Toys in the Tub - Martin Wiles

Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. 2 Samuel 11:2 NLT

Baths may clean us up, but sometimes toys in the tub get us into trouble.

Resting outside the bathtub in our spare bathroom is a plastic container with numerous bath toys: a rubber duck, a sailing boat, several balls, a bar of Ivory soap, and cars. The normal toys kids play with when they bathe. 

And when they were young, all our grandboys loved to play with them when they bathed. They loved the bubbles MeMe put in the tub. They hid the toys under the bubbles, then held them in the air and watched as the water squirted out, hollering and laughing. Occasionally, they splashed water on the floor, which drew a sharp rebuke from MeMe. 

King David also knew a little about bathing and getting into trouble. He wasn’t the one bathing. Bathsheba was, but he was the one who looked when he shouldn’t have. The play on words is interesting: Bathsheba bathing. Some suggest she bathed here on purpose because she knew the king’s practice of walking on his roof. Whether or not she intentionally provided the temptation, David fell into the traps of lust, adultery, lying, and murder. One year—and several consequences—passed before he finally confessed.

Our world is filled with play toys—not that we bathe with but that we encounter daily. Technological gadgets, possessions of all sorts, hobbies—and the things we need to enjoy them—sporting activities—and the money we can spend watching them—movies, video games. The list of play toys available to those who live in developed countries is endless. 

Some of the play toys are sinful—and others have the potential to be. Bathsheba’s bathing wasn’t a sin, but if she did it hoping the king would do what he did, then it became sinful. David’s accidental glance wasn’t a sin, but when he lusted and acted, it became one. Satan is a master at wrapping innocent things in sinful paper. 

Only God can give us the wisdom to play with the right toys and to keep them in the proper perspective. We can’t trust our own judgment. It’s skewed by our sinful nature and our propensity to gratify our selfish desires. 

God may not ask you to throw your toys away. He may simply want you to see them with different eyes or use them more productively. 

Father, guide me in using my toys so they won’t grab my attention away from you and more important things. 

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Take a Daily Bath - Martin Wiles

A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet to be entirely clean. And you are clean. John 13:10 NLT

As I sat at my computer writing in the early morning hours, my wife hollered, “Come quickly.”

Although we lived in the city, a few months ago, an opossum came waddling between the privacy fence surrounding our backyard and made himself at home rummaging around in our yard. He was petite. I saw him again a few weeks later, trekking atop our privacy fence. He was much larger then.

On this particular morning, my wife discovered his hideout. A small patch of brush and trees separates our subdivision from the one behind us. One of the larger trees had a hollow, and he had made it his home. He sat upon a strong limb in the early morning light and bathed himself, much like a raccoon or cat.

On one occasion, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet to teach them about serving. When he came to Peter, Peter refused. He thought it was beneath the Messiah to perform such a menial task. Jesus explained that though Peter didn’t need to wash all over, his feet still needed washing. After all, people in this period walked the dusty roads barefoot or in sandals.

With rare exceptions, I, like the opossum, take daily baths. I feel cleaner when I do even if I’ve done nothing that day to get dirty. Oils build up on my skin. I may have eaten at a restaurant with sizzling smells or been junking in thrift stores.

Jesus, however, talked about a spiritual bath. The disciples had bathed when they trusted him as who he claimed to be—God’s Son. Once this is done, all our sins are washed away—past, present, and future. I don’t need a whole-body bath again, but I do need daily cleansing. My feet get dirty from walking through the world. The opossum didn’t jump in the lake; he just licked parts of his body.

My daily baths consist of confession for sins of omission and commission. I also apologize for missing opportunities the Savior has sent because I was too busy, selfish, or consumed by my own world. This daily bath keeps me on good terms with Christ and helps me hear him clearly when he calls.

Don’t neglect your daily bath.

Father, move me to daily confession so I can hear you clearly when you call me to ministry opportunities. 

Tweetable: Are you taking a daily bath? 

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No Bath Needed - Martin Wiles

He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. Titus 3:5 NLT

Something about the male gender balks at bathing.

Although Mom considered me a “nice-nasty” child—I hated getting dirt or anything sticky on my hands, and I hated the beach because of the sand between my toes—taking a bath nightly wasn’t high on my list of things to do. Somehow, I just didn’t see the need.

