Zephaniah 3:1

Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city!

As much as a well-manicured and pristine course may seemingly look by its plush fairways and putting surfaces, little things such as overrunning trash cans and a worn tee box sign can destroy the overall appearance of a golf course.

One would hope and think from the second chapter of Zephaniah that the suspect city was Nineveh. However, this disturbed nation was not the city with the prophets, the priests, the sanctuary or the law – it was Jerusalem. She was the city who was given the most, but still yet did not obey His voice, draw near to Him, receive His correction or fully trust in His provision.

The same is true of our life. We try our best to “clean up good” on the outside, but be ultimately be ruined by the filth inside. A relationship with God gives us a desire to have a clean and pure heart to serve Him and obey the instruction book for our life. However, we must be aware that the small things in our life can ruin our witness. We must be cognizant of places we visit and the words we use on a daily basis. That wrapper from the eaten Nature Valley bar ruins the appearance of that freshly cut neatly adorned green.