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| Photo by Betty Parquette |
During this mornings readings, prayers, and in the midst of it all, the thoughts of the horrible infection and stench within our beloved church, I thought back once again of a little dog we once had and of a 'mishap' with her in the wee hours of the morning. The occasion was at once horrid and alarming, and led to the following reflection which I now offer for your consideration.
May our prayers come before You like incense…About 4:30 this
morning our old dog, who had been sleeping in our room in a dirty laundry
basket, woke me up, scrambling to get out. As I was pretty tired, I ignored her
for a bit. Just a bit…just long enough for what I should have known was coming.
A horrible stench wafted into my nostrils giving me the kind of reaction that
revelry gives to tired soldiers. I quickly jumped up and searched for the offending
dog, but she was nowhere in sight. Getting a flashlight, I searched ’till I
found her stuck in my husband’s closet, unable to extricate herself from his
clothes. A further search revealed a nasty pile with the most hideous odor
emanating from it. The dog had left her deposit on a cloth travel bag and
inside two dress shoes. As I scrambled to extract the offender and clean the
odorous mess, I think that this is the perfect time to ‘offer-up’ this little
trial, so I offer up this prayer for souls, because I’m certain that God can
and does use everything to His glory. As I try to get back to sleep, I’m
reminded that our prayers go before Him like incense….but this is not the scent
I would have chosen. But then, the sacrifice is not always ours to choose, just
ours to offer back in love.
As I remember and compare this little mishap with the enormous unconfessed sins of the old-dog watch, I believe that the stench, hidden away in the closets of their unrepentant hearts is stinking to high Heaven. It just can't be ignored by any of us and should have us all on full alert.
We need to extricate ourselves of the mess and give it all over to God. The incense of our prayers and fasting is indeed a wonderful thing. But, if all we have to offer is the stench of our sins, then we must offer that too. It's what He wants, before it's too late. Give Him EVERYTHING! Everything that is horrible, ugly, shameful, and dark within, down to the very root. Give it up now to Him as a sacrifice of love, and maybe...just maybe as the filth burns off, we will become a purified offering that will pleasing to the Lord.
May God grant us this grace.
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