"Is There Cheese in Your Fridge?"

I cleaned the bottom shelf in my refrigerator the other day - you know, where all the stuff drips down from shelves above. I just got tired of looking at it. I was admiring how much better it looked when I noticed a piece of cheese stuck in the side of the drawer. I tried to pull it out, but it was too far back to reach. I had to pull the drawer all the way out to get to the cheese. I was about to slide the drawer back in it's place when I saw the nasty layer of gunk that had been hidden under the drawer. I started to put the drawer back anyway. I thought, well no one can see it. Then I thought, no. I will know it's there. I went ahead and cleaned the hidden gunk. Now, every time I open my fridge, I feel good about it being clean - the seen and the unseen.

(Hover Mouse over reference to read the verse.)

When we first become a christian, we tend to make some changes in our lives. There are some obvious things that we do different once we are saved.

Salvation is a wonderful thing. Accepting God's forgiveness for our sins and being washed in the blood of Jesus makes us clean, so that we can enter into a relationship with God. It doesn't however, make us perfect. God wants us to continue to grow and replace the gunk with good.

Sometimes it is difficult to see that hidden gunk. It's even more difficult to "clean it up" once it is revealed. There is a temptation to just let it go, since no one else can see it anyway. The bad news is that sin always has a bad effect on us and can allow for more sin to grow. The good news is that God does not expect us to clean up the mess alone.

Not only does He help us, but we reap the benefits as well.