Friday, February 3, 2012 - For That Deep Down Clean

"My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. 

It is the Lord who judges me."  

1 Corinthians 4:4

     Our new home is wonderful in many ways, but I can't wait to get rid of the white carpet in the living area and the white tile in the bathrooms.  On one hand, when it's time to vacuum (and when is it NOT time to vacuum with white carpet?) we can see every stain, every bit of leaf, and the dust that collects where the carpet meets the walls.  On the other hand, even after vacuuming and shampooing it only takes minutes before we see stains, bits of leaves, and embedded dust again.  
     I once read a cleaning book by a chemical engineer who advised leaving the household bleach in the laundry room and not using it as a cleaner since only commercial grades of bleach actually disinfect and remove germs.  Household bleach leaves the dirt in place but  bleaches it white. Most of us think we've cleaned when actually we're  surrounded by dirt we no longer see. 
    Grout and my conscience have a lot in common. I can bleach them but that doesn't mean they're clean. I can shape my conscience to fit my culture and become much less sensitive to the stains and embedded dust God wants me to remove.  I can cover the mold and mildew in my life with a good coat of "but at least I don't __________," or "my sins are no worse than anyone else's,"  just as I can cover the white carpet with a rug or bleach the grout between tiles to disguise the dirt.
Father, we make rotten judges. We know we're not perfect, but we do tend to think we're more moral than others.  Shape our spirits and consciences to Your say-so instead of allowing us to accept our culture's guidelines.  May our morality be the result of allowing You to shape our character.  Remove the rugs and may the bleach fail to hide what You want to address.  Stop us from comparing and contrasting ourselves with people who don't know You at all and even with people who live with a bleached sense of righteousness.
In the Name of Jesus who warned us . . . 

“But I warn you—

unless your righteousness is better 

than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, 

you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!" 

Matthew 5:20