Cleaning Method

Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Today's reading titled, Cleaning Method, was written by Patricia Rabin. At the sink, two little children cheerfully sing the happy birthday song, two times each, while washing their hands. It takes that long to wash away the germs, their mother tells them. So even before the COVID-19 pandemic, they'd learned to take time to clean dirt from their hands.

Keeping things clean can be a tedious process, as we learned in the pandemic. Scrubbing away sin, however, means following focused steps back to God. James urged believers in Jesus scattered throughout the Roman Empire to turn their focus back to God. Beset by quarrels and fights, their battles for one-upmanship, possessions, worldly pleasures, money, and recognition, made them an enemy of God. He warned them in chapter 4, submit yourselves then to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

But how? He says, come near to God and he will come near to you. These are sanitizing words describing the necessity of turning to God to scour away the soil of sin from our lives.

James then further explained the cleaning method. Grieve, mourn, and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up. Dealing with our sin is humbling, but hallelujah, God is faithful to turn our washing into worship.

Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from James chapter 4 verses 4 through 10. You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace.

That is why scripture says God opposes the proud, but shows favor to the humble. Submit yourselves then to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn, and wail.

Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up. Let's pray. Oh Lord Jesus, we thank you for the sacrifice you made on our behalf and for reaching out to us with your unconditional love and forgiveness. Thank you also for letting us come to you in our broken, wounded, and sinful condition and for giving us a way back to you. It's in your name, Jesus, that we pray. Amen. Today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.