Sunday Devotion- Commit to the Lord whatever you do

Cindy Sproles

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and all your plans will succeed. – Proverbs 16:3

Writing is a passion. I find myself sitting at the computer for hours at a time, but it only feels like minutes. Hundreds of ideas fly through my head, many faster than I can jot on a sheet of paper. Each morning I rise to write a new devotion, asking God, “What’s on Your mind today, Father? What are we going to write about?” He never fails to offer me a tidbit of inspiration.

Putting words together –crafting them tediously, one by one, is like working a giant puzzle where all the pieces have been dumped randomly in the center of a table. My job is to sort through and find all the pieces that have the flat edge. I slip my glasses on and walk my fingers through the words like little shovels, scooping and sliding odd shapes furiously – joyful when I find the perfect match.

God places the stories into my heart, shuffled, and allows me the opportunity to spin them into a tightly woven blanket. I know He must sit back, arms crossed and feet resting on a stone, smiling that His child is thrilled with the toy. There are times I search for hours, attempting to locate the one thought or word that connects the puzzle together. Try as I might, nothing works. I’ve even been known to force a couple of pieces into the left over openings hoping no one will notice the picture is uneven.

“Why doesn’t this fit, God? I’ve worked and worked?”

“You’re looking over the right piece.” He tells me.

“Give me a break here. There’s a thousand pieces on this table.”

“And a thousand different ways to work the puzzle, but only one right way.”

Like I didn’t already know that. So, I begin the process of editing. Pulling pieces out one by one, realizing none of them had truly fit to begin with. I’d gotten in a hurry – thus the work falls apart little by little. “Oh no, God. It’s coming apart. This entire puzzle is coming apart.”

“No worries. You’ll figure it out.”

And for some odd reason, I’m comfortable with that remark. My writing is much like my life where sometimes everything fits. I can rub my hand across the finished piece and it feels smooth and complete. Then there are times that the edit process is almost more than I can take. These, are the moments God reminds me to commit what I do to Him and I will succeed – regardless of the situation.

Publication is the dream of the writer, but it’s only a piece in the puzzle. God wants us to craft the stories He’s given us, toil over them, polish them, and when He sees the puzzle it right, it succeeds. The same is true in our lives. Just as we spend hours choosing just the right words, God does likewise with us. He fits the pieces together, one by one, tediously – sometimes backtracking and pulling out the one odd-shaped part that looked as though it fit, but didn’t. He works in us until we are a success. Then He lifts His hands and rejoices that we are His children, complete in His word.

Commit the work to Him and the words will come. They will flow as a cool mountain stream, hard and fast. Then while you work, glance over your shoulder and look. God will be leaning against a tree, knees slightly bent, chewing on a twig, and smiling – anxiously awaiting the finished work.

PRAYER: Father, work in me for the glory of Your will.