There is just something about crust that I have never liked. I do not like crust on my bread. My preference is to cut it off. When I make toast I always pull off the crust. In our house we have a name for the crust off my toast. They are called toastlings and Aleigh enjoys eating the toastlings I leave behind.
I do not like to eat the crust on pizza. I even choose many times to eat just the cheesecake and leave the graham cracker crust behind. The other day I baked a loaf of banana bread. I couldn’t wait to eat a piece nice and warm from the oven. I didn’t think twice when I cut into it and chose a piece that wasn’t on the end. I wanted a piece without all the crust. In my opinion the crust is a hardened exterior keeping me from a yummy interior.
Whether you like crust or not – God warns against crust forming in our spiritual walk.
“And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees.” Zeph. 1:12
Upon researching these verse I learned that this image is derived from the crust formed at the bottom of wines when they are left for a long time and are undisturbed. It warns men not to settle on their lees and become hardened or crusted.
I never knew my dislike for crust could be a great illustration for a very serious spiritual matter. My preference is for no crust on my toast but can I say the same as I reflect on the inner workings of my heart and my life? Are there places where I have allowed crust to develop because I have left that area undisturbed?
For me I began to see the crust in those areas with the most excuses – “Well, I don’t have time to do that right now” or “I’m just not ready to step out in faith in that area.” For some it may lay in the undisturbed situations that we have pushed to the back of our minds and hearts that we just do not want to deal with. “I don’t want to forgive that person – the hurt is too deep.”
Search your heart today for those undisturbed places that have crusted over. Remember there will come a day when you will be held accountable. God will shine a candle in those dark places you have tried to hide or forget, and on that day men will be punished for being settled on their lees.
Application:
Beware of settling on your lees
Instead fall upon your knees
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