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Beth Moore, A Woman's Heart: God's Dwelling Place

"... priests had to pass by bronze altar before they could wash in bronze basin."

basin represented vanity

"... before we can truly come before God for cleansing, we must examine ourselves to discover how we have erred.... I [cannot] turn away from a sin I have not first confronted" (85).

7 Reasons we struggle to follow Jesus' commands:

1) "Most Christians do not have the confidence in Christ to humble themselves."
2) "If we are never able to get outside that which is comfortable, we will often forfeit the very
thing that is conformable to Christ."
3) We would have to be vulnerable.
4) "All too often, our pitchers are empty. We might wash a few feet if we had something in our
pitchers. When we fail to be filled, we have nothing to pour out... the first miracle Christ
performed was filling up empty pitchers."
5) "Facing the worn, calloused areas of others' lies might remind us of our own."
6) We'd have to get on our knees to do it."
7) ... we refuse to let Christ wash our own.... not until He washed their feet were they enabled to
go and wash another's. Have you learned how to let Christ minister to you? Let Christ love
you today. Curl up in His arms and tell Him you need Him. Until you learn to let Him serve
you at the point of your need, you will never be truly free to serve others (87).

Zephaniah 3:17

"The LORD Your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."