The Itsy Bitsy Spider

 "For God so loved the world that He gave His One and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16

Have you ever experienced "panic power cleaning" as you prepare for the arrival of company? Once, I had offered to host a Bible Study at our house that included a combination of dear friends and brand new acquaintances.  Feeling like I needed to have everything "perfect", and despite my better judgment that none of these people would really care, I spent hours dusting spindles, washing molding, wiping down light fixtures, etc. However, I did stop myself at scrubbing the bathtubs figuring I would be safe there!
 
When the big night finally arrived, the table was set, the food was prepared, everyone was in attendance, and the evening was going well, until midway through the leader's discussion, as I was intently listening to his lesson, something strange caught my eye! Crawling on the pale yellow wall behind where the leader was sitting was the largest, blackest, hairiest spider I had even seen! Instantly, I broke into a cold sweat as my heart began racing in panic, while a million thoughts raced through my head, "Do I ignore the man-eating spider crawling along my wall or do I draw attention to it and have everyone notice and judge my cleaning skills?" As I sat paralyzed with indecision, all of a sudden, the spider vanished off the wall! Now my head was spinning even faster as I wondered, "Was this a figment of my imagination or WHERE DID IT JUST GO?"
 
Nonchalantly, I decided to get up and let the dog outside so that I could quickly survey the situation. My eyes raced back and forth, as I tried to quickly do my best inconspicuous detective work as I frantically searched the area. However, my efforts were unsuccessful at locating my fury foe. Despite all of my industrious cleaning efforts, I realized things were not spotless, and apparently, there were still flaws.
 
As we begin the season of Lent, the same can be true in our own lives. Despite our best efforts and intentions, we have sins and flaws that we cannot handle or remove on our own. God knew we needed the ultimate "exterminator" who could take away our sins and remove them forever.  As a result of His great love for us, God sent His Son, Jesus, to be our Savior. Because of Jesus' death on the cross, our faith in Him removes our sins and provides us eternal life in Heaven.
 
This Lenten season, may God bless you with time each day to reflect and grow on how much Jesus loves you!
 
God is so good!
Mrs. Palka 

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