Coming Clean

"Is there a place around here that has poker during the week?" we asked the motel attendant.  We were on vacation in a resort area that we knew had no casinos or full-fledged poker rooms.  We would have settled for a small game at a bar, to do some surprise poker ministry.

But the woman behind the desk said there was no such place -- not even in a bar.  She named a big tourist attraction in the area, and told us the managers exert a lot of influence to keep any sort of gambling from starting.

That woman at the motel seemed a bit annoyed by that approach.  We accepted it -- and we respect it.  Those managers are trying to keep things "G-rated" and family-friendly for visitors from around the country.

How do you "clean up" an area of things which might be considered sinful?  It starts with people cleaning up themselves....

He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.  He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior, - Psalm 24:4-5

But the better approach to cleaning is really not to do it ourselves.  We should ask God for help in the clean-up job:

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.  Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. - Psalm 51:1-2

This step is known in "church-speak" as repentance. Ask God to lovingly show your unclean areas. Confess them.  Seek God's forgiveness.  Then strive to walk a different way, seeking God's help in doing it.  II Peter 1:5-8 outlines several steps in doing that -- leading to this:

But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins. - II Peter 1:9

We encourage you to review the steps listed in that chapter.  If certain things are missing, ask God to help you find ways to grow in those areas -- and to be "carried along by the Holy Spirit," as the end of the chapter puts it.

Will there be poker games when God's perfect Kingdom comes to earth?  We're honestly not sure -- but if there are, they'll be cleaned-up ones.  How about taking steps toward that now?