Scrapbooks of the Soul

[Photo of my cousin's granddaughter, taken by her mother,
and enhanced by me with picnik]

I am better than I was, but not quite as good as I was before I got worse.

- Barbara Johnson [Boomerang Joy, published: 1998]

Scrapbook lovers rejoice! This is our moment! Now you can put together scrapbook photo albums with stickers, stamps, and special acid-free, photo friendly paper to commemorate life’s most important moments. Your one-of-a-kind album will become a family heirloom if you take advantage of special pens, glues, photo corners, mats, page protectors, fun paper punches, and decorative edged scissors! As for me, I love the idea of finding fresh and creative ways to treasure moments.

Like Mary, the mother of Jesus, I have treasured many moments in my heart, special memories of God’s faithfulness to my family over many years. God Himself has used all kinds of colorful and creative ways to document His love, glorify Himself, and pass on the heritage of faith through the scrapbook pages of my life. Bet of all, He guarantees that none of it will fade away. It’s all acid-free!

God uses something even better than stamps, stickers, and scissors. He uses that little bottle of magic stuff called white-out. You know that stuff that does a fantastic job of erasing mistakes. With a dab of a brush, the wrong thing is covered over, leaving a fresh white space upon which to work. Years ago when I worked in an office I called white-out my 1 John 1:9 stuff because it would blot out the mess and leave a clean place – just like God does with our sins. We all need spiritual white-out to make us white as snow [Isaiah 1:18.] We can all have a clean fresh start every day. God no longer sees our sin, because it is covered by His special white-out: The blood of Jesus.

In our journey through life, the scraps and souvenirs we save can be turned into artwork by the creative Hand of the Lord. Let Him set down at the table of your life and got to work. And while you’re at it, why not help Him out? Gather up all the color you can, cut away the broken ends of your life, and find ‘stickers of the heart.’ – the things that make you laugh. Most of all, don’t let the best you have done so far be the standard for the future. You can do even better. Let God use His white-out: it works wonders!

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:9

Way to Pray: Almighty God, my Redeemer, thank You that the blood of Jesus cleanses me from my sin. Please send Your Holy Spirit to fill me with Your peace so I can rest in the midst of my circumstances. You have given me forgiveness and righteousness in Jesus’ name. Hooray for your heavenly white-out! – Amen.