Gò0dNews for Everyone
Your Prayers Don’t Need Editing
I
by David Thompson
’m always editing. My life is a constant search for
the right order, stick that punctuation back in, and untwist
mistakes. I even edit when I’m not on the job: in the
what’s written so the author’s true meaning can clearly
grocery store, at a restaurant, or watching TV. I can’t turn
come across.
it off! But just fixing mistakes isn’t the point of what I do. My goal as the GoodNews editor is simple. I want to
But your prayers don’t need editing. God sees exactly what you mean and what is in your
make it as easy as possible for you, the reader, to understand
heart when you speak to Him. Why? Because He’s God.
the intent and message of each article. I do that by following a
He created you, He knows everything about you, and He
style guide. A style guide standardizes the rules of grammar,
can decipher our “groanings which cannot be uttered” more clearly than any mere mortal. You don’t have to worry about speaking eloquently or using correct grammar when you pray. God already understands you perfectly, style guide or no style guide, and He will always respond to your call for help. “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him” (Psalm 91:15). When Eli saw Hannah praying silently in 1 Samuel 1, he thought she was drunk. But God didn’t need anyone to translate Hannah’s message; He heard her cry and answered. When David wrote Psalm 51 after laying with Bathsheba, God didn’t need his heavenly editor to explain
punctuation, and writing, which helps everybody stay on the
to Him what David meant by his heartbreaking words of
same page (pun unintended). Everyone might read an article
repentance. And when the publican in Jesus’ parable smote
a little differently, but that’s fine as long as we all agree on the
his breast and cried, “God be merciful to me a sinner” (Luke
same set of rules. That helps you focus on content without
18:13), it didn’t matter that there was no one around to put
having to worry about clarity.
the commas and colons in their place. Because your prayers
The reason I even have a job at all is because we don’t know a person’s intent without their words, and words can
don’t need editing. There’s nothing inherently wrong with trying to write or speak correctly. I think it’s good to strive for excellence
mistakes. We can leave out a crucial bit of punctuation that
in writing, if I do say so myself. But God would rather you
changes the whole meaning of a sentence. For instance,
come before His presence in humility and honesty than
“Let’s eat, Grandma!” is vastly different from, “Let’s eat
waste your time writing, preparing, and rehearsing a perfect
Grandma!” Cannibalism is just one comma away. Even
prayer. He already knows what’s in your heart, so open
when we talk, what we say can be vastly different from what
your mouth and let it out. He’ll understand you. Because
we mean, and others can take our words and twist them in
your prayers don’t need editing.
a way we never intended. My job is to put words back in
28 // February 2021
About The Author
be misspelled or written in the wrong order. We can make
David Thompson is the editor of GoodNews Christian Magazine. He and his wife, Emily, live in Rome, Georgia.
