Wash your HANDS!

 

Wow, what a crazy couple of weeks! It has been a long time since I have been that sick. But, I am back and so thankful for the prayers of so many people. Pneumonia is no joke for us OLDER PEOPLE. LOL! The worse part of this entire sickness is how much is disrupted our FAMILY CHRISTMAS. It seems we sent everyone home with a special gift of SICKNESS and we didn't get to see much of the others because they were avoiding the plague! 

When I was preparing for the sermon about the mustard seed, it struck me about these small microscopic viruses that invade our bodies, take over, and wreak havoc on us as we fight them. We talk about mustard seeds being a good thing, or we talk about leaven working through dough as being a good thing. Yet, the opposite can also be true. A SMALL amount of EVIL can also grow into something significant and can dominate our lives just like a tiny virus. That is why we need to remain vigilant in keeping SIN at arms length. We are to avoid sin, FLEE from it. To put it in a nut-shell, we need to "WASH OUR HANDS!"

It is so easy to miss that little nugget of wisdom as we go through our daily routines. A simple little thing like washing your hands can help avoid all the pain and suffering of illness. God also provides us with simple solutions in our battle against the sin and evil of this world! 

"Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts." (2 Timothy 2:22, NLT)

"Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body." (1 Corinthians 6:18, NLT)

"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." (1 Corinthians 10:13, NLT)

We combat a virus by taking care of our bodies, taking precautions like getting plenty of rest, eating properly, and as my mom used to say, "WASH YOUR HANDS!" In terms of keeping sin from invading our lives we need to be watchful in the same way. We need to flee even the smallest temptation, the smallest hint of sin entering your life. God is faithful and when you depend upon him he will stand with you against the evils of this world. Prevention comes in our dedication to prayer, worship, and studying God's word. Prevention comes when we focus on JESUS and obeying him in all we do. 

Zechariah 4:10 tells us this;

"Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel's hand." (Zechariah 4:10, NLT)

Heavenly Father, we praise you for your wonderful protection. We may never know the sin and evil you protected us from. But, we know you are always with us. You will give us a way out and help us to flee. Your power and might live inside of us through the power of your Holy Spirit. I praise you for that miraculous power. Help me to continue on the path YOU have laid out for me. I want nothing but to serve you in the small ways, because I know those small beginnings will grow because of you. Thank you Lord! In you holy and precious name we pray, LORD JESUS, AMEN!

Protect yourselves from the small schemes of the ENEMY. FLEE the evils and sins that so easily engulf our lives, WASH YOUR HANDS!