Shine the Light

        She was only trying to get a small glass out of the cupboard, but it slipped out of her hand and smashed into a million pieces. Thankfully, most of it stayed on the top of the counter, but a few stray shards landed on the kitchen floor. I carefully cleaned it all up, trying hard to find all the little slivers that had managed to escape. I thought I had found all until I looked at the floor in a different light and noticed a few more small pieces hidden in the corners. I grabbed a nearby flashlight and turned it on. It illuminated the linoleum, and the stray pieces glittered at me as the light uncovered their hiding place. I was relieved once every piece of glass was cleaned up, but completely shocked at how much dirt and grim lined the underside of my cupboards and alongside my stove. Since I am a "professional housecleaner" in other people's homes, and always try to clean even the smallest details, this was just not acceptable in my own home!
        Immediately I took a sponge and vigorously began scrubbing the grunge and spots that dared to taunt me. The job became a much bigger project, but it was well worth it in the end, and my kitchen looked so much better afterwards. Not that any guests would come into my kitchen and peer under the counters to see how clean everything was, but still, for my own sake of knowing, it felt good to know it was gone. 
        Isn't that the way it is with sin in our life? We can appear to be clean and neat on the outside, but inside we may be hiding some sin or habit that is really ugly and dirty. Then something we hear, or simply God convicting our heart, causes the Light to come on and we see the grime. Oftentimes we do not like the Light - it reveals things that are shocking, and we do not want to have to deal with them. It takes a lot of work, major scrubbing, and time, something we feel we do not have enough of these days. If nobody is affected by my sin, at least for the time being, why do we need to clean it up? If nobody will see it, and nobody is looking specifically for it, then why bother? 
        Jesus sees. Jesus knows, and so do you. I love the line from one of my favorite songs: "The man that I am when no one is watching, is the man I really am." Such a deep thought, but it cuts to the heart.  Deep inside you know what is really going on. Turn on the Light, and examine your heart. You will feel so much better when you get that grime and dirt cleaned up, and you will feel good knowing that it is gone, and you are forgiven. A clean heart is a happy heart.   

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