DIRTY HANDS

  There have been so many times my kids have come to me with unidentified substances on their hands, face and coming out of every conceivable place on their body. They look at me with their big eyes and a sweet, melt your heart smile, wanting to be held. We have all seen a kid that has gotten into candy and runs up to their mom, hands held up, chocolate all over her and says, "I wanna hold you". The mom sweetly smiles, shakes her head at the child, picks the child up and calmly walks over to the sink, begins cleaning and talking or consoling the child. It is amazing how many times our kids have come to us with dirt, blood, candy, cake, food, unidentified slime and we just take it in stride, find the nearest hose and clean them off. Then, we send them on their merry way knowing that they will be back with something else we need to clean or dispose of. Those little dirty hands rarely ever are held up to us when they are clean. Our clothes can be covered in spit-up, snot, bits of food and we just take our kids as they come, mess and all.

    All I have are dirty hands. I come to my Lord with my hands held up in need of love, attention and someone to take me as I am. I am nothing without Him. He takes it all in stride and picks me up no matter what I have done or gotten into. He cleans me off and lets me go again knowing full well I will get into something else and He will have to clean me up again. I used to wonder how God had the patience to deal with me until I became a mom. It still amazes me but I get to see a small glimpse of that love through my kids. Those sticky finger prints on my car window that is like trying to remove super glue, reminds me that all I have to give are dirty hands. There is nothing I can offer God to amaze Him or win His approval. I need HIM. Not the other way around. I am a vessel, a tool for His use and His glory.

    We all want to think that He can use our talents and we really aren't THAT bad because we haven't ever.... But really, compared to perfection, we can never measure up. The things I know I shouldn't do, I do them. The things I desire in my heart and try to strive for, I don't do. Paul nailed it in Romans 7.
"For without me ye can do nothing." The little bit of "good" I may do is only contributed to the One that lives within me. Without Him....I cannot fathom where I would be, who I would be or even who I would be. The good thing is, I DON'T HAVE TO MEASURE UP. He loves me "as is". Dirty hands and all. I cannot earn His love or approval. He gives it freely.

    I am so glad that when I lift my hands in want of my heavenly Father, He doesn't look down at me in disapproval. He sees his baby girl in need of her dad. He sees an opportunity to hold me in His arms and help me get through a problem that I cannot get through without Him. He sees a chance to use my humanity to further His cause. When I lift my hands in praise, I do not impress Him. He sees dirty hands but He looks at them through eyes of love.