Today is Erev Yom Kippur. It is the evening of the Day of Atonement, when all Israel would gather before the Sanctuary in great anticipation while the high priest went behind the veil into the Holy of Holies to offer the blood of the sacrifice before the Mercy Seat of God between the cherubim on the Ark of the Covenant. It was a day of reckoning, of asking for forgiveness of sins, of cleansing hearts and minds, of making a new start with the LORD God. The people were called to fast and pray and afflict their souls and refrain from all work for a day of solemn rest before the Lord. (Leviticus 23:26-32) Today is a good day to bare our souls before God and get our unpleasant sins dealt with.
There is a curious verse in Deuteronomy 23:12-13 that refers to proper disposal of waste,
“Also you shall have a place outside the camp, where you may go out; and you shall have an implement among your equipment, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and turn and cover your refuse.”
Have you ever walked through a garden (or even a sidewalk) and stepped in a pile of dog poo? How disgusting! You’ve heard the old saying, “cleanliness is next to godliness.” Well, there’s a lot of truth to that. But there is application here also for spiritual, moral and mental conditions as well (please bear with me). And why should it matter if we clean up after ourselves or not?
“For the LORD your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and give your enemies over to you; therefore your camp shall be holy, that He may see no unclean thing among you, and turn away from you.” (Deuteronomy 23:14)
We all should do an inventory for refuse in our hearts, minds, and homes. These are any little things in your life that do not glorify God, things that He would find repulsive.
Have you set some evil thing before your eyes (movies, games/jokes, images, music) that is not pleasing to God? Do you allow your mind to be plagued by worries or thoughts that are not from God? Is there something in your house that you would be embarrassed for the Lord to see if He came to visit? Do you have a bad habit that you try to keep hidden?
God doesn’t want to step in our poo when He walks in our camp any more than we would want to step in a pile of dog poo. We ALL have little somethings that need to be dealt with properly in order for God to be welcome in our camp and to give us victory over the big enemies of our soul. So, I encourage you to do a little personal housecleaning today. Dig down within and turn those little irritating sins over to the Lord and get them covered by the blood of Yeshua. Only then can the Lord be free to walk in your camp and deliver you from your enemies without having to watch where He steps.
There is no better time like the present to make things right with the Lord. As we enter this holiest of holidays, I pray that you will find the joy of being atoned–being made “at one” again with God. Don’t be afraid or ashamed to confess these secret sins to the Lord. God loves you and wants only His best for you. He walks with you all through life’s journey, but He also desires for you to be perfect, just as He is perfect.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me…Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.” (Psalm 51:10,12)