Wash Day!

Not that long ago, our spring lambs got their first baths, quickly turning the clear water a murky,  dishwater gray. It’s amazing how much grime they accumulated in their short time on earth and while we knew it wouldn’t last, we enjoyed their squeaky-clean fleeces for at least a little while!

As we were washing the lambs, I remembered a curious expression my "momma used to say” that I didn’t really understand until much later in life. Whenever one of us kids was suspected of fibbing, or if somebody did somebody wrong, she’d always say:  You know, it’ll all come out in the wash. I couldn’t help but wonder where this mysterious and powerful “washing machine” was located in my little universe, but gosh golly, I knew it was out there because it eventually — and always — exposed the truth of the matter and we’d have to come clean.

Let’s face it, the muck and mire of modern life is everywhere.  Turning on the television or scrolling through social media often makes me want to wash my eyes. Mud-slinging politicians and malicious commentators make me want to wash my ears.  It’s increasingly difficult to discern what is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. But then, I remember:

It’ll all come out in the wash.

And then there’s the dirty little matter of personal sin.  A daily examination of conscious scrubs off the surface dirt, but if we’re really honest with ourselves, staying clean —  down to the bottom of our hearts and souls  —  is as impossible as keeping our little Valais lambs in pristine condition. Frankly, it ain’t happening, not for lack of trying but because we’re imperfect humans living in a fallen world. But then, there’s the good news:

It all comes out in the wash.

That mysterious “wash” my momma talked about wasn’t powered by a machine — it was and is powered by a Person. By the grace and mercy of God the Father,  through the saving action of Jesus Christ crucified on a Cross, we are redeemed; we are washed in the blood of the Lamb (Rev. 7:14); our sins are made white as snow … they shall become like wool. (Is. 1:18).

As sheep in flock of our Lord, we’re bound to accumulate a lot of grime on our short time on earth as we push and pilgrim on, either through our own transgressions or by those of the world.  But not only are God’s mercies new each day —  we also have the blessed assurance that if not in this life, certainly in the next: “God will bring every act to judgement, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.” (Eccl. 12:14)

Or in other words:  It’ll all come out in the wash.

In the meantime, we can seek daily cleansing, forgiveness, and right relationship with God the Father through our Savior, Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Not sure how? King David, a sinner who never stopped loving the Lord, offers us a timeless prayer of repentance and confession:

Cleanse me with hyssop, that I may be pure;

wash me, make me whiter than snow.

Let me hear sounds of joy and gladness;

let the bones you have crushed rejoice. 

Turn away your face from my sins;

blot out all my guilt.

A clean heart create for me, God; 

renew in me a steadfast spirit.

Do not drive me from your presence,

nor take from me your holy spirit.

Restore my joy in your salvation;

sustain in me a willing spirit.

I will teach the wicked your ways,

that sinners may return to you.

(Psalm 51)

Every time we are cleansed, we become more closely conformed to the image and likeness of God, more able to “teach the wicked ” and help other sheep return to the fold.

It’s a beautiful — but messy — world out there.

Stay washed, my friends.