According to King Solomon, it is the little foxes that ruin the grapevines. (Song of Solomon, 2:15). I’ve often heard this explained as the little sins we think don’t amount to anything that eventually grow up to become snarling predators that eat us alive. But this post isn’t about anything nearly that heavy. Probably.

On Saturday afternoon, I was twenty chapters into what I hoped would be the final revision of my Work In Progress when I had this thought: Maybe I should check for overused words. I had been keeping a list of such words. Words I noticed popping up more than once or twice in a chapter. And I thought it would be a simple task. The first word I searched was “little.” An inoffensive word of no consequence whatsoever. Unless one uses it thirty-two times in the first chapter.

Okay, I didn’t actually count. But it did become hilarious in an oh-my-gosh-I-can’t-believe-I-almost-sent-this-out kind of way. The good news is that “little” shows up less and less in subsequent chapters. The bad news is, I’m not sure how many more of those words are waiting to be searched.

And, so, we are back to the little foxes from Solomon’s vineyards. How many little issues are as hidden in my life as that word was in my manuscript? I think it’s time to ask the Holy Spirit to hit the search button and see what we can find. I’m pretty sure I need some revisions.