trust Him to do what's best in my story. He's the Author and really can the character on the page tell the Author what to write? No. So, I work, I wait and I trust and I am at peace.
The beginning of the story He wants to write for our lives, has to begin with salvation through Christ Jesus. (If you are not saved or are unsure, I encourage you to watch the video below. You are also welcome to email me with your questions.)
If you are still trying to write your own story, hand the manuscript of your life over to the Master Author and let him make a masterpiece of you.
During my devotions, I also try to find a song or two on YouTube which I feel goes along with what I've learned. Here are the two I chose.
Have you learned anything recently you'd like to share? Comment below or go to the Forum page on my website and start a conversation.
Well, it's time for me to get back to editing...
May the Lord God bless you and your families with Faith, Hope and Love, In Jesus' Name.
In Christ,
Sandy
P.S. Look for my newsletter later this week!
** "My Adventures With The Lord notebook and question ideas came from the book The Story of With by Allen Arnold, which I highly recommend.
I appreciate your prayers and that you shared your own sanctification journey. Maybe it will help someone else to see their own need for "editing". Love you, too!
Enjoyed your post and praying for your book to be published soon. I did want to share with you what I've done for my Sanctification process---A few years ago I wanted to take a critical assessment of my life and decided to make a list of my sinful nature. I have added to the list regularly and have found it so helpful. It's been an eyeopener and one that gives me a sense of humility and a repentant heart. Love you!