This tool is an amazing invention that delicately rides the fence between work and entertainment. (If you are looking for a cheap night of fun for the family... May I suggest varying combinations of a power washer and the family cat... or a stray... or the neighbor's cat for that matter).
We used the power washer initially to "carve" the dirt off of our patio. Then the fun spread to the grill... then the garage door... then the car... then it began... THE FENCE!
You may have heard the wise, old sages say "never start power washing a fence"... now I know why! Once you wash the unbelievable grime off of one board you MUST go on to the next... then the next... and the next... WHERE WILL THE MADNESS END? You can't just stop... you can't leave one board living in a grime free existence and the next lying in its own filth can you? Once you realize how dirty it is, you feel surrounded by a 6' tall privacy fence of filth! GROSS!
As I looked feverishly for a stopping point (lazy man's way of finishing the job), I thought of about a million insights into my own life and spirituality.
- It is so easy to never start revealing the mess. It is so easy to never start letting God clean up and to rationalize who I am, how I feel and to make my own perspective rule the day. We MUST let God do whatever he wants in our lives... our way has gotten us nowhere!
- One board leads to the next. Once God reveals sin in one part of my heart... it usually leads to more. We MUST let God reveal whatever he wants.
- Cleaning up is an abrasive action. It's never comfortable for me to let God work on my heart - in fact, if it's going to be uncomfortable - that's likely proof to me that God needs to do it.
- One clean board stands out in the filth. God calls me to be a light in the darkness - a city that stands out on a hill. There are 2 key components here - light (that is supposed to be me) and darkness... the key relationship is the light IN the darkness... not a light pointing out that there is darkness to other lights... not a light that looks just like the darkness... a light that is in the darkness pointing to the Light.
- The stains run deep. There are some things that are tough to get rid of. Some sins where forgiveness covers the sin but the guilt, the pain, or the repercussions still remain. Forgiveness is just the beginning of God's role in healing. God is not just there to forgive and forget, He wants to love us through the guilt to complete recovery. WOW!!!!!!
- It's a Privacy fence. It is so easy to hide our sin in the compartmentalized privacy of our lives. It's easy to keep "out there" the public face of our faith and "in here" the filth of our lives. We MUST let God justify more than our relationship with Him - we need to let him reconcile our worlds... that is the true mark of integrity and authenticity.
My prayer...
Lord, help me to let you in to the privacy fence I call my life. Help me to be sensitive to the places in my life where your Holy Spirit wants to clean up. Help me to be consistent in depending on you to sustain me once you forgive me. You are all that I need - I know that - I just don't want to admit it.
Jeremy
