Purity Pills
GOD WANTS US TO BE PURE BECAUSE HE KNOWS THAT IMPURITY CAN CAUSE SUFFERING.
Bible Reading of the Day: Read 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7.
Verse of the Day: “God has called us to be holy, not to live impure lives” (1 Thessalonians 4:7).
Lisa groaned as she pulled her backpack off her shoulders. She had just begun a three-day backpacking trip with her father. The first three miles of the trip had taken them over two hours on foot. In the first hour, she had emptied her water bottle, which had been full when they began.
She pulled the bottle out of its pocket in her backpack and trudged through the green growth toward the stream that ran alongside the path. She dipped the plastic bottle into the current and pulled it out nearly full, dripping with cool, clear water. She lifted the bottle to her mouth.
“Wait,” her dad said before she took a drink. Dad held out his hand. “Dissolve these in the water before you drink it.” He dropped two green pills into her palm.
“What’s this?” she asked.
“Those will purify the water,” Dad explained.
“What for?”
Dad pointed to the stream. “I know that water looks as clean as could be,” he said, “but unfortunately there are germs and impurities in there that could make you very sick. Those pills will make the water safe to drink.”
He sat on the bank of the stream and filled his own water bottle. Then he dropped two pellets into his bottle and began shaking it. Lisa did the same, then flashed a smile.
“Thanks, Dad,” she said.
“You’re welcome,” he answered. “I’d hate to see you get sick. You can really suffer if you drink bad water.”
They sat together for a few moments, resting and drinking. Then Dad said, “Come to think of it, Lisa, that’s why God wants us to be pure in what we do, in what we say, and in the things we think about. Because he knows that impurities can cause suffering.”
She looked at him with a look of curiosity.
“Impure water can make you sick here,” he said, patting his stomach. “Impure thoughts or deeds or words can make you sick here.” He placed his hand on his chest. “In your heart and in your soul.”
Lisa leaned over to refill her water bottle from the stream. “I need some more of those ‘purity pills,’ Dad.”
Dad laughed and reached in his pocket.
TO DO: If you have an empty medicine bottle, you could fill it with “purity pills.” Write the “Verse of the Day” on several small slips of paper. Roll up each slip and place it in the bottle. “Prescribe” one of the slips for each family member.
TO PRAY: “Lord, we believe that impure thoughts, words, and deeds can make our hearts sick. Help us to take a daily dose of your Word as our ‘purity pills’”