Removing the Plastic

As a kid growing up in the 50’s and 60’s, I saw a lot of strange things advertised and purchased by American families. We were impressed with anything plastic. One of those plastic items was the clear plastic couch cover my parents had installed to save our family couch from the dirt and debris deposited by two sons who plopped down on the couch several times a day.

The good thing about the plastic couch cover was the fact that it did keep dirt from ever reaching our couch. The problem with it was the couch turned into a Slip and Slide in the summer when lubricated by our sweat in a house without air conditioning. In the winter it became cold and brittle feeling. It made a crackling sound from November through January. In order to

enjoy the couch we had to lay down a soft blanket on the plastic to return it to the feel and function of a real couch.

I remember the day that our family had enough of the plastic couch cover. The event took place on a hot summer day when a family member slid off the couch and onto the floor. Dad peeled out his trusty pocketknife and filleted the plastic couch cover sending it to an eternity of imprisonment in our local landfill. We were finally free! All our family got on the real couch and wiggled around in its welcoming unsoiled fabric. Dirt was no longer our concern. We had our couch back.

That couch taught me something about how we should live our lives. Life is meant to live, not protect. Like the plastic cover on our family couch, anything we put between our life and the lives of other people to keep the dirt of life out will turn us into a protected and untouchable person. These layers can resemble a plastic couch cover that lets people see a protected image of who we are, but never allows them access to the real us. This turns our lives into a place where people can no longer rest in our presence.

Today, ask the Lord to reveal where you have may have covered your life with any self-protecting layer. Maybe you got hurt in the past and you are not sure you want to set yourself up for another failure. There are many reasons to cover. The reason doesn't really matter. Allow God to cut away any coverings you have installed. He wants to become your only covering.  After God removes the plastic covering you will look inviting and welcoming once again. When this finally happens you will have people approach your life who will want to lounge in your presence because the feel and touch of that experience is how your life was created to be enjoyed.