Everybody gets dirty.
The best directions are on the shampoo bottle.
Lather. Rinse Repeat.
The king also desecrated the high places that were east of Jerusalem on the south of the Hill of Corruption—the ones Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the vile god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the people of Ammon. 2 Kings 23:13
Solomon built God’s house.
Solomon, tempted by his foreign wives, also built pagan shrines.
Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses. 2 Kings 23:25
I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy. I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way. Psalm 142:1-3
With God’s help Josiah cleaned up the mess.
“Even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Joel 2:12-13
And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the LORD has said, even among the survivors whom the LORD calls. Joel 2:32
Salvation is a gift.
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. Hebrews 5:14
Spiritual maturity takes effort. Without it, we too can make a mess.
Everybody goes astray.
The best instructions are in the Bible.
Read. Understand. Apply. Repeat.
Putting right what goes awry is hard, but God has given us everything we need to help us. When He writes the screen play, no matter what happens in the scenes before, the ending will be a blessed one for those whose names are engraved on the nail scarred hands of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
yicareggie
from the archives, November 10, 2010
Sixty-six books in a year 
Thank you God that through Jesus we can draw near to you