No Spots, No Blemishes – A Spiritual Check-Up

No  Spots, No Blemishes

A few years ago I had two blemishes on my face that seemed to appear overnight, out of nowhere.  One was on my nose, and the other was directly above my upper lip.  I put fading cream on them from time to time but not on a consistent basis so they remained.  I would like to think that my lack luster efforts to make them disappear were because I’m simply not a vain person.  Some days they bothered me more than others when I saw them. Generally speaking, however, I didn’t really notice them until I decided to focus on them.  I had gotten used to them being there.

While at a red light one morning, I looked in the mirror.  At that particular moment, the blemishes seemed to be larger than life!  Without hesitation I touched each one and prayed that the Lord would remove each spot / blemish.  As soon as I did, He quickened me in the spirit and asked this:  “Are you as concerned about your spiritual spots and blemishes or just the natural ones?” I immediately repented.

Spiritual Blemishes

We all have spiritual blemishes and I would dare say we are even aware of them.  Yet, how much do we focus on removing them?  I can only speak for myself when I say there is room to do more.  Don’t get me wrong, I am concerned on a daily basis about my spirituality because it is tied directly to my eternity and I can’t play around with that!  But, just as those spots on my natural self caused me to pause and pray for their removal, I should be able to recognize and be even more concerned when something spiritually displeasing presents itself in me.

We can get so accustomed to living with our spiritual blemishes that they don’t bother us much anymore and that’s dangerous.  Going about our day-to-day lives without working to remove these blemishes keeps us from living our best life possible, and could keep us from our place in the Kingdom.

We’ve held a grudge for such a long time that it has settled comfortably in our spirit.  We were hurt and the spot the pain left on our heart has not healed because we can’t let go until the person apologizes. We all know how seldom that happens.  Worst of all, because of what they did, we shield ourselves from getting close to anyone else. This leaves us lonely and feeling isolated.  Or, we’ve dated a person for so long, engaged in all levels of intimacy outside of marriage that we’ve even fooled ourselves into believing  it’s okay because it is at least a monogamous relationship.

His Word

These are all spiritual spots and blemishes in God’s eyes.  The blessing is that He has given us the best fading cream of all – His word!  If we can become more consistent in applying it generously to our daily lives, I guarantee the spots and blemishes will begin to fade away!  He’ll show us how to forgive.  He’ll show us how to trust again. He’ll show us how to love and be loved the right way.

We won’t be perfect because only God can be and is that.  We’ll still make mistakes and stumble because we are human.  But, we will be operating with a pure heart and that’s what matters.

What happened to the blemishes on my face? By the grace of God, one is completely gone and the other hardly visible! Of course, I am choosing to believe that as I work on my spiritual blemishes, God is blessing me by working on my natural ones!

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