Right Hand Only

I first went to Cameroon in 2005.  I had a great time and was used of God in a wonderful way.  God had prepared me and my dear friend, Pastor Ben, to encourage men and women towards Christ.  But Brother Ben cautioned me about a common custom in Africa.  When I was handing out gospel literature, I was to ALWAYS use only the right hand and NEVER the left.  Cameroon is very poor and for personal hygiene, the left hand is used.  Once when a crowd grew and folk were thronging to get “their own free copy” of the gospel, I began to use both hands to hand out the literature.  I was sternly, but kindly corrected by an elderly well-dressed gentleman.  He held up his right pointer finger, wagging it back and forth, and said, “Right hand only.”  Just to think of where their left hand had been, reminded me to use only the right hand.  Hey, we are told in Isaiah 64:6, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”  Our sins are loathsome to a perfect, righteous God.  To God, our sins are like used toilet paper!  Hey, our very best works are simply disgusting to God.  And the best decision that we can make is to trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior.  He can wash our filthy sins away and make us as clean as the wind-driven snow!  Jesus can make us clean!