Doing the hard cleanup work

But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

Job 23:10

A man named Ed was sitting out in his backyard one day and he began to notice the poor condition of his wooden fence. Most of it was sun-bleached gray, and the parts that were close to the sprinkler heads had a good layer of mildew. But Ed didn’t think much of it.

Some time passed, and Ed’s neighbor bought a new pressure washer, which he used to clean his own fence. Ed saw that his neighbor’s fence looked just like new, so he asked him if he could to borrow the tool to spray his fence as well.

After several hours of spraying, Ed’s fence looked good as new too. But he didn’t stop there. He also used it on the eaves of his house, his brick, and his backyard deck. It all looked so good!

Very often in our lives, God has to address areas of disrepair – attitudes and actions which have grown moldy and ugly without us even noticing. And in doing so, He has to apply pressure, which is sometimes painful.

But when we have a willing heart and open our lives to God, He will wash away the dirt and the grime. It might take some pressure, but it will lead us to a more joyful, fulfilled, and God-honoring life!

 

Prayer Challenge:

Ask God to show you attitudes and actions in your life that have fallen into disrepair. Hand those over to Him.

 

Questions for Thought:

If you’re honest, what are some areas of your life where you’ve grown moldy that you need to address?

How might God want to deal with those negative actions and attitudes?