“Jello the armadillo was a mighty fine fellow.” 

So went the famous opening line of a children’s story I made up last week.

Rather than read a tried-and-true, I decided to create my own bestseller.

 It involved Charlie the Crow and digging for gold and deciding what to do with the gold: deposit it in the bank or turn it into earrings for his wife.

The power in making up stories lies in getting to decide the ending. I went with the gold earrings. Jello’s wife deserved them. 

It was a children’s story with an adult slant every mother could love.

Each day your story unfolds a tad more. Some days an entire chapter takes place. Other days only a paragraph.

Sometimes it involves finding gold. Other days, losing gold. Still, others, losing more than you can bear.

We all have days we’d love to rewrite. Attach a nice perfect ending where everyone gets earrings and rides off into the sunset on a shiny new armadillo. Or Ford F-150 King Ranch edition.

Thankfully Jesus rewrote all of our stories. He knows how to use suffering for good and turn failures into gifts. His works always end well.

Not always with earthly treasures. Not always with success and fame.

But… Always cared for. Always provided for. Always part of a family full of love and forgiveness and meaning.

Evil always loses. Death never wins. We get it all for free. Really free.

Compliments of Jesus. He’s a really great author.