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| Pressure-Washing My Life |
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Yesterday I hired two great Enon guys to do some work around my house, including what I thought was "treating" my deck. After I built my house 12 years ago, for the first few years I treated the deck annually. Then I began to skip a year, or two, or five, never realizing that the deck was slowly and completely changing its look. It had turned a moldy black so slowly that I never saw it happening. Well, when I looked out yesterday as the guys were about to break for lunch from pressure-washing the deck, I was stunned! The deck looked brand new, in its natural color, and I had forgotten it had ever looked so good!
I had never done anything bad to the deck. I had not smeared mold on it or painted it black. And I even swept it occasionally and hammered loose nails. The problem is that I didn't make it a priority to maintain and care for it. I neglected it, thinking it would be there whenever I needed it., and I would get around to treating it again "soon."
I wonder now how many other compartments of my life I have allowed to turn black and moldy, without realizing it. I wonder if my relationship with God may be molded with occasional sweeping but long periods without pressure-washing. When I am too busy to attend spiritual retreats or special training sessions, telling myself I have done all that before and don't really need it. When I skip a couple of months without any intense personal Bible study. When I "sweep" through my prayers without giving God a chance to commune with me.
Forgive me, Father, for hurriedly sweeping or merely tightening an occasional nail, and not realizing that I am ever so slowly changing colors. Pressure-wash me, Lord, and cleanse my soul. Renew my spirit to its purest color. Amen.
51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
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| Wow, Kathy! What a great metaphor, and with a terrific visual too! I am certainly going to take some time to pray about this. It is a very powerful reminder of how pervasive sin is and how surreptitiously it can subvert our lives, if we aren't paying attention. Mind if I borrow it for a sermon illustration? I'll give you credit! |
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Denise |
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June 05, 2007 at 4:43pm |
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Beautiful Kathy
Sure does make you think about things.
Mind if I use this in our church bulletin????
I type the bulletins for our church and I use stories like this to go along with our lessons each Sunday.
Bless you
Denise |
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Like you said...it isn't that you did anything blatantly wrong...just didn't do the things you should have done...wow...there is a message going through a lot of these posts that is very similar in vein.
If sin makes us that dirty, then the cleansing has to hurt a bit just to get it all out - the heavy pressure - but look how beautiful it is after it is all cleaned! |
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Kathy |
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June 05, 2007 at 6:25pm |
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| Pastor Kip and Denise, I'll be honored if you can use the story. No credit necessary. Use the picture too if you want to. Voice, good point that such a hard cleaning is probably painful. I haven't noticed a repeated theme in the blogs. We must not be reading all the same ones. And Rita, yes, I'm glad the "deck" didn't have to be torn down! Thanks to you all for your comments and encouragement! |
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I love that verse, Kathy,.. thank you for sharing your story. Funny how we go into relationships thinking it's always easy-breazy, but realizing years later that there's work to be done. And it's so much more true with our relationship with our Maker. |
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This gives such a clear parable about my life, when I neglect nurturing the most important part, my relationship with Jesus. Thanks. |
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| Wow, what a great visual! Excellent, insightful post, Kathy (as usual). |
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Sue |
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June 05, 2007 at 10:18pm |
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| Great devotional Kathy! |
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Beth |
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June 06, 2007 at 6:53am |
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| What an eye opener...WOW!! God is good...all the time! |
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Deb |
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June 06, 2007 at 8:51am |
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| This is a really great post Kathy. It is so easy to let the cares of this world make us dirty, and not even know it is happening. Our relationship with God needs constant work for it to remain good. Thanks for sharing. |
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Kathy |
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June 06, 2007 at 3:22pm |
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Carebear, it's one of my favorites too, right up there with Psalm 42:1 (As the deer panteth . . .)
Bestemor, Sword, Sue, Beth, and Deb, thank you for being 1 Thess. 5:11 to me! (Encourage one another and build each other up . . .) Love to you all! |
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| Great blog Kathy, It is so easy to let "mold" slip into our life. This is one to think on. Thanks for shareing your wisdom with the rest of us. Mike |
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| Great word picture.Gets you thinking about what kind of mold I have growing in my relationship with God. |
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| Wow!! So simple yet powerful. This message really hit home for me. Not only have I recently power washed my deck (which takes a long time) but I've realized that my soul needs to be power washed too. Like the deck cleansing takes time when you keep putting it on the back burner, but once it's all clean again, it's a lot easier to keep it up. Thanks for your inspiration!! :) |
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| Fantastic Kathy. This will make me take stock of my relationship with God. |
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Kathy |
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June 07, 2007 at 5:52pm |
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| Crystal, I bet your deck didn't need as much cleaning as mine, did it?! Thanks Mike, Brother Patrick, Crystal, and Racunpoodle, for commenting. Racunpoodle, I get the poodle, but why the racun? |
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| Thanks for sharing, Kathy. So true, so true! |
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| Soozanne, you're back! Or are you just checking in from happy land? |
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| So true. You know how to make a person stop and think, don't ya :). Thanks for this blog. |
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| Wow that was amazing...Thank you for sharing this. *June |
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Cathy |
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June 08, 2007 at 12:20pm |
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What kind of wood is that? |
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| That is an excellent visual, as everyone else has said. Someone mentioned a devotional. Kathy, have you ever thought about writing one? ~mike |
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Kathy |
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June 08, 2007 at 9:04pm |
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| Welcome back, Soozanne! Hi June! Nice to meet you! Thanks, Gretchen! I love getting Enonite comments! Cathy, I'm sorry I know nothing about wood types. Can anyone else answer her question about what kind of wood the deck is? Mike, you're a great ego builder! I think I know one of your spiritual gifts! :) |
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Jordan |
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June 10, 2007 at 8:35pm |
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| wow. you have a wonderful life perspective. you're inspirational. kathy, what do you do for a living? |
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Kathy |
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June 11, 2007 at 4:05am |
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Thanks Jordan and lostinjorja! Looks like you are both new to MyChurch! Welcome!
Jordan, I teach college Spanish. Lostinjorja, cool name!
I look forward to getting to know you both! |
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Jordan, I totally agree with you...Kathy has a great life perspective that is based on a walk with God where she has seen Him work...plus she has a great skill of bringing provacative topics to us in a way that you can't just read over them lightly...
Kathy, maybe this is a little of the feel for what it is like after the power-washing is done... |
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| I remember the first time the holy spirit helped me Preasure wash my life it was very intenst. I might need a little spring cleaning it has been a long time. God Keep you close and help you in all your needs. Amen |
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Kathy |
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June 11, 2007 at 8:18pm |
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Thanks, Voice. You definitely have the gift of encouragement!
Hi Valerie! Nice to meet you! I love Venice Beach. (Is that the same as Venice?) |
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| Yes if you are talking of the one south of Santa Monica. South of Naval Street that is. The northern part of the state has a much more rural Venice Beach one gas station, a church, and a small liquar store grocery. |
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Kathy |
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October 26, 2007 at 7:11pm |
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| Thanks, Carrie Ann! God speaks to us in so many ways! |
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| A little sleep a little slumber and poverty will come upon you like an armed man. This applies to many areas of our life. We need to be diligent about our spiritual lives. That is why we are exhorted to be sober and vigiliant because our enemy goes about like a roaring lion. If we neglect our spiritual lives it surely will cause us a lot of trouble later, whereas if we would take the care to do the little things right every day it prevents the build up over time like you said. Inch by inch it is a cinch! Yard by Yard it sure is hard! |
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Kathy |
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May 19, 2008 at 10:43am |
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| Well said, Brother Todd! |
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