No manner; no matter.

To release our grip on expected outcomes is to embrace God’s higher and holier possibilities.

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Misread the scriptures.

I went back to read the verse again.

The text clearly read, “no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.” (Daniel 6:23)

But that’s not what it said the first time I read it.

I love the stories of Daniel and his buddies. I believe some of the most powerful verses in all of scripture describe their feast and furnace and feline experiences.

But this time, I didn’t read a happy ending.

And I’m grateful I misread it. A typo - or my mistakenly perceived typo - gave those words more power. I read what I needed, and the words I needed were these:

“and no matter the hurt that was found upon him, he believed in his God.”

There was no comfort to be found in someone else’s story of deliverance this time, the hurt was already there. The power came when a course of action - trust in God - survived the hurt.

No matter the hurt.

Someone told me once that ‘no manner of hurt’ endings strengthen faith, and the ‘no matter the hurt’ endings perfect it.

I’d have to agree.

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Typos and creases.

Words are important to me.

I think a lot about the words I use and why I use them. When there’s time, I prepare them to achieve a purpose. When there isn’t, I pray the way I live invites their purposeful flow.

I work in words - as a teacher who delivers them, a student a month from graduating with a degree in them, and a late-night contractor who builds brands by strategically placing them.

I’ve seen words do a lot of things for a lot of people. But one of my favorite things about words? They don’t always land.

They don’t need to.

The message words string together has far more to do with the recipient than which words are used.

Clumsy words in the classroom invite valuable questions and accompanied discussion. The discussions help participating individuals feel belonging. They lead to the exchanging of personal details and a funny story or two. Today, clumsy words landed us in conversation on sneakers.

You know, I’ve really learned to like the crease in my sneakers, because it means I wore them.

Misspoken or written words are welcomed. Red squiggles and editor’s notes on a piece of writing mean I wrote something real.

I’ve really learned to like feedback, because it means that what is already there, though not without error, is worth improving.

When words don’t land, opportunities are created. And we need those. And God uses those to teach us about Him.

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Scathed and successful.

I talked with an individual today, they were the definition of exhausted.

It seemed as though their words offered to Heaven in sincerest form had not landed, either.

Here was someone with a grasp so tight on a perfect, no manner of hurt- outcome that he'd begun to believe the hurt he felt was his fault.

His words weren’t perfect; he had creases in his sneakers.

But I remembered the typo from earlier, how I’d misread the verse in Daniel 6.

No matter the hurt, he could trust God would deliver Him.

No matter our hurt, we know that God will deliver us.

Soon, we will no longer consider exiting our lions' dens unscathed and unharmed as success.

Instead, after a heart changed to love a God Whose ways and thoughts are higher than ours, we ourselves become His success. (Isaiah 55)

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Typos are good, hurt breeds perfected faith, and I like it when my sneakers crease.