“Lord, do not desert me now!” (Jeremiah 17:17a) NLT
When my son Isaiah first began to read, he was very interested in knowing just what the “crazy letters” meant at the end of a bunch of words. So I attempted to explain them.
The period means a person has finished a thought. The end of a sentence.
The question mark means what is written before it is asking us something.
The exclamation point intendsus to know that there is some excitement going on. Something to shout about.
His favorite, (he’s a lot like his mom), was the “excited point” as he called it.
Excitement draws us. Excitement peaks our interest. Excitement catches our attention. Excitement lures us into a passage, a paragraph or a story.
Here’s the “excited point” I found this morning, “Lord, do not desert me now!”
Does that statement draw you in? Has it caught your attention? Do you hear the excitement intended for the reader to understand? Are you there?
You’ve said the same words, haven’t you? Upon receiving the news, outcome, diagnosis or notification? In the middle of something, at the beginning of something, as something draws to a close? In your daily walk, on terribly tough days, in the midst of storms…have you made the statement, “Lord, do not desert me now!”?
Some English teachers will explain that a statement of such nature focuses on the excitement of the main character or the person saying the words. As believers, we know the “excited point” is all about our Lord. What He can do, what we have seen Him do, what we are trusting Him for, what He has promised.
It’s really nothing about us—the real lesson of the “excited point.”
Malinda Edgell
Illinois
PRAY TOGETHER: Pray without ceasing; make praying as automatic as breathing.
