Scrubbing Away Sin - Wholly Loved - October 27

Scrubbing Away Sin
By Shirley Brosius

“Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” Psalm 51:2

We’re a germ conscious society, but perhaps we should be more sin conscious. My friends and I discussed how often we should wash or throw away the scrubbies we use to bathe. One friend’s looftah is a couple years old, and she’d never laundered it. Another friend refused to use scrubbies because she felt they were germ-laden. I usually use one for a few weeks before throwing it in with the dirty towels. After all, it gets sudsed up each time I shower.

After our discussion, my friend threw away her looftah and I washed my scrubbie.

David, an ancient Israel King, began Psalm 51 asking for God’s mercy. He had rebelled against God’s standards and had committed adultery, so he appealed to God’s mercy for cleansing.

Rather than discuss our hygiene concerns, we might better spend our time discussing our need to be cleansed from sin. When we profess Christ as our Savior, he cleanses us and wraps us in a clean white bathrobe, so to speak. But not a day goes by when we don’t live imperfectly. Perhaps we lose our temper. Maybe we grumble or complain or speak poorly of others. That’s like getting our feet dirty after we’ve bathed. And again, we need God’s mercy.

Scripture tells us, the night before He died, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet. At first, one of His disciples objected but then asked the Lord to wash his hands and head as well.

“Jesus answered, ‘Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean.’” John 13:10

Once we are wrapped in Christ’s clean white robe of righteousness, we simply need to confess our daily sins to experience God’s grace and forgiveness. Let’s do that as regularly as we shower.

Shirley Brosius is the author of Sisterhood of Faith: 365 Life-Changing Stories about Women Who Made a Differenceand coauthor of Turning Guilt Trips into Joy Rides, which she wrote with two speaking partners, Kim and Janine. They call themselves Friends of the Heart (www.friendsoftheheart.us) to speak at women’s retreats and events throughout the East. Shirley has written hundreds of articles for newspapers, magazines, and devotional publications. She’s married with two married sons and a daughter waiting in heaven. She loves to read, write and keep up with five grandchildren.