Last night Amber put Titus to bed. Every night we read his Bible and then say the same exact blessing over him. Last night was the story of Jesus washing the disciple's feet. Here is the conversation that ensued:
Titus: You know what mom? Sometimes I am dirty inside.
Amber: Oh Yeah?
Titus: But sometimes I am clean on the inside.
Amber: Oh Yeah? How do you get clean?
Titus: (In a matter of fact tone) Jesus cleans me!
Amber: How do you know Jesus cleans you?
Titus: (in an even MORE matter of fact way) The Bible, Mom!
What a profound statement. He understands that he is "dirty", but also does not despair in his "dirtiness". He has not despaired to the point of depression because of his dirtiness.
Side note, I know some of you may be thinking, "What can a 4 year old really understand? Does he actually know he is dirty?" I would say that I do believe he can understand. He may not fully understand, but he can get it.
I have been reading Spiritual Depression by Martyn Lloyd-Jones (it is a must read). He makes a statement that has blown me away. Lloyd-Jones said that one of the reasons people become spiritually depressed is because they define themselves by their past. He said this must be dealt with very firmly and goes on to say, "He is the Judge and you have no right to waste His time or your own time and energy condemning yourself."
What a powerful statement! What a guard against making much of yourself (condemning yourself is a prideful sin). Yet, this provision allows us to see that He tells us to not meditate on our past (in a condemning way) because He has redeemed our life!
Titus taught me this in his statements to Amber because he recognized his need for a Savior, but this need did not lead to despondency (in a bad way). He also recognized his need for the Word in order to know about Jesus. Jesus does tell him that he is dirty inside, but it does not end in that desperation. Jesus tells him so that he can know "the clean way".
Thoughts?
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2 comments:
This was incredibly encouraging to me today! Thanks Vernon!
I think I stumbled upon your blog from Amber's. I never thought about how I could be "wasting" God's time on condemning myself. That really hit the nail on the head today.
And Titus is going to cherish all this someday to know that his mom and dad learned so much from him when he was little. It will be a written memory of what it is like to have "faith like a child".
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