As a teenager, that changed, especially when I got a girlfriend. Sometimes, I’d take two baths and listen to Mom fuss as much about that as she had to get me to take one when I was younger.

The longest I ever went without bathing was when my daughter and I hiked a long portion of the Foothills Trail of South Carolina. The closest we came to taking a bath was washing off in the rivers we camped by. This, however, didn’t do an adequate job of washing away the sweat that had accumulated during the day’s walk. Neither did it take away the smell, so we covered it with powder and lotion. I longed to bathe, but couldn’t.

When we finally made it home, I jumped into the shower and stayed there for twice as long as normal, washing away five days of filth and enjoying the warm water coursing over my body. What I once didn’t want, I now adored.

Even now, I’ll sometimes skip a day taking a bath, especially if I haven’t done anything. My wife once didn’t understand my philosophy, but eventually, she got on board with my way of thinking. Bathing takes time I would rather spend doing something else.

Along with what Paul tells Titus, Jesus once said, “A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet, to be entirely clean” (John 13:10). Jesus, when trusted as our Savior and asked to forgive us of our sins, washes us entirely in His righteousness. From then on, we are clothed in what only He can give us, and the heavenly Father sees us this way. He can now accept us into His family.

Although we have to want this bath, it’s a bath that’s only required once. No re-do’s necessary. Nor does it require effort on our part—other than believing. Christ does the washing; we merely enjoy. He won’t do it against our will—as my mom did—but He’ll gladly do it when we ask.

Do you need the one bath of forgiveness that lasts forever?

Prayer: Father, bathe us in Your forgiveness so that we might be eternally clean.

Tweetable: Have you taken the last bath you'll ever need? 

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Toys in the Tub - Martin Wiles

Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. 2 Samuel 11:2 NLT

Baths may clean you up, but sometimes they get you into trouble.

Resting outside the bathtub in our spare bathroom is a plastic container with numerous bath toys: a rubber duck, a sailing boat, several balls, a bar of Ivory soap. The normal toys kids play with when they bathe. And our grandboys love to play with them when they take a bath. They love the bubbles MeMe puts in the tub. They hide the toys under the bubbles, and then hold them in the air and watch as the water squirts out, while laughing and hollering. Occasionally they splash the water on the floor, which brings a sharp rebuke from MeMe.

King David knew a little about bathing and getting into trouble. He wasn’t the one bathing—Bathsheba was, but he was the one who looked when he shouldn’t have. The play on words is interesting: Bathsheba bathing. Some suggest she bathed here on purpose because she knew the king’s practice of walking on his roof. Whether or not she intentionally provided the temptation, David fell into the traps of lust, adultery, murder, and lying. One year—and a number of consequences, passed before he finally confessed.

My world is filled with play toys—not that I bathe with but that I encounter daily. Technological gadgets, possessions of all sorts, hobbies—and the things I need to enjoy them, sporting activities—and the money I can spend watching them, movies, video games. The list of play toys available to those who live in developed countries is endless.

Some of the play toys are sinful—and others have the potential to be. Bathsheba’s bathing wasn’t a sin, but if she did it hoping the king would do what he did, then it became sinful. David’s accidental glance wasn’t a sin, but when he lusted and acted it became one. Satan is a master at wrapping innocent things in sinful paper.

Only God can give me the wisdom to play with the right toys and to keep them in the proper perspective. I can’t trust my own judgment. It’s skewed by my sinful nature and my propensity to gratify my selfish desires.

God may not ask you to throw your toys away; He may simply want you to see them with different eyes or use them in a more productive way.

Prayer: Father, guide us in the use of our toys so they won’t grab our attention from You and more important things. 

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Throwback Tuesday - Martin Wiles

Lessons on Bathing

Clean. People define it differently and engage in various activities to achieve it.

Before running water and electricity, once a week baths with sponging off in between constituted clean. Even after these inventions, my grandparents didn’t bathe every day but still considered themselves clean. For others, clean involves showering or bathing daily.

Beyond bathing is our obsession with hand washing and hand sanitizer. Although some germs are actually beneficial, we wash them away with our compulsion. Wipes are carried to sponge them away, and hand sanitizer bottles are toted like Kleenex. Too much of a good thing can actually be bad. Read more...

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Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.