Don’t you just love to read the skin-care ads at this time of year?  They make me believe that, with a little moisturizer, even the Wicked Queen could have become Snow White in just a few days (actually, that woman had major problems—don’t think even Vaseline Intensive Scare would have done it for her).

But this time of year, when I can actually file my nails with the back of my hand, I’m always open to suggestions.  One ad read, “Avoid putting your hands in water during winter months to keep them protected.”  Sure.  O.K.  No problem.

At first I thought, who wrote this… a guy?  Then I figured it was a mom who just really needed a break.

“Sweetie, you’ll have to rinse out your own diaper in the toilet.  Mommy can’t put her hands in water during winter months.”

“Honey, will you wash my hair for me?  It’s still winter—can’t put my hands in water. 

“I can’t wash these dishes during the winter months, and since no one else wants to do them….wow—looks like we’ll just have to get a dishwasher.”

Now, I am being a little hard on the article.  It did suggest things like applying moisturizer and wearing a pair of silicone-lined gloves.  Yes, I have tried all those things (and you thought you were home free with the work part).

Fortunately, the Lord is not concerned about our ability to stick our hand in a pair of pantyhose without running them.  He does, however, look for holiness in our lives, “…clean hands (our right actions) and a pure heart (our right attitude and will)…” Psalm 24:4.  We are often more concerned with the finished product of our actions—the project we’re completing, the program we’re organizing, the meal we’re making—rather than the little actions leading up to the finished product.  As we work, have we used our hands to push people out of the way, or to steal time from something or someone that was more important (but didn’t seem so at the time)?  When we hold up our project and say “Here it is, Lord—I’m finished.”, do you think that the Lord might be looking past it… to our hands?

Hand over your hands to the Lord.  And remember, take off those gloves before you use the oven.