“Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! Keep me from stupid sins, from thinking I can take over Your work’ then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin.” (Psalm 19:12 MSG)
I was praying with my eyes closed when I saw it; a blank slate filled my vision. Dusty black surface with wooden borders, chalk in the tray, eraser laid by, it’s work was done. My heart sank. No plans on the horizon. No formula to plug in and find x. No task list to check off proficiently.
But my initial despair didn’t last long. The chalkboard suddenly became a whiteboard, as clean and brilliant as when you first pull off the plastic. Dry erase markers lined up, ready to cast vision and share it with an awaiting team. Anticipation chased away the disappointment.
And one more transformation took place; the whiteboard slipped off the wall into a simple piece of copy paper. Add a mechanical pen and the possibilities are infinite. All my favorite creations first begin on plain old paper; it’s the place where thought and imagination meet.
“Oh what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.” (Romans 4:7-8 NLT)
We can forget that a clean slate is a gift from God. It is the opportunity to begin again with Him. It’s not disappointing, it’s exhilarating! How wondrous that God forgives us again and again! Grace is a wild and unbelievable endowment: totally unearned and absolutely life-altering! It is an opportunity to begin again, to start anew with the creative instrument alive in God’s hands.
“…Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who creates new things out of nothing.” (Romans 4:17 NLT)
Is it okay to slip out Abraham’s name and insert our own? To pray it prophetically over our dusty circumstances? Let me lead by example.
Anna believes in the God who brings the dead back to live and who creates new things out of nothing. Anna, with two passed away parents and ashes of a life she loved, still holds to the resurrection power of God. Anna, who sees the robins returning and the crocuses coming up: life out of nothing is God’s speciality! Anna, who has put her hope in the Creator since she was just a small girl and will do so until her the hairs on her head are white with age.
The God who met with Abraham also meets with us.
Abraham believed God for a family. I believe Him for a future.
What are you believing for?
Lord thank You for the gift of a clean sate. Help us receive it as we might a new creative project; delighted to see what You do next. Amen.