It started as just another Tuesday morning – the morning I need to write this column for the newspaper. Another morning when I didn’t have a thought in my head. That seems to be more and more frequent with passing time. I’m older and live alone so there is no one to bounce ideas off of except Bebe and, though she hears me out, she doesn’t say, “Yeah, write that.”

I hadn’t spent time in my devotions yet, hadn’t prayed except to thank God for the new day, His mercies new this morning as He promised and for my breakfast.

I would go about my usual morning routine – brushing my teeth, taking my pills, making my bed and then reading my devotionals and placing myself in God’s very capable hands for another day.

As I reached for my toothbrush, I lamented that the last time I bought toothpaste I had inadvertently gotten the one with charcoal.

It is black! I don’t like black toothpaste!

Well, at least it provided me with a topic for my column. Thank you, God. It seemed pretty obvious this was to be the topic.

Black toothpaste! It works just like the kind that is white or blue. My teeth feel shiny and white when I’m finished. But I don’t like it! I even have to use another toothbrush to get the black out of the one I brushed with!

I’m always afraid I’ll have one of those sloppy mornings. You know! The kind where toothpaste falls off the brush into the formerly white lavatory. Or that I’ll be careless and end up with a black smear on my hand or face and fail to notice it. Or, heaven forbid, I’ll start off to my destination for the day and find a BLACK smear on my clothes.

Did I mention that I don’t like black toothpaste?

When I was shopping for toothpaste, I did notice the word “charcoal”. I knew I wouldn’t like it because in another shopping venture, I knowingly bought shampoo with charcoal. Didn’t like it. Gave it away. I was careful this time to pass over the charcoal one and select another. Yet, when I got home, I had charcoal toothpaste and had to use it because that is all I had. In my humble opinion, charcoal should be reserved for use in the grill!

I don’t like it in my toothpaste.

But it does remind me of a Bible verse – “Though your sins be as scarlet {black}, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson {black as coal], they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)

Yes. That’s how sparkling clean our lives become when we accept Jesus into our hearts and give Him full reign to cleanse us from our sin. He forgives our sin, cleanses our lives and makes us fit to spend eternity in heaven with Him.

Be sure you take care of that detail! Don’t delay.

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