Read: Psalms 26:2-3; 139:23-24

Eden’s sweater crackled as she pulled it on over her head. She smoothed down her hair and hurried downstairs for breakfast. “What’s so funny?” she asked her brother as she took her seat at the table.

“There’s a sock stuck to your back!” said Jonathan.

“Oops!” said Mom as she removed the sock from Eden’s sweater. “That’s caused by static electricity. It makes things stick to each other.”

“Well, I’m glad Jonathan noticed it,” Eden said. “It would have been embarrassing to go to school with a sock on my back!”

After breakfast, Mom picked up her phone. “Let’s read a few Bible verses before you go to school,” she said. “And let’s make sure there isn’t any sin clinging to our lives—kind of like that sock stuck to Eden’s back.”

“I don’t have any sin stuck in my life,” Eden said.

“What about calling me names when you get mad at me?” asked Jonathan. “You do that a lot.”

Eden scowled. “Well, I get mad at you because you take my stuff without asking, even though I’ve told you not to!”

Mom sighed. “It’s just like that sock again.”

Both Eden and Jonathan gave her a puzzled look. “What do you mean?” asked Eden.

“You couldn’t see the sock stuck to your back, but Jonathan could see it plainly. It took someone other than you to see it. Sin can be like that—plain to see, but we don’t always see it in our own lives. Someone else often does—just like you two did just now.”

“You mean because we both pointed out what the other one did wrong?” asked Jonathan.

“Exactly. We don’t always realize when we’ve done something hurtful, which is why we need to listen when others point out sin in our lives. We also need to read the Bible and ask God to show us any sin in our hearts. Then we need to confess it to Jesus, knowing that through Him we’re forgiven and can overcome any sin.” Mom smiled. “After all, we don’t want sin we can’t see clinging to us, do we?”

Eden shook her head. “That would be even worse than walking around with a sock on your back!”

–Nance E. Keyes

How about you? Do you regularly ask God to examine your heart and reveal any sin in your life? Sometimes He does this by having other people point out sins you’re not able to see. So listen carefully when others point out sin they see clinging to you. Pray and read the Bible to see if what they say is true, and ask God if there are any other static sins in your life. Then confess them to Jesus—and tell anyone else you’ve hurt you’re sorry too.

Today's Key Verse: Search me, O God…and see if there is any wicked way in me. Psalm 139:23-24 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Don’t allow sin to cling