Too Hot to Handle!

As summer faded and the school year began, I asked my four children for some of their favorite dinners to set a menu for the first few weeks of school. Everyone comes home more tired and certainly much hungrier after a full day of learning. One of my sons requested a certain long-standing, family recipe from my Italian grandmother. It involves mild, Italian peppers, sausage, and cream. After everyone was off to school for the day, I happily hopped in the car and headed to the grocery store to collect the ingredients for this favorite dish.

Arriving at the store, I immediately found the peppers I needed, and they were on sale! A double win! With an after-school soccer game on the schedule, I started getting dinner prepped a little earlier that day so that it was ready in time for my hungry players. The windows were all open, worship music played, and I was in my glory. 

But, …things seemed to be moving ahead too smoothly. 

As I begin to cut and score the peppers the aroma that filled my kitchen was as I remembered in my grandmother’s. With a brush of my hand, I pushed a piece of hair out of my eye. My nostalgic afternoon quickly started to spiral downward.  I began to blink rapidly. I went to a mirror to look at my eye thinking I had had a hair stuck in it. Then I felt the burn. It started at my fingertips and worked its way to the webbing of my hands, and then my entire hand felt as if someone poured gasoline on it and set it on fire! I had to close the kitchen window, due to the shrill screams arising from my inner depths! I was in disbelief as I watched my hands turn bright red, and my eyesight was clouded from the pain. I begin to vigorously scrub my hands with soap and water. For the next several hours, I cried, screamed, and scrubbed my hands and face in a variety of measures. I used dish washing soap, laundry soap, oil, milk, lemon, baking soda, but nothing seemed to put out the flames.  Not even my tears. I tried to figure out what happened! An idea dawned on me to look at the grocery receipt I had thrown out. As I read the receipt through the many blinks of my eyes, I saw that I did not purchase Italian mild peppers. Instead, I had accidentally picked up Hungarian wax peppers! These imposter peppers have a median heat of 7,500 units on the Scoville Heat Scale! And are a part of the capsicum species of peppers!  

I had made a costly error!

Sin’s Downward Spiral

Now I didn’t sin selecting the wrong peppers, however, there is a lesson here to compare.  I made a costly error because I wasn’t paying full attention to the “signs” and I thought I knew better. We don’t always like to talk about sin, but the reality of it is, that we all sin every day.  Even as we learn to “be holy as He is holy,” (I Peter 1:16), we fail miserably and fall short (Romans 3:23).  The good news is, we serve a beautiful Savior and His death atoned us. Sin will either drive you to repentance or toward rebellion.  What sin shouldn’t do, is give you permission to stay in the same place. 

Sin will impair your vision

Just as those hot peppers were burning my eyes, sin left unattended to will impair your vision and cause you to have an altered focus.  An altered focus will cause you to make even more poor choices. Soon you find yourself in a place you never thought you would be, with people you know you shouldn’t be with, doing things you never expected to do. 

Eph 4:18 clearly highlights the effects of sin – “Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him.” One version states there is a blindness of heart.  Ask the Lord to open your eyes to any sin in your life. 

Don’t play with fire, or you are bound to be burned.

A dear friend of mine, who was like a brother to me, was struggling in his walk with the Lord. I was giving him a scolding and reminded him that Christianity did not mean to “ride the fence.” He turned to me, agreed, and with a smirk, said, “nope you’ll get boards up your butt and splinters in your rear!”  (NO splinters there please, gals. It's not very lady-like.)  We are to choose the narrow gate.  Few are those who find it, but the rewards are immeasurable.  The world takes the easy road, with wide lanes and attractive enticements.  But that way is always full of dead-ends.  God’s path is the best way.

“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” Psalm 16:11

And please, do not ride the fence!  We all have our hang-ups, but that should draw us back to the Lord’s grace and keep us ever more thankful for His presence in our lives. 

Drop what’s in your hand

Now I was the one who too quickly chose my produce without reading the signs. Hear this: The counterfeits of this world will leave you thinking that you have something in your hand that is right, righteous, or good. But do not be deceived! It is too hot to handle!  Drop it, drop to your knees, and stay close to the heart of the Father! When tempted by the counterfeits, He will provide a way out.

“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” I Corinthians 10:13.

As I desperately tried to clean off the “heat” of my mistake, I found nothing to soothe it.  But, Jesus carries a balm of healing for the places that sin has wreaked havoc in your life. Turn to Him and let Him wash away every stain, burn, ouch and pain. 

Praying for you today.  There is freedom in Him. 

Charisse