Ah Purity

By Willa Johnson

A few years ago when I volunteered as a reader for the SMART program, one of my students was an adorable Hispanic boy in first grade. Although I wanted to give him a “grandma” hug (because he was so cute) we were told not to touch the children in any way. Each child was allowed to choose a couple of books to read and one day he said, “How about a Spanish book?” I replied, “I don’t know. It’s been a long time since I’ve read any Spanish.” But he insisted, “Well, you can try.” So, he chose a book, we found our reading spot and I proceeded to read the first line. That’s as far as I got because he took the book and said, “You’re right. You can’t read Spanish.” I have laughed about that ever since. The pure honesty of a child is so endearing.

It’s been said that a child under eight and an adult over 80 can say just about anything and you know they are speaking the truth. The child speaks from innocence; the adult from experience. Kind adults will taper their comments with some diplomacy, maybe, but not the child.

The same can be said about children being loving. They have an inborn trust which can be dangerous. No wonder Christ admonished his disciples to “suffer not the little children” to come to him. He wants everyone to come to him with the innocence of a child-like nature.

A new perspective about purity occurred to me as I read a devotional about Elisha. He was surrounded by enemies which were seen by those with him. But, Elisha also saw the Lord’s army. He had “spiritual vision.” Myopia is an eye problem wherein we do not see clearly. In the devotional the writer related our ‘spiritual myopia’ as a deficiency in many Christian’s lives. We concentrate on worldly matters and get bogged down with worry and frustration. If we would concentrate on God’s promises, we could see clearly and believe that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose.

Remember the silversmith who was asked how he could tell when his product was just right? He answered, “When I can see myself in it I know it’s pure.” When others can see God in us, we are being purified by Christ. We won’t reach that final stage of purification until we see Him face to face in heaven but we must continue to strive for perfection.

Willa Johnson writes from Phoenix, Oregon. wjhat@ccountry.com