“He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.”
Washing
What is your least favorite chore around the house? I think I dislike washing clothes the most because it is a never-ending chore. Just as I finish one load of laundry, more dirty clothes show up. In fact, as I write today, my washing machine whirs in the background. And those clothes will get dirty again and again. Some stains will never come clean, no matter how much I scrub them. Thank goodness for bleach.
A few years ago, I stopped complaining as much about washing clothes. What changed my attitude? As I watched women in other countries do their laundry, I changed my opinion. My process is simple compared to their ways. I throw things into a washing machine and press a few buttons, and then I sit and wait. In many developing countries, the laundry takes several days to complete. It starts with collecting the water from the river. And sometimes the water is so muddy that all the white items turn a dingy brown. And all things get washed by hand, rinsed, wrung out and then hung somewhere to dry. Their task is backbreaking compared to mine.
Jesus’ Wash Day
Our Savior did some washing during His time on earth as well. Let’s look at John 13:12 (NIV), “After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, ‘Do you understand what I was doing?’” In this verse, we find Jesus washing the feet of His disciples. Our Lord bent over to wash each foot of those present and then he rubbed them dry. And Jesus did not complain about this task, but used the washing as an act of love for his disciples. So maybe I can learn to do laundry as an act of love for my family.
But the most important washing Jesus did for us came with his death on the cross. As shown in Titus 3:5 above, Jesus washed away our sins. His death on the cross provided us with the ultimate cleaning. This cleansing requires minimal effort on our part; we just need to ask the Lord to forgive our sins and enter our hearts to wash away those sins. We do not need to do any backbreaking work to receive this gift of His great mercy. We just need to repent of our sins and allow Him to wash us clean. Today is a good day to begin again. And once God does the laundry, it never needs to be rewashed.
Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father. Thanks for all the lessons we can learn from the ordinary events of life. Thank you for your grace and mercy and for the forgiveness of our sins. Thank you for washing us clean and making us whiter the snow. Please help each of us to share the Good News so it may cleanse others. In Jesus’ Most Holy Name. Amen.
Do you need prayer? I would love to pray for you. Submit your prayer request on my website at https://yvonne-morgan.com/submit-your-prayer-request-here/
Grace and Peace to you,
Yvonne M. Morgan is a Christian #author, #blogger, and #speaker. #BibleGatewayPartner
Matthew 28:19 “Therefore, GO and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
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