Good morning beloved. Today is going to be a great day. When God wakes you up each morning affirming this to yourself. “Today will be a great day!” With a positive mindset on the realization that God can achieve this, it will be just that-a great day.
My grandsons visit me often. I love to have them stay with me as often as I can. They can relax when they come to visit me and have their own rooms and bathroom. Well, they know that two of Granny’s requirements is that they make sure they bath in the morning and usually before they go to bed. And that they always wash their hands before eating. On occasion, they come downstairs after supposedly taking a shower, and there are parts of their body that I can see never got wet because they were in and out of the shower so fast. My first response would be “you were not in the shower long enough to even get your whole body wet.” Or, if they were in there for a while, sometimes I would ask them if they used any soap because they still didn’t have that fresh out the shower fragrance. Putting it mildly. Lol.
But using soap when you bathe is a very intricate part of getting yourself clean. It is supposed to help get out impurities. Soaps come in all forms. They all have different fragrances and they all cleanse differently. In other words, some work well at getting you clean and then there are others that don’t work as well. It’s common knowledge that washing your hands often and well is the best way to prevent disease transmission. Many of us are accustomed to using soap during handwashing as a matter of choice — it’s there in public bathrooms, it’s in our homes, it’s in the office kitchen. Lord help those that don’t choose to use soap, in times when they should. Health professionals recommend handwashing before eating, after using the bathroom, changing a diaper, and other situations in which you might come into contact with harmful bacteria. Germs cling to our hands a lot more easily than we give them credit for, and almost no amount of soap will remove them if other aspects of your handwashing technique aren’t up to snuff. On the bright side, combining good technique with water alone can actually remove a significant share of germs from your hands.
I can remember hearing my Grandmother saying stuff like, “if I hear you say that again, I’m going to wash your mouth out with soap.” I never knew why she would say this but as I got older I realized that she said it because she felt what was being said was dirty. That washing the mouth out with soap would cleanse the words that would come out afterwards. Well, guess what? Sin is the same way. We have soap that we need to use everyday to help get rid of our sinful natures. Yes, soap. S-Scripture, O-observation, A-application, P-prayer-Soap! With these four things we can rest assure that it will help get rid of sin. We are to read God’s word the scriptures, observe what we are doing, and apply the scriptures to our lives. Not just read them. Then we need to pray for others and ourselves to become the individuals that God would have us to be.
Do you know what would happen if there was no soap? The little bit of dirt you get on you today would be added to the dirt you get every other day, and pretty soon you’d be a filthy mess, physically. Can you imagine if you don’t use your spiritual soap daily what would happen? We need some way to be cleaned on the inside, and no bar of soap can do it. That’s what Jesus does for us. When we give our lives to Him and let Him come to live inside of us, He cleans us inside so that we’re as clean as new. The bar of soap has many uses. You can carve images out of a bar of soap, like a boat or a car. You can rub it on the edge of a door that is hard to open and the door will open more easily. If you take the paper cover off, the soap will make the room smell nice. And, of course, you can use it to kill germs and take a bath to make you clean on the outside. But how do you clean yourself on the inside? How do you clean up ugly thoughts or mean words or hurtful actions? Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to live in our lives and make us clean inside. The Bible tells us the Holy Spirit is like a dove.
The Holy Spirit — makes us clean on the inside when we ask God to forgive us of our sin. Every time you see a bar of soap, remember to ask God to help you have clean thoughts, kind words, and helpful actions. Let’s clean up right now and ask God to use the dove, His Holy Spirit, to make us clean today. Remember that a part of the process is for you to use your spiritual soap today and everyday.
S – Scripture
Open your Bible to your reading for the day. Take time reading and allow God to speak to you. When you are done, look for a verse that particularly spoke to you that day, and write it in your journal.
O – Observation
What do you think God is saying to you in this scripture? Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you and reveal Jesus to you.
A – Application
Personalize what you have read, by asking yourself how it applies to your life right now. Perhaps it is instruction, encouragement, a new promise, or corrections for a particular area of your life. Write how this scripture can apply to you today.
P – Prayer
This can be as simple as asking God to help you use this scripture or even a prayer for a greater insight on what He may be revealing to you. Remember, prayer is a two-way conversation, so be sure to listen to what God has to say! Now, write it out.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
Live life, give people hope. Share your heart, wisdom and resources. Never place a period where God says there should be a comma.
As always peace and blessings, be safe. Remember God loves you and so do I. ©krw 2.17.16
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