My wife called poison control. I shoved my face under the sink, shoveling handfuls of water into my eyes and mouth. It burned and burned.
The fire ants had decided to return, and I had been outside spraying around the house with a pesticide. But just as I bent over to unscrew the lid, the container slipped out of my hands. The liquid fire ant killer splashed into my face—my eyes and mouth wide open.
But you know what? My wife didn’t really have to call poison control. I knew where to go. It was instinctive. It was immediate. It was essential. It was ALL THAT MATTERED. I went to the water. The lady on the phone told my wife I needed to rinse my eyes non-stop for fifteen to twenty minutes.
But how long do my prayers for cleansing last? Five seconds? “Ah, shoot. Please forgive me for that. Injesusnameamen.”
Hmmmm? I sure don’t act like sin burns that badly most of the time, do I? But that’s exactly one of the devil’s great deceptions, isn’t it? “You don’t need a thorough cleansing,” he says. Or, “Not right away. You can take care of it later. It’s not that bad.”
But I am a sinner. And I need deep cleansing. It’s a regular thing.
Let’s ask God for help not to put off the washing we need. And let’s pray that we would feel the inner burning caused by sin and run to the Water for a “thorough” cleansing.
Fifteen to twenty minutes might be a good way to start, don’t you think?
Just start.
(Photo courtesy of morguefile and mensatic.)
(For more devotions, visit us at www.christiandevotions.us.)
So thought-provoking and needed for all to read.