You blind guides, who strain out a gnat, and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and unrighteousness. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the platter, that its outside may become clean also. Matthew 23:24 WEB

As the chubby preacher sprinted for the elevator with the offering basket, we thought nothing of it and began to pack up our music equipment for the night. We thought he would probably settle up with us later. We had been brought into a conference as the praise and worship team for a visiting speaker. I was excited to see him, but then He spoke for about forty minutes on giving, told everyone that he had to pay this praise band, pointed back at us, and then told everyone: 'Whatever you were going to give, just double it. There are a lot of expenses to cover here.'

All of us in the band were surprised because we did not usually get paid, though I knew that one of the singers was about to lose his house, and he could sure use the money. It would have been a blessing, but instead it was a hoax, and once the preacher made it to the elevator, he never mentioned the money again. It was really hard for us to get past that. We felt used, soiled. He had used us to double his own offering.

Jesus really emphasized what was going on inside of you. People can wear the right clothes, say the right things, and have the right position, but their inside can be full of all types of hidden sin. Like 'whitewashed tombs" (Matthew 23:27), beautiful on the outside, but the inside is full of dead bones.

God wants to clean the inside of you first, and the outside will become beautiful naturally. There are things in my life that He is still cleaning. It is an ongoing process, and a beautiful person can still make themselves ugly. Also once clean does not mean forever clean. If you get weak and yield to it again, it can come back. 'The dog turns to his own vomit again, and the sow that has washed to wallowing in the mire' (2 Peter 2:22).

Let God point these things out to you and deal with them as He brings them to the surface. We each have our struggles in this life, but He is faithful to deliver us from them all when we work with Him. The way to swallow a camel is to nit pick over the smallest religious detail in others, and ignore the glaring billboard that God is flashing before you.

Prayer: Heavenly Father I thank You for waking me up today. Please cleanse me from the inside out. Remove the things from my life that need to go and fill me with Your presence. Help me see the world through Your eyes, in the name of Jesus Christ I pray.

Note: For those interested in capturing or viewing photos of God's creation, here is this week's theme message from Creation Photographers: Proverbs 17:17 - "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity." A person is truly blessed to have even one person who loves us unconditionally, and stands with us during times when we are not able to benefit them. I pray that God brings you many! This week's theme is "Friendship", and as always, feel free to interpret that freely, and post whatever else may inspire you, too! Here is the link to participate in this group: Creation Photographers group

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