*All scriptures referenced below are taken from the New King James Version Psalm 51:2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. Psalm 51:7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. In the Bible, Jesus uses analogies to help us comprehend spiritual things more clearly. Well, here is an analogy that He gave to me. The Christian walk is like the process of washing a car. The first step is to rinse the car (by asking Jesus to forgive your sins), then wash, thoroughly (by reading the Bible, daily). Unfortunately, while you are washing you can't really tell how clean the car is until you rinse it again. Now, you examine the car to see if you missed anything. If you have, then you wash that area again, or if necessary, the entire car. After that, you should begin to pay attention to detail. Focus on specific areas like the windows or tires, or maybe buffing out imperfections in the car's finish. (You know what these areas are.) When that is completed, you will need to go inside the car to vacuum and throw away what is not needed (bad habits, attitudes, and behaviors, unforgiveness, etc). However, once this process is finished, you will need to repeat it over and over, because storms come and dirty the car back up. No matter how hard you try to keep it clean, it will be in vain unless you wash it regularly. Also, people will try to leave trash inside of your car such as insults, evil ideas they want you to participate in, dirty jokes, gossip, etc. That has to be cleaned out! Don't let it stay there! Run and get the vacuum immediately! So many people try to get by with only washing the outside of their cars and never give the inside a second thought. Take care of your car (self) by giving it a regular cleansing with the Holy Word of God. Let Jesus be your water hose, so He can wash you clean. Let the Holy Spirit be your vacuum and buffer. Some people try to go through the automatic car wash, but the results are rushed and sometimes cause permanent damage to the car. The difference is usually pretty easy to see when someone takes the time to hand-wash a car rather than take the easy way out. Take pride in your walk with the Lord, and His Word guarantees it will be evidenced by the way you shine! I hope you enjoyed reading the word of God in a new light. Have a Happy Wednesday! God Bless, Min. Tommy & Sis. Shatika Gray |
| Wash Me Nov. 17, 2004 |