The Wisdom of A Sponge

The Wisdom of a Spong

Hello, friends. I think my name is Scott and I am a kitchen sponge. A lot of my days are spent all dried up and in the back of a counter or a bucket in the dark. Fairly insignificant and destined for death someday. It is really easy for me to get down on myself; to feel alone and irrelevant. Sometimes I get so dried up and sour on the inside, I can’t imagine being useful or good for anything.

But when the light comes, I am reminded that I was created for a specific purpose. I soak up the living water of my master until it oozes out of my pores and I become alive and useful again. My master washes me clean and then uses me to cleanse others. He deposits just the right things IN ME at just the right time and then puts me on like a glove to help wash and sanitize others. Of course, I realize that the “stuff” that does the cleansing is not me, but it is in me. It is from my master and when I let it out, something quite magical begins to do its work. I sometimes forget that I am nothing without the light, the life and the living water of my master. But then I find myself in the dark and dried up and craving that life giving water from my master. . . . and when It comes, I become useful and filled with purpose again!

You know, I don’t even get why the master chooses to use me. I mean, I am totally insignificant and downright ugly without Him. And I can see a ton of other things he created that he could use instead of me. He does use these other things and some of those things I find that I can get really jealous of. I mean, have you seen that hot skinny sponge with the handle that fills with soap! How can I measure up to that? . . . sometimes I really don’t get it. You know; why the master would keep me around.

I must confess, I also have this . . . dark, stiff abrasive side to me. I am kind of embarrassed about that; I don’t even know why I am telling you this. . . . It is from my past. Something I don’t like to think about, but I have come to terms that it is not going to ever go away completely. I see other sponges that don’t have an abrasive side. They look so perfect. . . sometimes I feel like such a freak. . . But you know what; I know this is going to sound crazy, but there have been times when my master uses me specifically for my abrasive side. It is as if some deeply rooted crud in others only comes clean when I share that part of me with them. It is at times like that when I am almost thankful for that side of me. Almost like even my dark side has a purpose. . . Or perhaps it is just that my master knows how to use all things for good?

All I really know for sure is that there is a master, a designer, someone who created me as well as the others. I believe that we were all made for a specific purpose. . . the best thing I can do, is not to get caught up on what I can’t do or what others can do that I can’t – But to just flow in MY purpose and to tell others how to do the same. And to flow in purpose, we all need the living water of our master both IN us and flowing out of us! We can’t keep it to ourselves; I have tried that and sooner or later we become sour and stinky and unusable again. Nope, to flow in our purpose, we have got to use what the Master gives us.

Take it from me. Clearly, we were all designed to be so full that we are leaking the goodness of our master!