Keep it Clean. Keep it dry.

Of late, its been quite cold with ice and rain, and snow. yeah. yeah. I know I live in Maine. but come on...whata' downer?!

Today, its 54 degrees and sunny and it feels the same to me as 75 degrees and 'springy'.  I needed a spring day.

spring makes me think of birth and renewal.  it makes me breathe deep, breaths of 'clean' air and it smells of hopefulness.  And hopefulness is where it's at people .

This past weekend, Phil and I got new iphones.  I've had a basic flip phone that barely 'texted' for the past 8 years.  no joke.  With the new phone, I've been taking advantage of podcasts on my commutes.  Some days I've listened to pathology lectures to try to make the most of my limited study time.  But the last two mornings, I've listened to sermons.  Tim Keller is a great teacher if you haven't listened to him, then I suggest you do.

Yesterday, I listened to his sermon Our Work and Our Character (because I was obsessing about my 'work') and today to his The Wounded Spirit.  I recommend these to everyone. because we all work.  some of us work at home, taking care of children and our communities. some of us teach, passing knowledge on to the next generation, some of us heal so that life can be had fully, and some of us clean. clean tables, clean roads, clean toilets, because we would die without clean things.  This is true. without hygiene, we'd bite the dust...

What I'm getting at is that all work has value and every worker is deserving of dignity for his or her work.  And our work is often difficult.  it can beat us up at times if we're not careful to remember the truth about work given to us in Holy Scripture.

On the subject of cleaning--because we all clean something every day...dishes, diapers, debris--as part of our work.  Let's talk about the importance of clean.

Clean.

Clean mind. clean heart. clean hands.

Dirt is good, don't get me wrong.  but nasty stuff thrives when we don't keep things clean. plain and simple.  some of its 'good' nasty stuff.  but some of its 'bad' nasty stuff.  And that what I'm talking about here.

Today in a Dermatitis lecture, we addressed all those things that wreak havoc on our skin. If left untreated, they can wreak havoc on our overall health.  Fungi and bacteria LOVE warm moist dark environments.

Taking it back to this spirit-body connection...Don't let your kids' bums be damp and dirty AND don't let your spirit become damp and dirty either.

Areas of life may be more prone to dampness than others. thats ok. be aware of those areas.  and be vigilant.  God's word teaches us the truth about dampness and uncleanliness (just read Leviticus! Israel is on top of public health issues!).

Its time to air it out.  expose those dark areas that have been neglected, and give them to the son and let the healing begin--a little 'spring' cleaning if you will ;)

A general rule of thumb:   Keep it clean and keep it dry, friends.