“the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority.” 2 Peter 2:9-10

I have found myself repeatedly looking heavenward and calling out… “HUH??!” If repeated episodes of rats, moles, invasive trees and plants were not enough, now I am forced to deal with sewage! Sometimes it takes MANY times before I come to the realization that THIS time… it’s time! God is calling me to learn something about myself and he is using icky stuff to open my eyes.

Vacating a house from a property does not actually vacate the property. One of the BIG things that has to be dealt with is the part that is rarely seen and ALWAYS taken for granted. If the house is on a septic tank, which rarely is ever considered, that tank has to be dealt with. In my case, to GET to the tank meant digging up dirt and tree roots to expose the nasty thing. But it has to be done and apparently NOW is the time.

I have learned, and been reminded again, that a ‘follower’ of Christ NEVER actually fully ARRIVES! For 51 years, God has been working on me… calling, reminding, pressing and fixing. When I think I finally have overcome something with His direction and help, He takes His invasive eye to my soul and points to something ELSE I usually never even have noticed before! He is an irritating God because He NEVER seems to get tired of pointing out ‘the nasty stuff!’ I’d LOVE for Him to take an occasional vacation… but He is relentless!

‘The Flesh,’ also called the sinful nature, has a mind of its own. I am quite comfortable with him because I have lived with him for a VERY long time. Like rats, it wants to dominate my soul. Like tree roots, it surrounds and suffocates my spirit. Like moles and septic tanks, it does its dirty work underground, displaying the mounds of upheaval and the smell of corruption. And it is NOT OK.

Part of this kind of process is not new to me. As I find myself in situations I do not like, my quiet time with God takes on a life from above. I find that things I read from Bible passage I read this morning winds up the theme of the Christian radio program I listen to this afternoon. Over and over, day in and day out… I finally realize He is trying to reach me to teach me.

I know I will never fully arrive as a perfect image of His Son. But I also know that He does not allow that as an excuse for vacating my premises. I am His.. He is mine. And apparently He has work to do. I may be dense sometimes, but I am not stupid. He doesn’t seem to mind the icky stuff and has plans for me TODAY. I can either join Him or fight Him. Since I have already learned that fighting Him is a lost cause, I guess it’s time to clean some of this this stuff up!