Reflecting Christ: Ditch the Itch

 

and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:24

 Many years ago, my husband asked me to start cutting his hair, and we got a set of clippers. I had watched my mom buzz my brothers’ heads for NJROTC in high school so I was pretty comfortable with the concept. For a long time, he wanted it styled with short sides but more length on top. That was tricky, but now he is transitioning his hairstyle to a not-quite-but-almost-bald look. Now, I just pop the #1 guard on the clippers and do his whole head lickety split. He has baby-soft, fine hair, and when you cut it, it goes EVERYWHERE. I learned early on in this process that a haircut had to be followed by a shower. Those little hairs worked their way through the fabric of my shirt, into the waistband of my pants, into my bra! NOT COMFORTABLE!!

 What does this seemingly incongruous reflection have to do with Ephesians? In today’s passage (Ephesians 4:17-24), Paul is talking about our life before and after Christ, and how there has to be a change. Jesus saved you from something. Even if the world said it was great and wonderful and the best thing for you, deep down, you knew it wasn’t. It had worked its way under your skin and become so normal that you were used to it, but that didn’t make it good for you. When Jesus comes into our lives, He offers us a new perspective. He helps us to see things for what they really are, and opens our eyes to the truth of the addictions we struggle with. They might be text book ones like drugs or pornography, or they might be more subtle, like phone games or doom scrolling. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t struggle with an addiction to something.

 But here’s where it all comes together, before Jesus, we were stuck in that. We had no hope. We might try to quit, we might even cold-turkey it, but that addiction still had a hold on our soul. But God. He steps in, cleanses us, and makes us new. That doesn’t mean that we won’t struggle with addiction anymore. Sadly, we still live in bodies with a sin nature in a fallen world. But, we are no longer doomed to addiction. In Jesus, we have hope for healing and wholeness. Jesus takes off our old clothes, filled with tiny-itchy hairs, cleanses us with a wonderful, warm shower, and then puts on a new set of clothes for us. Just like I do after a haircut, God gets rid of the source of the irritation and sets us up for success in Him.

Here's the Thing: Hair is great and all when it is attached to a head, but when it gets under your bra strap, it’s no good. Sometimes in life, things get out of place and cause problems. We put things in the wrong priority order and it’s like we’re walking around on our hands instead of our feet. Thankfully, God has a solution and He’s made it available to us – to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Am I Pretty?

Image
How I look has changed a lot over the last year. Just under a year ago my head was shaved for brain surgery and over the last year my hair has been growing out. I’ve had to do a lot more resting and less exercise and activity so I’ve put on weight. I had arm surgery a couple of months ago which left me with a splint for most of that time and now an arm with 13 scars on it. I look so different. A big part of me has worried so much about how my husband sees me. Does he still find me attractive? You see, he’s not one to voice things like that. Words of affirmation were not used in his home growing up and they are not a part of his standard vocabulary. It’s funny though, as I read today’s verses I realized that he has, in fact, been telling me I’m pretty, just in a different way. Let your beauty not be external - the braiding of hair and wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes - but the inner person of the heart, the lasting beauty of a gentle and tranquil spirit, which is precious in Go...
Read more

Community First! Village

Image
   This incredible trip has taught me so much, and I feel like I'm just beginning to unpack it. I'm certain that these lessons will overflow into future posts as well, but I wanted to give you an introduction to the  Community First! Village  here in Austin, Texas. As shared on their website: Community First! Village is a master planned neighborhood that provides affordable, permanent housing and a supportive community for men and women who are coming out of chronic homelessness. A development of Mobile Loaves & Fishes, this transformative residential program exists to love and serve our neighbors who have been living on the streets, while also empowering the surrounding community into a lifestyle of service with the homeless. This is the actual truck originally used in street outreach, now retired as a decorative memorial  This amazing endeavor began over twenty five years ago. As a part of their street outreach,  Alan Graham  and his partne...
Read more

I Just Need a Little Help From My Friends...

Image
TLDR, just want to donate So this is a difficult post to write, probably even more difficult than figuring out how to tell people I had a brain tumor. I HATE asking people for money, for help, for most anything really - except prayer, I'm pretty good at asking for that! Here's the thing, I don't NEED money. I'm not looking for donations for a huge fundraiser like the 3-Day (did that a long time ago). I'm not going on a mission trip. But I am doing something new, something I can't do without help. In this eye of the storm season I'm in, I've become positively obsessed with travel. The thing is, travel is expensive and while I could just spend our savings to do what I want, that wouldn't be great stewardship of our future and hopeful retirement. So I've been learning about points and miles and the best way to get return towards travel with the spending we're doing anyways (like paying bills and buying groceries). The thing is, to really make th...
Read more