When we pulled into the truck wash, a group of tattooed, bandana toting, life-lived-hard men descended on our truck and travel trailer. Brushes in hand, they worked vigorously, scrubbing every inch of its surface. Water sprayed, soapy bubbles cleaned, and the mud ran off. They made quick work of the dirty job.
It’s good to start out clean, don’t ya think? We are off on an adventure of uncharted waters. Newly retired, my husband and I are going to start with a bit of wandering across the countryside seeing things we have never seen. Perhaps it’s a bit symbolic to start this new phase of our lives clean, shedding of the layers of the old life’s demands that don’t belong on this journey.
This reminds of another fresh start,
a new beginning that would change my life forever. I decided to ask Jesus to save me from my sin. My initial decision, if the truth be known, was made because I recognized if hell was real, I didn’t want to go there. It was a start that allowed me to travel into a new life that would take me places I never imagined.
One thing that is not lost on me is the fact that there were a bunch of people in my life with scrub brushes in their hands. I know that it is Jesus who provided the forgiveness of my sins by His death and resurrection, but there were many who prayed, encouraged, and taught me along the way. They had hard-life experience and knew how to lead a wayward, teenaged girl to Jesus. I thank God that they did.
There is a story in the Bible in Mark 2 . . .
about some friends who would not let their friend go on with his usual life. You see, he was paralyzed and unable to do anything different than live his paralyzed life. The friends were not having it. They knew he needed healing, so they loaded him up on a stretcher and delivered him to Jesus. It was no easy task. Before the night was over, the man’s faithful friends would need to claw their way through a roof to get him face-to-face with Jesus. I imagine their bloody hands and knees were forgotten when their friend was forgiven and healed. It had all been worth the effort.
This story is one I learned in Sunday School as a kid. I have always pictured four friends carrying their buddy off to see Jesus, but the text actually says, “Some men came, bringing to him (Jesus) a paralyzed man, carried by four of them.” This was a lucky man to have friends that cared so much.
If you have been following me on Facebook or Twitter,
you have seen that I have been encouraging people to do something meaningful to change the world. This falls into that category. When was the last time you prayed for a friend to find Jesus? Most of us have a list of those who we know that need to have a face-to-face with Jesus but they are paralyzed and can’t get to Him. Are you willing to risk some bloody hands and knees to change their lives? It was because of the friends’ faith the man was forgiven and ultimately healed. Don’t waste any more time. Get the stretcher and haul your friends to Jesus.
“Some men came, bringing to him (Jesus) a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and lowered the mat the man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’”
Mark 2:3-5 NIV
Who do you know of that took the time to bring you to Jesus?
I have a list of the ones I suspect were instrumental in getting me into Jesus’ presence. I have been thanking them when I can for their faithfulness to changing the world for this once rebellious and unruly teenager. If anyone needed a good scrubbing, I did.
Check out this post about the benefits of showing gratitude—Navigating Customs: Give Thanks
Love the the idea of starting out your new adventure clean. Very inspiring. Thanks for sharing!