Tag: Clean

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People are a messy business.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“Without oxen a stable stays clean, but you need a strong ox for a large harvest.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭14‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The humor, candor and wisdom of Proverbs has always impressed and challenged me – my entire Christian life! Knowing that the entire book is a direct reflection on God’s character, the image of Jesus makes complete sense. God created humans out of chaos. And, our sin, our choices brings daily chaos into our lives and the greater blue globe we live on as well.

This Proverb is totally about us and the stable is the world in which we live. No people, no crazy, no mess. People = messiness. A dear friend and former pastor-boss quoted this Proverb constantly while dealing with the never ending messes, damage and drama in the church building. He would let us decorate the auditorium for kid’s events, plastering massive themed partyware everywhere. And staples, oh, we must have used hundreds of thousands over the years. We trashed the pristine sanctity of the sanctuary. You know what he said about it? He just quoted this verse! “Without oxen, a stable stays clean.” I always enjoyed the object-lesson picture in my mind of hundreds of oxen and the “mess” they must leave behind! But, oh, doth the oxen doeth the work! Hundreds if not thousands, over the years experienced God in a fun, wild atmosphere within the church building!

Would we have the church, or our own lives, for that matter, reflect more of a mortuary/morgue atmosphere? Where the dead are super clean and oh so quiet? I’m might be so inclined to tweak the Proverb to say, “without children, a house stays clean.” Or, “without people, the church stays clean,” as well. Kids are messy, youth are messy and we might as well admit it, adults are messy too. We may look all neat and tidy on the outside, but inside we have the seething brew of conflicts, comparisons and complications of adulting! If you ever wondered why the Church is a place of pandemonium, look no further than our own hearts.

Amidst all the chaos and clutter of humanity, God so loved us and redeemed us to be His advocates, His ambassadors, His reconcilers in this grand field of life. So yeah, we get a whole lot of messy, but with the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us we get a heck of a lot of Godly work done as well. So be strong and courageous my fellow oxen! Put on that easy yoke of Jesus and experience the joy of working in God’s field of humanity!

Prayer

Dad,
Put me in coach! Yoke me up and put me to work. Thank you for helping us keep a very busy, massively messy stable clean. I appreciate every bit of chaotic life that comes with being a human. Especially knowing that your grace is greater than the messes I create in myself and others. Thank you for creating me, redeeming me and putting me in the field to work the harvest of souls who are desperately in need of you.

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The epitome of penitence.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice. Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭51‬:‭7‬-‭11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Welcome to Ash Wednesday.

Yes, David sinned, egregiously. Yes, David got caught, Nathan had to confront the king. Yes he repented, and he was punished by God. And yes, he deserved to die for what he did, but God forgave him.

The story was written for all to see and wrestle with what David did. And yes, this Psalm captures the model, the template for repentance and owning up to our sin. It is difficult to hold the story of what happened in 2 Samuel 11 & 12 while holding the confession of written words in Psalm 51. One could read the heinous acts and think, “I could never do what David did,” but forced to face the stark reality that I am, you are, capable of it and worse!

Then we read the Psalm and feel the deep pain of realization, of recognition that comes with absolute truth – we too are really broken. David called it when he wrote, “For I was born a sinner— yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.” So much for innocence of a child.

Why is it so hard for us to admit it when we’re wrong, we’ve blown it, sinned, made a mistake, even hurt people? Oh, the arrogance of excuses! This is why Psalm 51 isn’t just an old passage from an ancient text written thousands of years ago. It’s timeless because I am still a sinner! It’s beautiful because there is a freedom and a joy in coming to God in filth and him cleaning us with forgiveness and renewing our spirit. This Psalm can be sung as a regular process of resetting our soul, power-cycling our mind, “Create in me a clean heart, O Lord my God. And renew a right spirit within me.” Who God sets free is free indeed!

Prayer

Dad,
It hurts my heart to read about what David did and how far he took it to destroy the lives of so many involved in that story. Then, as I read David’s psalm of penance, I also am saddened in solidarity – this is who I am as well. Today is Ash Wednesday, Lent. I reminded of who I am, what I am without you. So I spend this day walking humbly before you and being thankful for your forgiveness.

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Refreshingly clean and good smell of unity!

Reading Time: 2 minutes 
“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” Psalms‬ ‭133:1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Such a small verse with a BIG impact! Interestingly enough, the psalmist goes in to physically describe what UNITY feels like. Togetherness feels like a total body cleansing like rainfall on a hot day. The song directs us to think about a very public act that was not only performed on the high priest, Aaron, but also a very common act of anyone who wanted to be clean, refreshed and even getting ready for a big event.

I’m not at all a oil or lotion guy. I just can’t stand any kind of perfumed substance on my body. I don’t like hand, face or body lotions. I don’t even like sunscreen! I certainly can’t imagine anything oily in my hair. Robin, on the other hand, LOVES lotions, creams and various liquids on her. She loves the way her skin absorbs the oil or lotion and how it makes her ski feel after applying it. I’m the opposite, I only like water or strangely enough rubbing alcohol. I only like things that REMOVE oils on me, not apply more!

In ancient times, water was used for washing, but it was difficult to get it and keep it fresh. Ancients were obsessed with fresh water and only the wealthy either had or built natural springs running through their house or property. But oils, likely essential oils, were portable, easy to make and use. So these oils would be used much like a modern day shower or washing your face in the sink. They were cleansing and healthy for hair and body. Plus, they were fragrant, like we would use a deodorant. As much as I don’t like oily things on my skin I still see the point the psalmist is getting at. Thankfully he writes about dew or light rain falling in the mountains as well – THAT I can get into.

Either way, it’s a great visual of how unity, how togetherness brings all the benefits that oils, cleansing and smelling good brings. Unity cleans our cooperative, collective souls. Unity refreshes our hearts, minds and attitudes. Unity brings a clean, fresh, delightful aroma to us as a group. This picture of the benefits of unity should draw us in to want that! To wash away the nastiness of all that goes on in our culture, stuff that just gets picked up on the freeway or while waiting in the impatience of a grocery, coffee or food line.

To be refreshed by each other’s love and cooperative attitudes is like going to a health spa. And to smell the aroma of unity that replaces our individual and sometimes stinky selfishness. Oh how good it is to dwell together in unity. This is truly a picture of how God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit has always existed! And when we cooperate, come together and act in unity – wow it looks and smells amazing!

PRAYER:

Dad,
This is not only ideal and completely an affirming YES and big head-nod, it is also a lot of work! Unity is work. It is a work in progress. It takes sacrifice, humility and calling each other on bad behaviors that tear down instead of build up. It’s a loving accountability, a pact, a promise to hold up when trust is eroded and tempers flare. We want unity, I think. We want the amazing refreshment of clean and nice smelling, but we have to identify the reasons and the attitudes that prevent us from getting there. Help us!