On Saturday morning, while I was sitting in on a Bible conference session at our church, a "major catastrophe" occurred across the street in the backyard of our home. Our above-ground pool, which is 26 feet in diameter and holds 13,500 gallons of water, busted wide open! The force of the water gushing forth mangled the metallic structure of the pool, broke our neighbor's fence, and sent debris floating every which way. Here are a few pics for your viewing pleasure:
The pool burst forth through the panel containing the return line, which has had a slow perpetual drip. We had seen some rust develop on the panel that had caused us some concern. So we had sanded it, done our best to patch up the leak, but the drip was still there. At the start of the summer, we had some water delivered to top off our pool. At that time we showed the delivery man the leak, and he said, "Oh, I wouldn't worry about it. I've seen a lot worse. You'll be fine."
I'd like to send him some of the above pictures!
As I look out over my back yard at all the damage caused by this "catastrophe", I'm reminded of the destruction that often occurs on a far greater scale in the spiritual realm. Often there is a leak in one or more areas of our life where something is not right in our walk with the Lord, and a slow, steady erosion is taking place. We see that there's a problem but don't recognize how serious it is. We tell ourselves that it's not that big of a deal, even as we take halfway measures to "patch up" the problem. But we don't deal with it thoroughly - simply because we don't see the catastrophe that lies ahead and the destruction it will cause. For if we did, we would deal with the matter abruptly, doing whatever it takes to fix the problem before it's too late.
Nothing can be done to fix our pool. The damage is far too extensive. Likewise, sin devastates our life and the lives of those around us. God in His grace can make "all things new", but some things cannot be undone; some relationships cannot be restored. Credibility lost is seldom, if ever, fully regained. How important it is, then, for us to "fix the leaks" before catastrophe strikes at an unprepared moment.
Learn a lesson from our pool:
That man or woman is a fool
Who will not fix the leaks of sin
Causing corrosion deep within.
Sooner or later all will give way -
Catastrophe could occur today!
So take the matter before the Lord;
Confess your sin and obey His Word.
Do it right now - you won't regret it;
But sin will destroy you, if you let it.