Car Wash | Fuel For The Weekend

God  told me to share my faith on Fridays and call it Fuel For The Weekend. I wanted to do it. I thought about it. I tried coming up with ideas on my own, but I just came up short, so I put the idea toward the back of my mind, but the Holy Spirit continued to nudge me in this direction. I am going for it and it's my desire that the posts I put up on Fridays will give you something to think about, ponder, consider, and reflect on throughout the weekend.

When I was growing up we washed our cars by hand in the yard with a bucket of soapy water and a garden hose. We took our time to shine it up and I remember my mom and dad waxing our vehicles. I still think there is no better way to make a car shine like hand washing.

Now car washes are everywhere it seems. The first time I drove through a car wash felt so strange and a little scary. My kids did not like the car wash. I would let them unbuckle from their booster seats and sit with me in the front as we talked about the strange sounds and pretty colors surrounding us. I taught my children that the car was taking a bath and that comforted them.

Today my 13 year old son and I went through the car wash. It was fascinating to see the colors and it was still kind of scary. This car wash is a little different than others I have been through and I was not sure I was doing the right thing. The attendant was helpful and pleasant, pointing to signs that fully explained each step of the process. It had been a long time since Ivory, as I like to call my Lexus SUV, had been given a good cleaning!

Javan and I swept the floorboards and removed any trash we saw. We got a lot of sand swept up from the last time we went to the beach. As we were moving around the vehicle, Javan noticed the front bumper was still dirty with dead bugs stuck to it. I looked at the back bumper and it had some stuck on debris as well. I did not feel like I got much of a cleaning for the value. So I went around again. The energetic young attendant came over and kindly informed me that he would set me up with another car wash but that it is common for bugs and things to stick on and that it would need a little scrubbing with a soft brush to get them all. He recommended I wash the car every day and since I have the car wash club membership I agreed. And that is when I knew what I would write for this blog post!

Sometimes our Christian journey is like going through the car wash. We want to line ourselves up just right with the Word of God. We want to read the instructions, aka the Bible, and make sure we do exactly what it says, and then we enter a place of cleansing. God starts working on our hearts, attitudes, and thoughts.

Psalm 51:2 "Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin."

This can be our prayer too. Lord wash me thoroughly from my sins and cleanse me from the wrong I have done. He will do it! 

Sometimes we find that we need to go back in the car wash. Maybe some of the stubborn pride or negative thinking refuses to lose its grip on our life. We can pray again. Do you know there's an example of this in the Bible?

Mark 8:22-25 (22)And He cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto Him, and besought Him to touch him. (23)And He took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when He had spit on his eyes, and put His hands upon him, He asked him if he saw ought. (24) And he looked up, and said, "I see men as trees, walking." (25)After that He put His hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.

Jesus is the great healer and if we rush through this story we can read that Jesus healed a blind man, but we are missing some key points if we do not slow down and examine this passage carefully.

Jesus was in Bethsaida and there was a blind man that was hoping Jesus would heal him. He was hoping that Jesus would help him regain sight. Jesus takes the blind man by the hand and leads him out of town. What is going through the man's mind? It might feel a little scary. Remember how I felt when I entered the car wash for the first time? It was something I wanted to do, something I hoped would give me a clean car in the end, but I had to experience something I never had before. This man is trusting Jesus. He might be wondering where Jesus is taking him. He might not recognize the path they are taking and it may feel like it's never going to happen. It doesn't say Jesus told him anything about where he was taking him. Jesus was removing him from the audience. He was taken away from the crowds of people waiting for a show, the big miracle of another blind man being healed by Jesus. Instead of allowing spectators to wait and see what would happen, Jesus got alone with the man who had faith. Faith always moves Jesus, never curious onlookers.

We are talking about Jesus, the very Son of God, who can heal anyone anywhere with a simple command. Jesus spits on the man's eyes. I don't know what the blind man thought about that. It would seem a strange way to heal someone. It might feel like it was an unkind thing to do. It might have caused the blind man to doubt Jesus was going to heal him, but the Bible does not say the man's faith was shaken.

Now the man feels the pressure of the Messiah's hands upon his eyes. He must have been so excited that his miracle had finally come. When Jesus asks the man if he can see anything, the man opened his eyes and maybe he blinked a time or two. He could see! He said he could see men as trees walking. That could have been it. Jesus could have left the man like that. He could see after all. But, Jesus wants us to see something important here. When we pray and an answer comes, if it is not exactly what we asked God for, we can pray again! We don't have to give up or settle for something that is not exactly what we wanted. 

Jesus did not fail the blind man. This was another example of how to seek answers from the Lord. Jesus put His hands on the man's eyes again and made the man look up and he was restored and saw every man clearly. When we cry out to God and we need a miracle, don't give up or settle for less. Ask again. God will do it! He made the man look up. Sometimes after we have been touched by Jesus again, we just need to lift up our eyes to Him. Look up! Your redemption draweth nigh!! Look up because the blessing is on the way! Don't keep your eyes closed tightly in fear and anxiety. Look up and and be restored!

This weekend, or whenever you happen to read this, be encouraged about the things God is doing in your life. If you are in a good place, but maybe not a great place, allow the healing hands of the Savior to touch you, lift up your eyes to the Lord and be restored! Great things are coming! I have seen the hand of God all over my life lately and especially this month! What a blessing it is to serve the risen King! He wants us to ask and then ask again if we need to. Do not let your faith be shaken. If He wants to lead you by the hand out of the way of nosy busybodies, let Him. Allow Him to isolate you if that is what it takes to get your miracle.

God has an awesome plan for your life. It is exciting and wonderful and colorful and productive. Do not get scared of the unknown. Don't be afraid to stand under the spigot and and get washed by the water again! Jesus is the Living Water and He will cleanse us from our sins and restore us. What big things are you asking God for? Do you have the faith to try again? Keep pressing on and you will find you will see things clearly, too.

God bless you!
~Bridgett Owens