Clorox to the Rescue!

When I was little I never understood Matthew's account of the wedding at which the king ridiculed the wedding guest who did not wear proper wedding attire. The king didn't only disallow his guest entry; he threw him out with instructions to "bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth."

Wow. Just because the poor man wasn't dressed right? This punishment always seemed ridiculously harsh to me, as a child. The wailing and grinding of teeth stuck in my memory. I'm not a child anymore. I understand. The kingdom of God is somewhere I want to be allowed entry whenever it comes.

Now if I were preparing for a wedding on a certain date I'd have chosen an outfit, made sure it was clean, found shoes and purse, maybe even selected special occasion jewelry. When the day arrived I'd be clean head to toe with shiny hair and polished nails. A wedding celebration is a special event requiring special preparations.

How mush more special is God's kingdom? Light years above! The tricky part here is that nobody knows, no matter what anyone thinks or attempts to calculate, nobody knows the day we'll meet God. We don't know the hour of our own death or the end of this world as we know it. Hmmm...so when should I do my nails?!

Seriously though, the story I did not understand as a child is perfectly clear to me now: if you don't want to miss it always be ready. Have about you the proper attitude before God at all times. You know what you're supposed to do. If your white garment of proper attitude is not so white anymore, not so pure, what are you going to do about it?

Is it just a small stain from a thoughtless act? Nothing a little stain stick can't handle. Or do you need to douse it in Clorox and soak it in the radiant light of the SON to draw out all discolorations? Only you know what you need to do. So do it. Make your garment dazzling white to greet the Lord. Shine so brilliantly that He can't possibly pass you by.

Or if it seems too much for you to handle, you could always wait around for the wailing and grinding of teeth. Your choice.

~ Maureen :)