The Edit

I recall writing papers for school. There were steps to it: brainstorming, outlining, writing the rough draft, editing, then writing the final draft. Sometimes research was also in the mix.

The part of the writing process that bogs me down is the edit. It is full of decisions, often with no clear right or wrong answer, allowing for a myriad of outcomes. The editing process maneuvers through a swarm of details from nit-picking word choice and comma placement to deciding if the whole thing flows and achieves the author’s purpose for the piece.

Whereas a paper can be written on a matter of pages, lives are far too vast to fully capture and control. The number of details involved in a single life is unknown. The details we are aware of are often out of our editorial control. Only God sees and knows all, the past, present, and future. He alone also has the understanding and authority to set in order every detail of our lives. He sees every outcome of every decision. He orders innumerable details we do not and cannot even fathom. As Proverbs 16:9 NKJV tells us, “A man’s heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps.”

We make decisions, or edits, pertaining to the details that are in our control, and in this also God assures us through His Word that His direction is available to us. Proverbs 3:6 NKJV says, “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”

This may sound like an oversimplification of our sometimes complex lives. After all, we contend with sin and imperfections and all the ways they show up in our lives. We can find comfort, though, in knowing our Heavenly Father is ever fulfilling the work of the editor. He masterfully navigates details, shaping our lives and helping us fulfill His purposes for having created us. He patiently and expertly maneuvers through that swarm of details, carefully, lovingly, and redemptively editing our lives, working to give us the beautiful outcome He, the author and finisher of our faith, desires.