I washed our cars the other day. There’s always a sense of fulfillment when you take the time to really wash the cars down, clean the rims, and triple check there are no streaks on the windows. I even took the time to really dry it off using my brand new Sham-Wow!
And while I was greatly disappointed when a friendly neighborhood bird decided to leave a deposit on the hood of my car, what was more disappointing is when I opened the door and saw the mess inside.
All that hard work was slightly ruined by a pesky bird. But having fast food bags, empty water bottles, and tons of dirt on my floor mats made cleaning just the outside of my car rather pointless.
How often in our own lives do we worry more about how we look than how we are on the inside? How often do we work so hard to make sure we’re saying the right things, looking the right way, but our heart is full of bitterness, unforgiveness, hatred, and deception?
I once had an ’89 Ford Escort. 4 doors, 1 hatch back, and the color of a robin’s egg. It was a beauty. Well, it leaked. Somewhere. All the Febreeze couldn’t get the musty smell out of my car. No matter how hard I tried to cover it up nothing worked. I had to fix the problem. Because of my lack of expertise in the mechanical side of things, I had to bring it to a professional.
We can cover up what is on the inside, but eventually it will spill out. Eventually, people will see us, hear us, and maybe even smell us for who we really are.
We have a professional that we can go to. Take some time today, and wash your “car.” But more importantly, take some time to make sure the inside is spotless too.
Today, may we make Psalm 51 our prayer.
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