with visions of
sugar plums, Chia Pets®, rosy-snouted reindeer, and those
ever-popular commercials for The Clapper®--that favorite
Christmas gift perfect for everyone in the family! What a cleverly
wonderful little gadget. Plug it in and then clap your hands all ye people
and shout with a voice of triumph when your stuff goes on and off from way
across the room.
The Clapper turns things on
and off. The Apostle Paul exhorts us to put things off and put things on.
In Ephesians 4:22-24, he says "to put off your old self…and to put on the
new self." Or, un-deck yourself of the old and don ye now your new
apparel.
But unlike with The Clapper,
what Paul says to put off is supposed to stay off. What is put on is
totally different and to be kept on. Often, though, we allow circumstances
to clap us on or clap us off spiritually!
Life is good…clap on…shout
"Glory!" Life hurts…clap off…woe is us, take us back to Egypt!
Wouldn’t it be better to be
like the amazing Ginsu Knife! It cuts nails, saws lumber, and still slices
tomatoes--tough, yet gentle. It has a lifetime warranty--an eternal
benefit. But wait, there’s more! It comes with several handy
gadgets--equipped to deal with a wide variety of circumstances. No matter
what it comes up against, the Ginsu can always cut it.
As we move into yet another
new year, may we clap off the old, clap on the new, grow in the Spirit
like well-watered Chia Pets, and live on the cutting edge of God’s amazing
promises. Don’t delay! Act now! And have a wonderful year.
