Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)
Mom taught me how to iron clothes.
Since we had no television while growing up, Saturday mornings usually found me ironing the pillowcases and dish towels. Mom had previously laundered, starched, and rolled them up in a large plastic bag. This kept them moist while awaiting their appointed time with the iron.
Until I was tall enough to reach the ironing board while standing, we used a combo “high chair” and stepstool with two squeaky steps. Maybe it was early onset OCD, but I grew to enjoy transforming those moist, wrinkled items into dry and smooth works of art.
Now that I’m grown, except for occasional trips to the cleaners, I don’t mind ironing my own clothes. As a child, we didn’t have the luxury of a steam iron, so we kept the clothes moist and smoothed their wrinkles with a simple iron. But today’s new and improved model has many features. With so many fancy nobs, buttons, and settings, it requires an instruction booklet
One of the safety features is a cut off mechanism when the iron is inactive. While ironing, the green “in use” light is on and the iron performs smoothly and effectively. However, when I get distracted and leave it inactive for a short while, the green light blinks out and the iron shuts off. This is by design so I don’t accidentally burn myself or the house down.
Losing Spiritual Power
As I ironed my business shirts, God taught me yet another valuable lesson. He gently showed me how I am just like that iron when I’m supposed to be doing something for Him. While I’m active and busy, He supplies the power, energy, and enthusiasm to complete the task. Yet, when I am distracted, forget my priority, and become discouraged, complacent, and inactive, my spiritual “in use” light blinks off. That’s when I lose His power, my enthusiasm, and overall effectiveness.
God usually won’t show you the longer pathway until you are taking the steps He’s already shown you. Whether He’s convicted you to stop something or inspired you to start something, get busy doing it or you may be stuck for a while, with your “in use” button off and your iron growing cold.
