The Stinking Sheltie
"Cleanse me
with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be
whiter than snow." (Ps 51:7)
My Sheltie is mad at me! She came in tonight stinking to
high heaven. I have no idea what she had been rolling in, as
it's all snow and ice outside right now, but whatever it
was, it was potent! And of course, what does she want me to
do??? Pet her! She didn't understand that there was no
way in this world that I could do that! Just being in the
same room with her was nauseating! Poor dog. She
didn't understand what she had done wrong, and she certainly
didn't understand why she very soon found herself in the
bathtub!
Of course, she got all of her petting after her bath, but in
general, it is beyond her comprehension to know why she has
to be clean in order for me to give her the love (petting,
ear scratching) she craves.
Funny . . .
Kind of like God, isn't it? When we "stink" of sin, God
can't bless us as we wish to be blessed. In fact, the
prophet Isaiah tells us that when we "stink" of sin, God
can't even hear us -- "But your iniquities have separated
you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you,
so that he will not hear." (Isa 59:2).
Before God can even hear us, He has to to "clean" us up. And
sometimes that cleaning process isn't very pleasant.
Sometimes it down right hurts! And we grumble, we complain.
We accuse God of abandoning us. We cry out to God, begging
Him to remove what He sees is just "the cleaning" process.
But in reality, God is but preparing us to be blessed all
the more! James 1:2-5 -- "Consider it pure joy, my
brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because
you know that the testing of your faith develops
perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you
may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
Lord, what is standing between you and I tonight? Is it a
false God? Is it dishonesty? Is it immorality? Is it my lack
of faith? Whatever it is, Lord, "Cleanse me with hyssop,
and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than
snow." (Ps 51:7)
Love in Christ,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart,
Moderator, The Nugget, Scriptural Nuggets (
www.sermonillustrator.org/minisermons/ ), Answers2Prayer Ministries,
www.Answers2Prayer.org ,