Soft Water
By Lisa Boyer
“I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.”
Isaiah 44:22
“Eewww, do you have soft water?” my sister asked when visiting my house recently. I had to laugh at her question because years before she was the one with soft water and I was the one saying “eewww”!
I hated soft water. It used to take me forever just to wash my hands! I would stand there with my hands under running water waiting for them to feel clean… but it didn’t work. They didn’t feel clean; they felt… well, slimy. Eventually I came to accept that even though my hands didn’t feel clean, they were, in fact, clean.
Sadly, there have been times in my life when God’s forgiveness has seemed like soft water: I would come to Him and ask for forgiveness, but I wouldn’t feel forgiven. As a result, I would ask over and over again, waiting to feel forgiven. But God’s forgiveness is nothing like soft water. Even when I don’t feel forgiven, the fact is, I am forgiven. God’s forgiveness is sure and final… “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgression from us” (Psalm 103:12).
So, why do I get that soft water feeling when it comes to forgiveness?
One day, when I had made a “bad choice” (yes, I had sinned), I found myself struggling once again with not feeling forgiven. I quickly began reminding myself that I am forgiven, but the only feeling I had was guilt. I had chosen to sin and I clearly didn’t deserve forgiveness.
In that moment, I realized something that has changed my life… I had been completely overlooking the role of grace in forgiveness! Ephesians 1:7 says, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace.” I had been focusing on the fact that I didn’t deserve forgiveness and I had failed to see that it was about God’s amazing grace… I couldn’t earn it, didn’t deserve it, and yet found myself completely overwhelmed by it. And I felt forgiven.
Not only is the feeling of soft water forgiveness gone, being mindful of God’s amazing grace has given me a deeper desire to say “no” when faced with a choice to sin… another demonstration of the amazing grace of God!
GOING DEEPER:
1. Are you struggling to feel completely forgiven by God? Will you allow yourself to be overwhelmed by God’s grace?
FURTHER READING:
Ephesians 2:4-8; Acts 15:11; I Timothy 1:15-17
Lisa has been married to Ted for 19 years and they have two teenage sons. She is a leader for a Junior High girls’ small group at Oakwood Church.
