When was the last time you woke up with this incredibly exciting thought: "Yea!  Today I get to wash  _______(the dog, the gutters, my hair, 8 loads of laundry)!"

We wash windows, bodies, and driveways.  We yearly wash places that nobody will ever see, like the shelves in linen closets (something called "spring cleaning", I think) or the insides of outdoor garbage cans.  We're big on lots of suds and that fresh mountian-air smell.

And, though washing is important in our culture, we usually view it as a necessary evil, (unless your age is in the single-digits and you're sudsing up your bike, dolls, or play dishes).  How often do people eat or help in the kitchen without dousing their digits in detergent?  How often do workplace sinks sit full of coffee cups and lunch dishes, while small signs like "Your mother doesn't work here!" swing--ignored--above them?  What would our response be to someone dropping by our house in their dusty sandals?   Would we dutifully drag out our towel and washbasin, or shout a more likely "Get those sandals out of here and wipe your feet on the grass!"

Yet the Lord washed us-- every bit of the grime and stench of our sin-- when He died on the cross (Titus 3:5).  And, knowing that we would battle with our filthy sin nature until we stand sanctified before Him in heaven, He continues to daily wash us at our request (Ps. 51:2).  A simple, mundane earthly act-- washing-- becomes the most important moment in our spiritual lives.

So, the next time you stand before a sink of dishes, a small grubby face, or a stained carpet, let it act as a sticky-note to thank the Lord for washing you.