What is it about editing?

Disclaimer: The references to "editing" below refer to actual work I do for people who ask me to do it! I do not in general read everything with a pair of shears in mind!

I love to edit. I love to tear through someone else's words like a pair of sharp scissors through uncut cloth. I must harbor some secret aggression that comes out when I edit! I think I love editing even more than writing. To me, it's still art. It's more like sculpting something out of wood or clay than taking a brush to a blank canvas. The words are there but they need shaped into something pleasing to the ear. It's especially satisfying when someone accepts my suggestions as an improvement to their document

It makes me think of when the apostle Paul likened our Christian lives to epistles, "known and read of men." Yes, my life is a book. And hopefully people will read it and see for themselves the picture of Christ. But I know my life "book" is nothing without the constant editing of the Father. Yet I wonder, am I "editable?" Do I willingly submit to the places where God needs to cut out some negative attitudes? Do I allow His words and thoughts to be pasted in and become part of my mindset?

When I edit someone else's work (or even my own for that matter), it's never to squash their ideas. It's always with good intentions, to make what is good even better. And that's what God has in mind when He works in my life: His good will. Will I allow Him to have His way?

P.S. It was a nice idea - 30 days of blogging - but I can't see it happening! Who was I kidding?