​Galatians 6:1 “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.”
 
I hope no one reading this experiences a gag reflex through stories because I am writing about something that some might consider disgusting. Vile. Putrid. You get the picture. 
 
I’m going to talk about poop. We all know where poop comes from. My two-year-old knows where poop comes from. He tried to explain to me why he shouldn’t finish the food on his plate. “If I eat it, it will go into my stomach and out into my diaper.” I commend him on his understanding of biology and anatomy. He still had to finish what was on his plate.  
 
Unfortunately, he probably shouldn’t have finished it because he got sick. Really sick. In both directions. 
 
And, guess who had to clean up the diapers. Yours truly. I can still smell the odor. Talk about gag reflex.
 
That poor boy. I would go into diaper rash issues and blowouts, but I will spare you the details. 
 
As I clean up excrement with clothespins on my nose, I think about our lives. Our lives are filled with filth greater than these bulging stink bombs, which eat up our lives faster than acidic dung on a baby’s bottom.
 
We all need our spiritual diapers changed. We need people to come up to us and say: “You stink. For the sake of your life and those around you, let’s change your diaper.” 
 
Those conversations are not pleasant. They might hurt. But once we clean the filth out of our lives, we feel so much better. 
 
Jesus did this for us when he died on the cross, taking care of our sins for eternity. We get to do this for each other, cleaning up our sins temporarily. 
 
Some spiritual diapers are quick to clean up. Some take a long time and need some diaper cream. Sometimes the diapers need to be cleaned multiple times because the sin is so entranced in our lives. Sometimes the sin is so huge, and we do not want to help change the diaper because it is disgusting.
 
But, out of love for each other, looking to Jesus’ example, let’s grab the clothespins and diaper cream and get to work. 

​Matthew 25:40: “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”
 
I know that we are still in October. We have not celebrated Halloween. No one wants to think about Thanksgiving, much less Christmas.
 
So, I need to apologize: I will be breaking the holiday barrier.
 
We in America have so much for which to be thankful. As residents of Nebraska and Neligh, life is pretty good. So, I know that very few of you are thinking towards Thanksgiving. But, let me encourage you to start. We very easily focus on all the things which are going wrong in our lives. If we can start thinking about all the ways which we are blessed, we can begin to change both our lives and other’s.
 
Which brings me to Christmas.
 
When we realize how much we are blessed, we can turn around and bless others who may not have the opportunities that we have. I would like to encourage you to take advantage of two opportunities.
 
Every year, ribbon trees are placed in Pinnacle and Heritage banks. These trees are filled with ribbons for those who are in need with gift suggestions. I appreciate FCCLA’s continual leadership in this act of love. By picking up a ribbon and buying the gift suggestion, you are helping kids and adults in our community. Every year, over fifty ribbons are left on the trees. Calvary Bible Church has committed to helping reduce the number of ribbons left. Would you and your family, your business, your organization, or your church commit to showing love to our community this year through this project?
 
The second opportunity is international. Operation Christmas Child sends shoeboxes of Christmas gifts to third world countries. Last year, churches and organizations from the United States sent 7.8 million shoeboxes full of gifts to children around the world. Calvary Bible Church is a DropOff location, during National Collection Week, November 15-22. Informational materials and empty shoeboxes can be picked up any time. For more information, visit samaritanspurse.org/occ. To build a shoebox online, which will be sent to closed countries, visit samaritanspurse.org/buildonline.
 
Together, we can show Jesus’ love to our community and the world this Christmas as an outpouring of all the ways we have been blessed.