Good Wednesday morning! The summer of '11 has begun! The seeds of yesterday are still on my keyboard! I was wondering this morning why it is that as a new creature in Christ I look forward to the summer of our relationship, but the icicles of sin still seem to drip on me so often. Drip, drip, drip and once more I am asking forgiveness for yet another sinful thought or fantasy or action. Yes, I do realize that all of my sins were forgiven at salvation, but I like to repent and ask each and every time. I feel better when repentance is a part of my life. Still, how can summer come into my walk with Jesus when I still feel those icy fingers of sin wetting me down with that cold, cold water of sin?
Last night I saw a commercial for the umpteenth time as advertisers tend to do to us. This is the shaving commercial where the woman pushes the man down on the couch and then peels off her top and flings it at the man's face; but instead of a lingerie top hitting him, he gets a splash of water in the face. I suddenly had the thought that I could use something like that whenever a sinful thought enters my mind. That would at first seem to be a good solution to sin. Well, other than the social stigma of going around drenched all of the time that is. Not to mention the collateral damage from getting splashed while waiting in line at the DMV or sitting in an audience at a concert. Of course, if this happened to everyone who believes in Christ we would not only know who had a good discipline in their thought life, but who was still struggling. Yes, we would also have to endure the "Christians are all wet!" thing. So, maybe not such a good idea. Some of my best ideas have flaws in them.
Ah well! Jesus didn't go around throwing water into people's faces back in the day. His words could often have that effect though. The Jewish leaders at the time certainly acted as though Jesus had insulted them in that way. The Holy Spirit can have a similar effect in my life, especially when he reminds me of Christ during a time of temptation. However, I have been known to lick those icicles of sin rather than look at the light of Christ even at the sound of my clanging conscience. The Spirit does not force us to turn from sin or to reject temptation. When Jesus gave us the model for prayer, he said: "...and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." (Matt 6:13) I suspect that this was not to be a one time thing. Jesus gave us this example to remind us to pray this often. Probably as much as we need it, which is going to be a lot in my case.
The icicles of sin still cling to us even as Jesus leads us into the light and warmth of a relationship with Him. Do not despair, those icicles will be melted away in time. We know that the presence of sin will end when Christ brings us home. Until then, we trust in Jesus and we keep praying that prayer.
Have a great new summer day in Christ!
Bucky
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