the Holy Spirit knows soooo much more than me

I am working on the Asbury Reader (a devotional for the ATS community) for the fall, helping to get scripture, and quotes in the right format. I am amazed how how many times there are connections among the texts or with the text and the day on which it falls. For instance, I forgot to be mindful of 9/11 when I was placing the "Do This" (a daily challenge to the community to incorporate action with devotion: we are using a list Shane Claiborne composed) and when I went back to check what was placed there I found this...

DO THIS
Organize a prayer vigil for peace outside a weapons manufacturer such as Lockheed Martin. Read the Sermon on the Mount out loud. For extra credit, do it every week for a year. Then befriend a soldier and his/her family.

I love that the Holy Spirit has a way of being comforting and challenging even in the publication of a devotional. The process is long and tedious, and happens months before the reader is ever used by anyone. I expect people to think that texts that relate to one another or the collective heart of those reading it were chosen intentionally by man, but I assure you that most of the time the right words for the right day were there before I ever thought to check up on them. They were intentional, just by the One who knows us best!

Soundtrack: Peace, Third Day.