Lessons From the Village Idiot?

I love to make fun of myself. I guess I learned a long time ago that people love to hear the preacher make fun of himself. If you can't laugh at yourself you will not survive in ministry. Everyone has a preacher joke and everyone loves to "put the preacher in his place" by sharing it - and the more public the better. One of the reasons I enjoy doing my own self "buffeting" is that I like to remind everyone who listens to me that we are all on the same journey. If I'm an expert on anything it's how badly I need grace. I've never tried to be perfect authority on anything and have found it helpful to occasionally be the village idiot. I certainly have very little to brag about, but a whole life-time of things to be thankful for. So yes, sometimes you can learn a lesson from the village idiot - especially one trying to stay close to the cross of Jesus.
When I wrote the first draft of my last blog and then published it, the title which now reads "Nana's Fridge" was "Nana's Frig". When I read my daughter's comments I immediate thought "Why of course!" and then "Man, I'm a terrible speller!" I am and always will be. Discovering computers and spell check in the mid-eighties was an incredible liberating moment in my life. I didn't have to be shackled by my fear of writing something that people would laugh at or ridicule, or worse - simply not "get"- because of misspelled words. And even with a firm reliance on spell check and my mini-dictionary that rests beside my computer, I have to say to myself, "How many times do I really misspell a word?" One in a hundred - or two hundred - or more sometimes? Do you know how good it feels to hit the spell check on this blog and have it come up and say "No Misspelled Words"? It happens a lot. I know the spelling rules, but I just can't remember how some words are spelled. It just doesn't stick in my head. Double consonants? Is it "ence" or "ance" - or, and I have no idea why, I can never remember if "occasion" has two "c's" or two "s's" or both. If I can't remember, I spell phonetically (like I say it) or with logic. If you'd have given me 100 chances to spell "fridge" I never would have gotten it right. I never connected it with "ridge" with a "d" and I knew it was a slang word for "refrigerator" so I assumed it just transcended the rules and the context made it work. I certainly know that "frig" is just "fig" with and "r" in it. It was a logical call for me - especially since spell check didn't correct it and my mini-dictionary didn't have it (of course, since it's spelled wrong it wouldn't). So what do you do but laugh? I just really hate it when my memory losses keep someone from getting the real message.
You have to remember, I've been writing for five decades. I have six published books and I write every day. It's not like these are new words for me. There is just some mental block that keeps me from remembering certain words. I change words while writing sometimes, just because I'm unsure of the spelling. I'd love to use more proper names (i.e. stars, athletes, politicians, etc.) but I can never spell their names right. I'm envious of all my family who are great spellers and can write anything without worrying about looking dumb. Now don't misunderstand me. I'm not whining or offering excuses. It's just me and the brain God gave me and I'm thankful for all of it. HOWEVER, it scares me to think how easy it would be to let fear keep me from doing something God called me to do! And how many others are not doing things God gave them the talent to do because they focus too much on their weaknesses and shortcomings? What are you not doing because you fear ridicule, failure, or revealing your foibles? Maybe by risking being the village idiot occasionally you might help someone else learn a powerful lesson that could change their life.
Think about that while I go see what's in the frig.