Friends,
As many of you know, I’ve been working on a book for as long as I’ve been the pastor of Montclair Presbyterian Church—actually my work on the book started about the same time I started talking to MPC about the possibility of moving to Oakland, and in many ways the book feels very connected to my move from San Jose to Oakland. I finished the book’s first draft during my post-Christmas vacation, and now, I’m deep into the work of working with my editor to make the book better.
Editing can be difficult work. It’s not easy to learn all the ways a manuscript needs improvement. Sometimes editing requires the removal of bits of writing that I really liked. Sometimes it means figuring out how to add ideas without disrupting the flow and balance of what already is written. Editing can be like working on a puzzle, and, like a puzzle, its end result is rewarding and satisfying, but the process can drive a person to distraction.
Because I’ve been so involved in the work of editing, its hard for me not to think about the season of Lent as an editing process. Traditionally, the season of Lent has been set aside by the church as a time to prepare for Easter by undergoing a time of spiritual revision. Lent can be thought of as a time to correct the typos of our lives, a time when we can revise the flow of our thoughts, and to clarify our hopes and dreams for a well-written tomorrow, confident in the renewal and joy that awaits us at Easter.
So I hope you will join me in the process of editing this Lent. Some of my edits will be book-related, but more of them, I hope, will be personal and spiritual; if you want to talk about spiritual and personal edits with me, please don’t hesitate to set up a time to meet with me.
Incidentally, here is what the cover of my next book will look like:
