The Black and White Pages

Our Story is one that you cannot put down!

Don’t judge a book by its cover!  We are all guilty of walking into bookstore or library, scanning the shelves and picking up a book based on the illustrated cover.  Something about the image catches attention and desire to begin on page one to discover the story line.

An author and illustrator take hours deciphering through thousands of images in their mind.  The desired image will draw a reader to grab the book, begin reading and continue until the last page.  Knowing full well that beauty will catch a reader’s eye, risk occurs for too much emphasis to be placed on the cover; all the while, neglecting focus on the black and white pages between.

The front of a book captures the eye of the reader, while the back engages the mind of a reader.  A summary placed on the back leaves the reader desiring more!  These hold major importance in captivating the audience; but, the black and white between the two explain the cover in detail.  The pages between can contain mystery, cliff hanging chapters, love, death, sadness, anger, etc.  Every emotion stirred in the reader often keeps them coming back for more.  Every explanation to action often opens the reader’s eye to understanding each character.

Do you hide behind YOUR COVER?  Are you afraid of judgement based on YOUR COVER?  Do you ever wish someone would take time to read the pages of YOUR STORY to understand daily actions?

How much time is spent in perfecting our cover?  We paint, straighten, tuck, enhance, disguise, etc. to create a cover worthy by the world’s standards.  We leave the house with full intention to capture the eye of the world.  We work diligently to captivate the audience standing before us.

How much emphasis lands on our cover?  Spending hours perfecting our cover leads to neglecting enhancement of what lay beneath.  We miss out on life, the story written each day and begin to shame our core character.  The mirror becomes our biggest critic.

How much of our story do we hide behind our cover?  Hiding the black and white pages of our story will ultimately lead to others concocting their own opinions based on action, words and our cover.  Thus, cycling the craziness back around to the importance of perfecting our cover to impress.  We work to present some glorious image while hiding our true selves.

While our cover remains important, it should not be afraid to let others in and explore the black and white pages beneath.  Our story creates a ministry God planned for our lives.  Our story matters to God and He will work every word, sentence, paragraph and chapter out for His good.  We must not hide such power, glory and presence of God by placing emphasis on the cover and neglecting the black and white.

Soften your cover.  Allow others to understand your story.  You will be amazed at the response, understanding and love received.  Your story will lead others to share their story.  Your story will be one others cannot put down.

Assure that God holds the pen.  Assure that Truth seeps into every page of your story.  There will be mystery, cliff hangers, love, death, sadness, anger and countless other emotions; but, take every word written to the cross and allow God to use it for His Kingdom.  Your story matters and You matter to God!  You are beautiful.  Share your story today!

10 Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.  Galatians 1:10

It’s A NEW DAY!  Who needs to delve into the black and white pages of your life?  

Live life. . .One Day at a time!
Sheree Craig