From the Pulpit: 'What tangle of hair is keeping you stuck'?

I have this drain in my house. I imagine you have one, too. It’s often slow. Sometimes a quick pour of drain cleaner will solve the problem. But it’s always a temporary fix, isn’t it? 

A few days ago, I had gotten home from work late and everyone in my household was already asleep. I found myself at that drain again, watching as it ever so slowly let the water through. In my stubborn exhaustion, I decided to do something about it, once and for all. 

I took apart the drain and along with it came all the grossness you can imagine. I dug in, slowly but surely pulling weeks and months (years?!) of yuck out. I shudder at the memory. 

But then you know what happened? I replaced the drain, turned on the water, and it went right down that nice clean drain. It was not a pretty job, my friends, but having faced what was blocking the flow and dealing with it, now everything worked well as it should. 

“Wash me through and through from my wickedness”, David, the psalmist, writes after being confronted with one of the worst strings of sinfulness of any Biblical character. “Cleanse me from my sin,” he prays. 

The prophet Nathan confronts King David with his sin. If we look back through his story, it includes a whole range from lies, adultery, and murder, just to name a few. David owns this behavior and begins the process of restoring his relationship with God. 

Psalm 51 gives words to the gunk we harbor in the drains of our lives. These words are so true to our experience as humans. And yet, there is promise in the cleaning action of God in our lives. God promises to clean out all that keeps us captive and restore the joy in our lives. God cleans out our mistakes and brings healing to the hurt and brokenness that holds us. 

This week, I’m wondering: What tangle of hair is keeping you stuck? What in your life needs to be removed for you to feel joy? What must you let go of, letting it get washed away? Whatever it is, know that God loves you and promises to restore joy in you. No matter what.