Unshackled Moments ~ April 5 ~ Autofill

This morning has been a little difficult for me. My brain just doesn't want to kick into high gear. I actually got some rest last night, which is nice, but as it drew near to time to wake my mind slipped into a dream where I was preaching. I only remember feeling the conviction of truth and promise as I said we can have peace and joy and then I woke. I couldn't remember the rest of the message. I don't often dream about preaching, and I felt like the message in the dream was for me. I wanted it. I needed it. I kept trying to go back to sleep and get back into the dream. I wanted to remember that message, but no such luck.

I couldn't get my mind going in any other direction, which made coming up with something to write for today's Unshackled Moment nigh impossible. I listened to my music and read my devotions and scripture but still no ideas came. Then my wonderful wife sent me a text saying that she loved me. I smiled and replied. I lobe you My Lady XOXO.

As soon as I hit send I saw the mistake. I cringed. I sent another text. Love not lobe lol. One of the things that I dislike about Twitter is the inability to edit a tweet after it is sent. This is because  I have been making more and more such mistakes lately. My eyes are so bad I sometimes can't really read what I am texting or posting from my phone. The letters are just too small. The phone isn't helping either. I have typed love after I and before you so many times I wouldn't even hazard a guess as to the number. The accidental lobe has been typed a few times, but nowhere near as many. And yet for some reason when I typed "I," the autofill provided the word lobe. I assumed it said love and hit it. There is no reason lobe should come up before love in that situation. It hasn't been used as many times, and it's not even a verb! Then another text came in as I fought my self-anger at making careless mistakes and not taking the time to make sure my eyes haven't betrayed me yet again. Leah assured me that she lobes me too. I laughed. Even as I felt like a foolish incompetent, my amazing wife makes it clear that she accepts me and cares for me. My spirits lifted.

Then I realized how she was acting like Daddy in that situation. My brain has its own autofill modes. I know the truth and have experienced the better and more correct way to respond to so many situations. And yet, despite doing it right a thousand times, all too often my brain starts with the wrong choice. The response doesn't fit. It isn't right be definition or by tense or by any measure and yet I automatically go that way. When this happens God doesn't look down from heaven and declare me stupid and not worth the trouble. He smiles at me and gently shows me that I know better. His grace and forgiveness deletes my mistakes. He says it's not the end of the world. Just make the correction and move on. And then reminds me that my autofill is often wrong. I need to take the time before responding and reacting to make sure that what comes up is right before committing the action. I can't rely on my autofill, but I can rely on God's ability to see when I am blind, on His ability to understand me even when I don't make sense and His grace to take me where I need to go even when I get off track. He will never stop loving us, even when we only lobe Him in return.

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