The Truth of How Jesus Paints Our Life

“Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” – Psalm 51:7

Over the summer, my daughter’s bedroom got a mini-makeover.

We bought some new furniture and lighting. I painted the walls and built hooks out of reclaimed wood (yay DIY!). We also installed one of those super closet organizers that magically quadruples small spaces.

As we pulled out the old closet shelving and rod hangy-thingy, we found a section of wall that revealed every color it had ever been painted.

Pepto Bismol pink, canary yellow, hunter green, a brown, a blue, and a few other colors.

Layer upon layer of paint. Each one covering the one before, except for hidden places where its history was exposed.

I looked at the wall and thought of you and me.

I thought of how we “paint” – over and over again, who we are.

Always hoping for a new look.

A new us.

All pretty and acceptable.

Yet we never quite get it right. Each layer falls short to cover our pain, our past, our sins, our shame or insecurities enough. And somehow our history get exposed and life is lived less full.

We want a “life color” that says:

I’m good though I sometimes struggle to show it. And my faults aren’t so faulty I’m not useful, and my fears don’t really squish the life, out of the life, God has given me.

And we want a color that says our sin hasn’t tainted us too much for Heaven.

But sometimes the space between who we are, and who we want to be, is wider than we hoped.

And somedays, we aren’t satisfied with the long, slow process of becoming like Jesus.

So we grab our paintbrush and slap another coat of paint over our life.

Now, I think I’ll try busy yellow, or maybe happy pink, or yes, purpose-driven purple just might do the trick …

But God has done a marvelous thing with our paint – with us. He has washed us white.

Every corner, hidden or seen, has been washed white.

White in his righteousness. – Psalm 51:7

White in his forgiveness. – Isaiah 1:18

White in his purity. – Daniel 7:9

And white in his victory. – Revelation 19:11

Maybe it’s time to put down our paintbrushes and rest in the white-washed work of Jesus.

He came and washed us white, so we could live free as a clean, pure, new, victorious, redeemed, forgiven child of God.

It’s the only color we need to live life, and live it to the full. John 10:10

No Pepto Bismol pink or avocado green required.