I am an admitted OCD germaphobe.
Blame my years as a transplant & hospice RN.
Monk and I would do well together.
This moment there are 10 people staying in my home.
10 people!...plus 2 dogs.
3 of those people are well over age 65.
Teeth in jars & excess flatulence abounds.
1 guest is a male college intern.
That could be a blog post in itself.
When I look at these people I see falling skin cells & Ecoli hosts.
Yes, sadly, I really do think that way...and worse.
Imagine the trauma I put myself through!
Thankfully there is a germ-free Heaven....
I have needed to remind myself that all of this 'stuff' is but for a moment.
The smells will leave.
The marks will be cleaned.
The licked fingers & spoons will no longer reside here.
But what will always be are the souls of those I have been entrusted to guide.
Clean toilets and doorknobs will not get my children into Heaven.
A floor free of dog hair and Wal-Mart germs will not draw my children to Christ.
Sweet aromatic air will not help my children breathe in the breath of God.
My children are watching my responses,
witnessing my dispensation of grace,
& forming life-altering opinions of what truly matters.
I must set aside my focus on dying germs & obsess over eternal souls.
Christ deeply loves all 10 of these people under this roof.
To Him, they were worth dying for.
So, I will take up my cleaner,
carry my paper towels,
and show my children that through Christ all things are possible...
Including responding to a summer of guests with grace & love & acceptance of their germs.
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