I Found God In Some Cursed Pants...

I have these cargo-style, khaki Capri's that I just love. They are comfortable... They wash well... I don't have to iron them. They don't need a belt. They match anything. They have extra pockets - including one along the side of the left knee that can hold an entire standard-sized paperback novel! These pants are great! I wish I had bought more of them... but I don't even remember where I got them... possibly off the clearance rack at Kohl's (which would add another "plus" to these pants... CHEAP!).

But these pants are cursed.

No matter where I wear them... or for how long... I will spill something on them... some sauce or condiment that will not wash out with a normal washing... or even with Spray-N-Wash! The first time I wore them, I dribbled honey mustard on the leg. Honey Mustard does NOT come out easily! Four washings later.... a bottle of Shout, a bottle of Spray-N-Wash, the Carbona Stain Wipes, and finally bleach (which tinted the khaki into a creamy-white vs. a light-khaki brown), and I had my pants ready to wear without a stain.

Then came ketchup...

Then oil from our favorite Italian restaurant...

Then chocolate kisses from my 4-year old...

Then mud...

Then grease...

The pants have been bleached so many times... eventually, they might fall to pieces right off of my legs!

But still I wear them.
And still I stain them.
And still I continue to bleach them out - erasing the stains...

Isn't this a lot like our relationship with SIN and God? Like the cursed pants, we are susceptible to stains - aka "sin." Every day, we start out fresh... and if you are like me, you might make it through breakfast "stain"-free. But eventually, something will happen in the day, and my good intentions become moot when I sin in some way or another.

Thankfully, God has a powerful, all-purpose cleaner called "Forgiveness." You cannot buy it at a store... in fact, this Forgiveness has already been paid for... so it is available to you at my favorite price of "FREE!" - and without an extra cost for shipping & handling! To receive Forgiveness, all you need to do is ASK God for it! Tell God for what stain you are requiring Forgiveness, and He will expedite delivery of the Forgiveness! Viola! Your stain will be erased! You will be back to your old fresh and clean self!

There is a graphic with a prayer that makes me laugh every time I see it... largely because I can identify with it so well! I don't have the original author (so if you know it, please leave it in the comments so I can give proper credit!), but here it is:

The trick with Forgiveness is in the ASKING for it. The recognition that you have sinned... that you cannot eliminate this stain by yourself... The submitting to God and acknowledging that it is only with His Forgiveness will you be made clean. People screw up all of the time! God knows and understands this! He knows that there is no amount of "good works" or "penance" that people can ever do that will negate all of the dumb decisions we make on a daily basis! So He sent his only Son to Earth... to live and die for each and everyone one of us. It gave us a lifetime supply of this soul-cleanser called Forgiveness... and I, for one, am grateful for it!

Fortunately, unlike the pants... I am not cursed... I am forgiven.

Have a blessed day,
♥Mags